Calligrapher Kate Smith has been creating professionally hand-lettered documents for three years.• What: Calligraphy and hand-lettered documents
• Company: Kate Smith Letters
• Website: www.katesmithletters.com
• Telephone: 770-309-7888
• Owner: Kate Smith
• What's special: "Hand-written calligraphy lends a very personal specialness to whatever document, envelope or letter I write on," Kate Smith said. "I feel like too much stuff is done on computer these days. It used to be you got something printed by a laser printer, and that was special and unique, but now that's everything. People are starting to appreciate hand-written letters more and more as it becomes more and more scarce."
• The origin story: Now 40, Smith became interested in calligraphy at age 9 through a kit that was given to her for Christmas. She continued to practice calligraphy styles such as bubble and 3-D lettering in school. For her wedding invitations, she worked with master calligraphers in Atlanta who helped her improve her skills. She began professional lettering about three years ago.
• How long does it take to make: Smith works on a variety of lettering projects, including greeting cards, love letters and posters, but the bulk of her orders are for wedding invitation envelopes, which take about 10 hours for a batch of 100. "It's quite peaceful to me," she said. "The envelope is the very first thing someone sees that pertains to someone's wedding. That's kind of important."
• What it costs: $1.50-$4 per lettered envelope; custom orders start at $40
• Plans: Smith is developing a line of premade greeting cards and invitations.
• Lessons of the trade: "Act like a business, not like a best friend," Smith said. "Acting like a friend doesn't help the client or myself. Also, don't be afraid to suggest something a little eccentric or a little different. At first, I just assumed everyone would want something traditional, but that's not the case."