I am absolutely delighted to tell you that I have been featured in Simply Lettering Magazine. I was approached by the editor to write a piece about running my business during lockdown and the challenges I had faced and how I had adapted the business in this bizarre time.
When my copy arrived in the post, there was quite a bit of screaming in The Amyverse HQ. I am referred to as a ‘well known lettering artist’, which made me feel amazing ( am tempted to change my business cards).
I subscribed to Simply Lettering magazine as soon as it was launched and it is filled with all my favourite calligraphers and it is an honour to be featured alongside them. I really love the calligraphy community and this magazine is a great resource to help people learn calligraphy. I hope my article inspires other budding calligraphers to believe in themselves. I would never have imagined two years ago that I would be where I am today. Running a small business is hard but it is so worth it and I am so proud to see The Amyverse in print.
Here is the article I wrote for Simply Lettering
I am Amy Goble, and The Amyverse is my universe of calligraphy and illustration. I have drawn for as long as I can remember and I caught the calligraphy bug when I attended my first calligraphy in September 2018 and I have been obsessed with calligraphy ever since. I specialise in bespoke wedding stationery, where I get to combine my passions for calligraphy, drawing and weddings. However, the last few months stopped everything in it’s tracks; When lockdown was announced, it all became very quiet. All the weddings I had been creating stationery for have been put on hold until we know when gatherings will be safe again. Within a week, I had designed my first change the date, so that the couples I am working with could quickly and easily tell their guests their plans had changed.This is such a difficult thing to have to send, so I have added these as a free service for my couples and I have made them as beautiful as possible. My change the dates feature hand-lettered calligraphy and illustrations to match the couple’s stationery. As I started to support couples to postpone their weddings, it all felt too real and I was very worried about what this meant for my business.
Alongside my wedding stationery, I sell greeting cards, calligraphy prints, illustrations and personalised gifts through my shop. As the country stays home to protect ourselves and to support our NHS, more and more people are turning online to send gifts and cards to their loved ones. It felt like Christmas in April with orders coming in at a rate I had not experienced before. I have been so honoured to be sending out orders across the world for my lovely customers. To help people stay at home and avoid unnecessary trips to the post office, I have been offering to add free gift messages so that my orders can be sent straight to loved ones. I love to see the messages of love and friendship at this difficult time. I also offer the add on of a beautiful hand-lettered calligraphy envelope to my cards, which has been so popular. It’s lovely to see calligraphy being appreciated and I love any excuse to add a little more calligraphy! I love making my orders a treat, so even my postal boxes and envelopes have the person’s name in calligraphy and I get so many compliments about how pretty the boxes look.
My walks to the post box and back have meant I have kept my orders contact free, which is extremely important, as I wanted to keep myself and my customers as safe as possible. That five minute walk in the sunshine has done me the world of good. In this difficult time, I turn to calligraphy to help me relax and I wanted to share my love of calligraphy with others. I had been planning on starting workshops this year, but that has been put on the backburner for now. Instead, I have created modern calligraphy set including worksheets and activities to help people learn my favourite pastime. I have designed a set perfect for beginners and improvers, so that people can try their hand at something that brings me so much joy in what is otherwise such a difficult time. Alongside my work sheets, I am offering exclusive videos to support people to learn calligraphy in a fun and relaxed manner from the comfort of their home. I feel so grateful that I can continue to keep running this side of my business and I hope my calligraphy kits help more people to fall in love with calligraphy.
