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Next Calligraphy Night: April 1, 2020
Doors open at 5:30 to set up tables & chairs. Activities begin at 6:00
Letters & Lines Theme: “Fool Around” 
Knock, knock jokes, Silly Rhymes, and Tongue Twisters are perfect for your B nib!
Do you want to be more serious…do ROMAN CAPS with a B nib!
Learn to Letter: Architectural Lettering with LynnAnn
Project: Cards
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It was another surprising Calligraphy Night where we, again, had 41 members arrive and be greeted with Jeanine’s GORGEOUS Folded Pen lettered name tags! Thanks to Dawn’s idea to stagger the tables, we seemed to fit everyone in without too much tripping over chairs. I counted 9 empty spots, so those who missed out in March, should have a spot in April!
LEARN TO LETTER
Jeanine provided us with a delightful, little, folded booklet with samples of a variety of Art Deco letters and information on Speedball nibs. She guided us through lettering one of the alphabets as we worked on one of the papers in our package. Gail handed out an information sheet about Rennie Mackintosh, a Scottish architect and designer who was well-known for his Art Deco styles. The reverse side had rose quotes that people used with their lettering for the Accordion Book. Our members practiced some Art Deco roses, following a guide sheet, then drew and painted some on art paper to pick one for the front of the mat board book cover. Both activities were learned when Gail and Jeanine took Gemma Black’s workshop last May in Calgary.
Letters & Lines – March Theme: “Bouquets and Blossoms”
Letters and Lines – Other work done by our members:
February’s Mentor Meetup:
A record number of 13 people arrived for our Mentor Meet-up Morning at the Artelier! Barbara demonstrated how to take apart and clean a Pilot Parallel Pen, then had the participants experiment with pen Manipulation to create a variety of shapes and designs. She provided a handout with several fun lettering styles which people were happy to try.
Supplies:
Our Supplies table was very busy at the March Calligraphy Night. Angela was selling packages of B Nibs and Pen Holders needed for the Learn to Letter instruction done by Jeanine. Sales were b
Katherine designed a new form for members to complete when purchasing items. This will help track sales and keep good records of popular items.
We are grateful for the opportunity to purchase some calligraphy items at our meetings.
Envelope Exchange
We are going to put the basket at the sign-in table so you can add your name before entering the room. During the evening, Margret will send the basket around so those participating can draw a name. We notice that far more names are in the basket than the envelopes which are brought to display. Remember that accepting a name is a commitment and we want people to experience the delight that receiving a special envelope in the mail brings! Plus, we love to see the creative, variety of envelopes you design!
Outreach
On February 21, 2020, Jeanine presented the Getty-Dubay Cursive Italic Handwriting Success introductory 
session to 7 members of the South West Edmonton Seniors Association. Gail came along as the assistant.
After the participants practiced the letterforms, Jeanine led them through the process of creating watercolour letters. This was quite a bit more challenging! The workshop morning was very well-received, and we were encouraged by their interest and enthusiasm!
Thanks to new member, Angela, we received an invitation to host a table at the 
Alberta Teachers’ Association Wellness Fair on March 3, 2020.
We displayed all levels of the Getty-Dubay cursive Italic curriculum for people to peruse and had demo sheets for teachers to try.
Unfortunately, it was a slow evening and we only had two people who stopped to get further information.
Next year, we hope to be part of their annual convention.
May 2—Bountiful Market Mother’s Day cards.
If you have unwanted stickers or ‘jewels’ suitable for kids to add to their cards, please donate them at the April 1 Calligraphy Night!
March’s Mentor Meetup
Workshops
April 25, 2020 Sally Towers- Sybblis
Tea-Light Lanterns $80
June 6 & 7, 2020 Phawnda Moore
Watercolour Letters and Design
$180
Suitable for all levels.
https://www.facebook.com/Calli graphyandDesignByPhawnda/
WORKSHOPS BY OUR MEMBERS IN OTHER LOCATIONS
Folded Pen Flair—Jeanine Alexander April 5, 2020
The Paint Spot – click here to register.
Pointed Pen—Pauline April 16, 23, 30 6:30-9:00
Mill Woods Seniors & Multicultural Center https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/pointed-pen-introductoryrefresher-series-tickets- 99252293281?aff=ebdssbdestsearch Join us in this Pointed Pen Introductory/Refresher Series.
Start at the basics and experience the joys of the pointed pen.
CONFERENCES
World Calligraphy Conference Slovenia
July 26-July1, 2020 https://www.skriptorij.org/
ABC 2020
Red Deer, Alberta August 9-13, 2020 :https://abc2020.ca/about/
LOREDANA ZEGA’S DRAW
There are only two months left to purchase tickets for the stylized Tree donated by Slovenian calligrapher, Loredana Zega. As not many have been sold, we’d like to encourage you to consider buying tickets on this original calligraphy art worth $140. The draw will be made at the AGM in May, so bring your money in April!
RIDE-SHARING
One of our new members lives in the downtown area and relies on transit to get to the meetings. Going home takes over an hour. If you travel close to the core of the city, or go near an LRT station, please contact us through the website email and we’ll try to help out.
CALLIGRAPHY SUPPLIES
We were impressed by the dedication our members demonstrated in purchasing the supplies needed for the March Calligraphy Night. Several Art Shops offer a 10% discount to ECS members when you ask. We encourage you to request specific calligraphy items, and if the shop doesn’t have the supplies you need, ask them to start ordering and carrying them. The more often people ask for and buy calligraphy tools, the more likely the shops will be to keep them in stock!
VOLUNTEERS
Membership—We are so fortunate to have such passionate and enthusiastic ECS members who never cease to amaze me! Thank you to Arlene and Henry for stepping up to work under Cynthia’s mentorship till September when they will partner to look after the Membership position
Reggie Ezell—Calligrapher
Reggie has recently made all 185 of his formerly ‘private for his students’ calligraphy videos public on his Reggie Ezell Channel. We have a couple of his DVDs in the ECS Library, but now, they are available here: www.reggieezell.com
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvMF1n3f65U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2vc3XmbRYQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbGc78-PO0
MAY AGM and Bring Your Other Interests Night
We usually plan to have our election of new executive members. I believe we have a full slate of volunteers who are just transitioning into their new roles to begin in September, so we will have lots of time to have some fun with Decorated Caps.
Because many of us have other interests, we want to give you a ‘heads up’ that we’d like you to bring a couple of examples of arty things you’ve made…pottery (with letters?!), fabric and textile art, woodworking, metal work, painting, paper crafts, glass, etc.
MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL
To help make the renewal of the 78 ECS memberships process smoothly, we like to get a head start and offer an incentive to encourage you to be proactive. Please print and fill out a membership form and bring it with you, along with your payment (cheque, cash, credit card) to the April Calligraphy Night to receive your reward. May is our last Calligraphy Night of the ECS year, so having a head start on the renewals is very helpful. Receipts and membership cards will be given to you at the May Calligraphy Night.
Click here for your membership form.
Gail Fournier
ECS President
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