SIDE HUSTLE Nicki Traikos SIDE HUSTLE Nicki Traikos

Passive Income, as part of your calligraphy business

A few years ago I was working a lot! I was designing for my clients, printing orders from my shops, creating my first few online classes and teaching workshops all over town. Seven days a week was the norm for me, and my husband also travelled a lot for work, which meant I was the kid’s numero uno.

I kept that pace for about a year and then started to feel burnt out!

Read More
BE CREATIVE, SIDE HUSTLE Nicki Traikos BE CREATIVE, SIDE HUSTLE Nicki Traikos

How to Easily Hand Letter and Paint Greeting Cards

Years ago I was busy lettering, digitizing, designing, printing, selling & shipping, greeting cards as part of my online shop! It was a very busy few years in my business that required a lot of time and effort from me but I did enjoy creating some fun and sassy greeting cards that quickly became popular in my shop!

Greeting cards are a great way to share a personal message with a friend, say thank you to a client or if you are a calligraphy or letterer, to create a gratifying income stream or two in your business!

Read More
SIDE HUSTLE Nicki Traikos SIDE HUSTLE Nicki Traikos

My 5 Tips for Starting a Calligraphy Business like Megan Markle

I read recently that Megan Markle, as in Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Sussex Megan Markle, had a little calligraphy side hustle going. Before HRH got her big break working on the show Suits, she worked for a paper company and offered calligraphy for celebrity weddings and even taught a workshop! How cool is that?! She prides her self on being very disciplined as she learned and practiced the art of calligraphy!

Read More
BE CREATIVE Nicki Traikos BE CREATIVE Nicki Traikos

A fun and meaningful contest for World Calligraphy Day 2019!

This World Calligraphy Day is going to be a little bit more special. I have the pleasure of teaming up with Manuscript Pen Co to offer some inspiration to practice your calligraphy, lettering, or even handwriting for a special cause for World Calligraphy Day this year. Along with participating, we have a great giveaway to share!

Read More
BE CREATIVE Nicki Traikos BE CREATIVE Nicki Traikos

My top hand lettering tools for beginners

For hand lettering and calligraphy fans, it’s such an exciting time to explore this skill and craft. There are many different lettering tools available on the market now to help you with your lettering projects. Far more than when I first started out for sure!!

Calligraphy and lettering is a large part of what makes up the design end of my business. I’ve even started teaching other the craft through workshops and classes.

I often get questions about which class to start with, or which tool to use, so I thought I’d share with you a quick video that I made demonstrating my top hand lettering tools for beginners!

To help you get a better understanding for all the lettering tools available, I’ve narrowed down my top hand lettering tools for beginners

Read More
BE CREATIVE Nicki Traikos BE CREATIVE Nicki Traikos

Free Printable Christmas gift tags

I wanted to please everyone with these free printable Christmas gift tags and hopefully you’ll find them easy to use wether you prefer wrapping paper or gift bags!!

I wanted to create a really special free printable for my loyal readers and followers as a way for me to help make this season a bit easier and enjoyable for you! So I created theses…

Free Printable Christmas Gift Tags

Read More
BE CREATIVE Nicki Traikos BE CREATIVE Nicki Traikos

What's the difference between hand lettering and calligraphy?

There is a difference between hand lettering and calligraphy. Some would argue that there’s a big difference. I personally feel that any form of lettering, is simply letters that are “drawn” vs. “written”. In both cases, we draw strokes that are very purposeful and consistent. The difference between hand lettering and calligraphy is that the elements of those strokes vary. I recorded this video to help with explaining the difference between hand lettering and calligraphy in the hopes of helping to show how the elements of each art form vary.

Click play to watch the video.

Read More
BE CREATIVE Nicki Traikos BE CREATIVE Nicki Traikos

How to make seating cards

I shared on my instagram, seating cards that I was making for my Modern Calligraphy dip pen workshop. Some of you wanted more information about how to make them so I went live on Instagram and showed how I letter the seating cards using a dip pen and a simple painting brush.

The end result is really beautiful and the steps are actually super simple! I thought I’d demystify the process of making seating cards so that you can try your hand at making them for your next gathering, special event or meeting!

Read More
Nicki Traikos Nicki Traikos

Why simplifying beats struggling

Have you every had one of those days, moments, times when things just don't seem to come together no matter how hard you try?!  You problem solve. You think outside of the box and look for alternatives.  You try your best and things still don't seem to work out as planned.  Or even at all?!

Read More