Bilbo's Last Song

[dreamflower]

Here's a little calligraphy project I did:




I used 8 ½ x 11 heavy-duty acid-free paper (I am afraid I do not remember the brand.) in a pale grey shade. I used watercolors to make a “sunset” wash across the bottom half of the page. Once it dried, I ironed it flat with a dry iron set on synthetic, and ruled it for the calligraphy. I used a Pelikan cartridge pen--a medium nib for the title, and a fine nib for the words to the song. And I used a rather standard uncial hand.


And here's another:



A friend of mine gave me a reproduction of "Sting", autographed by Elijah Wood, with a scabbard. I decided to do something special for it when it is framed, so I went to:

http://www.elvish.org/gwaith/movie_inscriptions.htm#maeg

where I found the inscription, in Sindarin, in both Tengwar and English letters, and the English translation.




Again, I used a Pelikan to do the calligraphy,and a .005 micron pen to outline the illumination. The illumination is painted in gouache.

The illuminated inscription will be matted and mounted between the sword and the scabbard. It's all at the framers, and should be finished in about a month.

I apologize for it being sideways, but it's a scan, not a photograph.

Thanks, danachan for uploading all this for me!

Comments

[allisona.livejournal.com]

Your calligraphy is lovely. I've always been especially fond of "Bilbo's Last Song". My music group, Urban Tapestry, frequently sing the version of that poem from the end of the BBC LOTR radio production.

[dreamflower]

Thank you!

It's that tune, from the BBC production, that the Hobbitons use, in fact. I love it, for it seems to suit the words so well.

[shirebound]

That is GORGEOUS calligraphy!

[dreamflower]

Why thank you! I do a good many crafts of one sort or another, but calligraphy will always be my first love!

[budgielover.livejournal.com]

WOW! These are beautiful! Now I know who to shamelessly beg to have LotRs calligraphy done!

[dreamflower]

Feel free! I *love* the chance to do calligraphy!

[ramblin_rosie]

How *do* you do gouache, and where do you find it? I had a deuce of a time figuring out how to illuminate a sonnet I just did up for some friends who are getting married... ended up using acid-free paint pens and outlined with .45mm Zig pens in the spots where I wanted more of a border.

Beautiful work. :) I like your uncial R better than the one that's in the booklet that came with my pens! And I'm very impressed with your tengwar; it looks good enough to have been computer-printed.

[dreamflower]

Gouache is a type of watercolor, only more opaque than the usual. I purchased a set of Reeves Gouache at Michaels Arts & Crafts; it's inexpensive, a major factor. I have one tube of gold gouache that a friend gave me. But you can buy individual tubes of gouache either at art stores or online--the cost is about the same as for regualar watercolor, depending, of course on both the brand and the color.

The colors are dense and rich; it takes only a very little water. I use very small detail brushes--00 and smaller (I have one that is 18/00). For such things as shading, you can float gouache in much the same way as acrylics, using a flat brush, and white on one corner and your color on the other. While I did use gold gouache on the illumination of this one, I often use composition "gold" leaf to add gold to some illuminations.

Acid free pens are good, but you can't get the richness of color with them, and of course, you can't really use white with them. Still, I've used them myself to good effect on occasions.

I do two or three uncial alphabets. This is my favorite. And thanks for the compliments on the Tengwar--I *love* doing it, it is so gorgeous! If I can ever find my old sampler, I have a couple of other peices I might post. And I am working on a few more.

[ramblin_rosie]

I see. Thanks for the explanation; I'll have to try to find a set next time I'm at Michaels!

[lame-pegasus.livejournal.com]

Very, very lovely, both of them. Brava!

[dreamflower]

Thank you! *blushes*bows*

[lily-the-hobbit.livejournal.com]

This is amazing!!! I'm totally in love with the look of it. How long did you work ion these?

[dreamflower]

"Bilbo's Last Song" took about two days. The first day, I laid the wash--which took several tries until I got one that looked just so, to suit me. While I waited for it to dry, I worked on rough drafts and pencil layouts.

The second day I wrote it out on graph paper, using the nibs I planned for the completed project. I used a light table to trace over it in order to rule faint pencil guidlines on the prepared background, and also used the pencil to trace the first letter of each line. The actual calligraphy itself took only about an hour.

The "Sting inscription" took me about four hours, and about three tries, before I got one I was satisfied with enough to paint the illumination. And then maybe another hour to paint it.

[slightlytookish]

Beautiful and amazing! I love the watercolors in the first and the second looks like something you'd find in a museum. You could sell things like this.

[dreamflower]

Thank you so much!

I do commissions every once in a great while, but most of my calligraphy is done for our SCA group. I really enjoy it when I can do pieces like these just for fun.

[kelbebop.livejournal.com]

Beautiful calligraphy! I especially love the illumination. Just lovely!

I had to do calligraphy way WAY back in high school commercial art class, and I had a rough time with it, so I'm officially in awe. :)

[dreamflower]

Thank you dear! I'm glad you like it!

Calligraphy's not that hard to learn, it just takes time and practice to get proficient. And patience, which is not that important to a high schooler, LOL! But I bet you'd be great at it now--I'm in awe of your sewing skills, which put mine in the shade!