Ebru Kefeli Lettering

4 things you didn't know about Ebru:

Her story:

Hi! I‘m an architect who became a calligrapher 2,5 years ago. I worked as an architect for 15 years. I had the privilege of working in fantastic locations like Mali and Turks and Caicos Islands. In 2013, I had a son and decided to take a sabbatical to raise him. When he was 2 years old, I started working again as an architect. But something was different, my world view and how I perceived architecture had changed. In 6 months, I realized I no longer wanted to work in the creation of spaces, but rather, wanted to do something more meaningful to me. I had a lifelong love for ink, paper, pens, colors, but I didn’t know what to do with them until I discovered calligraphy.

How she turned her passion into a brand:

Architects have the tendency to draw or write; basically, we try to express our feelings with a tactile material which is mainly pen and paper. My go-to system was always writing. I met modern calligraphy when I was trying to write the names of my closest friend’s in an aesthetic way on their wedding gift. I started with faux calligraphy with a fountain pen and discovered brush pens. For almost a year, I wrote with different brush pens, brushes, and pens. All my notes and presents turned into something I did with those pens, and it was a hobby. I created my first product, which was a set of new year’s postcards for a friend’s NGO. I did some posters and a set of milestone cards for babies. But the idea was always creating something until I found a way of using my architectural formation in a proper job. During those months, I saw many calligraphers working with nib and ink. I always thought that was amazing but there was nobody around I could learn writing with nib and ink from. Until I decided to write something special for my father’s 70th birthday party. I tried it on my own. It took almost 10 days to write 40 place cards and 10 menu sheets, but I learned how to use them, and that was when I fell in love with nib and ink.

The difference between calligraphy and handwritten notes:

Handwritten notes are mainly made with your handwriting, and it is one’s own form of lines to transfer thoughts into a written form. Modern calligraphy is basically 7-line forms coming together to form letters and words. For me, handwriting is mostly a fast way of expressing myself on paper. Still, when it comes to calligraphy, it’s kind of painting with lines. I concentrate on how lines form and how they connect aesthetically, creating a form on the paper rather than the meaning of the words. When I write, I aim to create a flow with each and every stroke.

Her favorites kind of paper, pen, ink:

I love different materials, so I try to write on everything. As a world-view, I try to use natural materials and exclude any plastic. My favorite medium for writing is a wooden oblique pen and a nib. The sound of the nib moving on the paper is like music, and concentrating on lines is very meditative. I prefer handmade papers, which I admire the workmanship and knowing that I am creating something which is crafted with so much hardship with natural materials is fantastic.