Day 1: Upstroke & Downstroke
Hello! I'm Felecia Scott, and welcome to Learning Calligraphy from Absolute Zero.
If you've ever wanted to learn calligraphy but felt too intimidated to start, you're in the right place. That's exactly where I was. For years, I was convinced it was a talent I simply didn't have. Then I realized something important: every skilled calligrapher was once a beginner.
I signed up for a 30-day free calligraphy class with Becca C. Rafter aka The Happy Ever Crafter. This is an introduction into Calligraphy that teaches the seven strokes of calligraphy. Per Becca, “It’s about making sure you have a solid foundation for brush strokes so you can move into the next phase of learning calligraphy which is making letters.”
For the next 30 days and the foreseeable future, I will be sharing my progress the good, the bad, and hopefully the beautiful. I will be uploading my practice sheet with each post. I’m learning calligraphy from absolute zero.
Let me tell you at the end of practicing my first sheet; my hand was aching. It was awkward holding the pen because I was trying to get the right grip but fumbled a lot. My hand and pen didn’t want to work together. It was challenging and exciting at the same time.
I found myself after watching Becca’s video, the instructor trying to remember everything she said in the video about light pressure on the upstroke and hard pressure on the downstroke. Rotate my brush pen every two to three strokes for even use. This prevents uneven wearing the brush tip pen. Then I told myself, “Felecia, breathe!” Slow down, get out of your head and focus on each stroke.”
I alternated between the soft tip and hard tip Fudenosuke pens. The green brush pen is the soft tip brush pen. The blue brush pen is the hard tip. My hands were really shaky, which is normal for novice calligrapher such as myself.
Completing Day 1 was both rewarding and empowering. I've wanted to learn calligraphy for the longest time, but I was honestly intimidated. That's why it took me so long to find the courage to begin. This blog exists to share the experience of learning honestly and openly, so others can see that every skilled calligrapher once stood exactly where I am today—with a blank page, an unsteady hand, and a willingness to learn.
At the end of every blog post, I'll include videos of my lessons and practice sessions from YouTube so you can follow my progress step by step. You'll see the successes, the mistakes, and everything in between. If you're learning alongside me, I'd love to hear where you are in your own journey. Whether you're on Day 1 or Day 100, you're welcome here.
After all, every expert was once a beginner, and around here, we all start from absolute zero.
Editor’s Note: I actually began this challenge on Monday, July 6, 2026, but you're reading this now. The idea to document my journey came to me on the very first day of class. It took a little time to build this website and get everything up and running, but I'm excited to finally share my progress from the beginning.