handwriting
Handwriting styles
The main types of handwriting, and the 12 hands our pen writes.
There are four everyday types of handwriting: print, block capitals, cursive and italic. Formal scripts such as copperplate sit on top of those. Below is what each one is, then a sample of every hand you can pick when you write a card with us. Each sample is drawn from the file our pen follows, so it shows what lands on the card.
Types of handwriting
Five styles cover almost everything.
Print
Each letter stands on its own, with small gaps between them. Also called manuscript. It is what most children learn first, and it is the easiest style to read.
Block capitals
Print in capital letters only. Forms ask for it because every letter is clear. On a card it reads as loud, so it suits a short heading more than a message.
Cursive
The letters join, so the pen rarely lifts inside a word. People use it because it is faster to write. It is also called joined-up writing or running writing.
Italic
A slanted style from Renaissance Italy that joins some letters and not others. It is simpler than looped cursive, and some schools teach it for that reason.
Script and calligraphy
Formal, flowing hands such as copperplate and Spencerian, with loops and a contrast between thick and thin lines. They take care and time, so they are kept for invitations and big days.
Where the styles come from
A few dates, with sources.
- The first printed book on italic writing was Ludovico degli Arrighi's La Operina, published in Rome in 1522. Source: Library of Congress
- Copperplate takes its name from copybooks printed from engraved copper plates. George Bickham's The Universal Penman (1733 to 1741) collected the style from London's writing masters. Source: Wikipedia: Copperplate script
- In the United States, Platt Rogers Spencer developed Spencerian script around 1840. Schools later swapped it for the Palmer Method, a plainer and quicker hand. Source: Wikipedia: Spencerian script
- D'Nealian, first published in 1978, slants its print letters so that moving on to cursive means adding joins, not learning new shapes. Source: Wikipedia: D'Nealian
- Cursive is coming back to some classrooms. California's AB 446, signed in 2023, requires cursive or joined italics to be taught in grades 1 to 6. Source: California Legislative Information: AB 446
Our 12 handwriting styles
Real pen paths, not a screen font.
A pen writes each card in ink, one line per stroke. Every sample below is made by the same code that makes the file sent to the pen, at the size it is written on a 4 × 6 postcard, in blue ink. Names are the ones you will see in the editor.
Casual
Casual print
Relaxed everyday handwriting. Suits: postcards and quick notes to friends.
Elegant
Joined script
Flowing script for invitations. Suits: wedding thank-yous and invitations.
Print-like
Print
Clear, friendly hand lettering. Suits: notes that must be read at a glance, like a customer thank-you.
Fountain
Bold script
Ink-pen character with flair. Suits: short, happy lines: a big thank-you or a birthday wish.
Kalam
Slanted print
Warm, slightly slanted everyday notes. Suits: everyday notes that should look dashed off by hand.
Handlee
Rounded print
Soft, rounded letters with a personal feel. Suits: family cards and notes to children.
Indie Flower
Loose print
Loose, playful notebook handwriting. Suits: playful notes between friends.
Architects Daughter
Neat print
Neat hand printing with an open, airy feel. Suits: business cards to clients, where tidy matters.
Allura
Formal script
Delicate calligraphy for special occasions. Suits: weddings, anniversaries and other big days.
Sacramento
Thin looping script
Light, looping script with a vintage feel. Suits: anniversary and keepsake cards with an old-style look.
Bad Script
Slanted cursive
Slender, slanted writing for personal letters. Suits: longer personal letters.
Gochi Hand
Marker print
Bold, cheerful lettering full of character. Suits: cheerful short notes and kids' birthdays.
Lettering for other alphabets
The hands above write the Latin alphabet. When you pick another language in the editor, it offers lettering made for that script instead. These are rounded lettering faces rather than joined hands, and the pen writes them the same way, one line per stroke.
Devanagari
Hindi, Marathi, Nepali
Bengali
Bengali, Assamese
Gujarati
Gujarati
Gurmukhi
Punjabi
Kannada
Kannada
Malayalam
Malayalam
Odia
Odia
Tamil
Tamil
Telugu
Telugu
Urdu
Urdu
World lettering
Latin, Greek, Cyrillic
Chinese · Simplified
Simplified Chinese
Chinese · Traditional
Traditional Chinese
Chinese · Hong Kong
Hong Kong Chinese
Japanese
Japanese
Korean
Korean
Use your own handwriting
Give the pen your letters, and it writes in your hand.
In the editor, open the handwriting options and choose to set up your own. You give us 74 characters: small letters, capitals, numbers and common punctuation. There are two ways to do it.
Write on paper
Print our sheet, write one letter in each box with a dark pen, and add a photo of it. The photo is read on your own device. You then check each letter and untick any that came out wrong.
Write on your screen
Draw each letter with a finger or a stylus. On a computer you can move to your phone to draw, and the letters come back to the card you are writing.
You do not have to finish in one go. Any character you have not given us is written in the style you picked, and the editor tells you how many characters in your message use it. The pen follows the strokes you drew, the same way it follows ours.
Pick a hand and write your card.
Type your message, choose one of the styles above or your own, and a real pen writes it and we post it. Sign-up is invite only during the private preview. Sending cards for a business? See cards for business.