Peeling Back the Curtain on all things Live Calligraphy, Engraving, and Hot Foiling in austin, tx
Answering all of your burning live event calligraphy questions and more (because it’s 88 degrees in Texas rn)
Whether we’re engraving, foiling or doing live calligraphy on-site, “I’ve never seen this before!” is easily one of the most heard guest remarks we hear. Our mission in this blog post is to change that. We believe that every Austin brand activation, corporate gala, luxury wedding, and experiential event deserves a live event artist (Handsome Ink 😉) to elevate the guest experience at their soirée. Because unlike popular belief, penmanship is exciting, and we’re here to peel back the curtain on how you can add this live experience to your next event.
Live Customization Services: Engraving, Hot Foiling, & Calligraphy in Austin
Just as the name states, on-site calligraphy is a service that is provided live at an event by a skilled calligraphy artist. Here are some of the services that can be provided on-site:
Live engraving & glass etching: Etching luxury surfaces like perfume bottles, wine glasses, YETI tumblers, steel, and ceramics
Live hot foiling & leather embossing: A heat-transfer process perfect for custom luggage tags, leather notebooks, and luxury brand swag
Live calligraphy: Penmanship done on paper or packaged goods and personalized with pen, ink or paint pens great for paper, packaging, name tags or other unique surfaces
Live pyrography: The process of using a heat tool to deboss the desired personalization for surfaces like wood, and certain leathers
How much space does a live calligrapher take on-site?
The second question we get most often when we are booking a client is, “What is your event footprint?” AKA how much space will you take up? This is very important because as an experiential service our main goal is always to add to the event, not detract. Planners be assured — our set-up is minimal, needing simply a table and a chair to work our penmanship magic.
And in case you’re wondering, here’s a set-up example of how we pop-up for retail. We do recommend an additional table when servicing a high-volume event to accommodate the finished products for guests to pick up. Here are our set-up recommendations:
An example of a retail-set up engraving wine at HEB for Treasury Wine Estates bottles
Retail set-up: One table, one chair, table cloth and signage
Note: we can bring these items on-site if you need us to.
High-volume set-up: With the service of live engraving especially, we recommend two tables, one chair, table cloth and signage. Note that this can still accomodate up to 2 calligraphers. Our take is that each table can host 1-2 calligraphers max, and this very scientific formula can be multiplied and scaled up when we work with a team of multiple artists.
We recommend working with you on clear large signage that is on-brand for you and your team to ensure that the high number of guests are able to understand the activation right away before approaching our live artistry table.
Wedding set up: One table, one chair, table cloth and signage
We collaborate with brides and planners to ensure that the signage that is made by your team is custom to the wedding theme and will be easily appreciated and understood by guests at the party.
Note that for weddings, we leave the tablecloth and table decour to the planning experts (looking at you florists and decorators)
For weddings, we recommend a roomier set-up with an additional table to house finished items for guests to pick-up.
And if you’re looking to have presenters, speeches or dedicated quiet time during your event, we recommend placing our artistry table away from the main stage. Though our tools are non-distracting, we’d hate to interrupt the bridal party speech with the background sound of engraving.
The "Line Control" Strategy
High-volume lines can scare anyone —and tbh can bring down the mood of your event. To keep lines short and guest flow moving, we bring custom order forms so people can quickly and clearly understand the process—or come back to their personalized item. Though our service is artistry, logistics are always top-of-mind to create an enjoyable experience for your guests.
Custom order forms keep guest flow efficient and the guest experience enjoyable
How many items can you personalize per hour?
The third most common question we receive when prospects inquire is “How many items can you personalize per hour?”. Valid question — and though it certainly depends on the kind of item and service (especially for unique surfaces) we use these ballpark estimates to give you a better sense of how our process works behind-the-scenes. Oh and we are able to accommodate any other requests and give a more accurate estimate upon inquiry.
Estimates of how many items one calligrapher can personalize per hour:
Engraving: Around 30-50 items per hour for initials or first names only.
Hot Foiling: Around 30-50 items per hour for initials or first names only.
Calligraphy: This can vary greatly — sometimes we’re hired on-site to personalize long messages during special holidays, and sometimes we’re hired to write guest names on name tags.
Dry Time & Safety
Everyone worries about smudging (calligraphers included). Live engraving and hot foiling are instant and dry-time free, meaning guests take them immediately.
Does Handsome Ink provide the products to be personalized?
The short answer is yes, and no. Our standard rate does not include the products that will be personalized themselves, though we do offer the service of sourcing if you need us to source and purchase the materials for the event for an added fee. In between product options for your event? We work with you as a consultant to make sure the selected product will work well with our services or can recommend products that we’ve used in the past.
Do you offer samples?
Oftentimes, we work with agencies who know exactly what they want to be personalized at a high volume and are looking for a specific look for their guests. Most often we ask that you send a sample of your product in advance for a couple of reasons:
Working with a sample ahead of your event allows us to calibrate our tools, ensuring we do that prep-work ahead of the event and show up on-site knowing exactly which settings are best suited for you.
Personalizing a sample in our studio ahead of time allows us to send you a mock-up so that you can get a sneak peek of what the guests will receive day-of. This is especially important for brands who are looking to stick to stringent branding or would like the personalization on-site to be done in a specific part of the product.
Having a sample ahead of time is always a win-win. Why? It allows us to not only test the material and calibrate our tools, but a lot of times we create special guides for the product to bring on-site. This cuts production time and makes everything faster, allowing us to service more guests with these pre-made lining tools that make everything more seamless.
A script sample mock-up for a menu place card for a Lancôme VIP dinner
Can you pre-customize some of the items ahead of the event?
The answer is absolutely. If you already have VIP clients that you know will be at your event and would like these items pre-personalized ahead of the event, we do that too. Why is this beneficial? In-studio personalization allows us to have a bit more time with the item and give it a little more TLC. That means that we can add extra flourishes or razzle dazzle to the items that go to the people on your want-to-impress list. Though— everyones a VIP in our book.
What Kinds of Austin Events is Live Art Customization Best For?
The list is endless, but here are some of the events that can be leveled up with the art of on-site personalization:
SXSW activations and VIP lounges
F1 Race Week dinners in Downtown Austin
Austin Hill Country corporate retreats
Galas
Experiential activations
VIP dinners
Luncheons
Wedding receptions
Wedding cocktail hours
Retail pop-ups
Company summits
Corporate retreats
Company holiday parties
Bridal showers
Brand activations
PR Launches
Experiential marketing activations
VIP guest gifting / C-suite corporate gifting
And more
Why should we hire a live calligrapher for our event?
We’re not gatekeeping—we want more guests to hire calligraphy for their event, but what does that actually do for your brand?
Personalized gifts act as an "Instagrammable moment" that drives social media shares and brand impressions
Experiential activations are still floating under the radar. Booking a unique service like this one will have guests talking about your brand and event long after the party ends
Some studies show that over 64% of companies increased corporate gifting budgets to actively reduce client churn.
Why should you choose handsome ink?
At the end of the day, we’re your favorite calligrapher’s favorite calligrapher. But in all seriousness, when you work with Handsome Ink, you don’t just get the artistry. We bring project management prowess (one of us was a project manager after all) and professional organization that shows up from the communication to day-of and everything in-between. Plus, we’ve been studying the art of calligraphy for a combined 20+ years. Our professional experience has allowed us to test and calibrate highly unique, unconventional substrates We care deeply about the artistry and are continued learners of the craft. Plus we bring some jokes. 😂
have any more questions?
We recently talked about how experiential is all the rage right now — and more importantly how it goes hand-in-hand with brand loyalty and guest retention. Because good experiences lead to good relationships, and everyone loves a custom engraved Yeti tumbler — am I right?
And if you have any extra questions, our inbox is open (even if it’s slightly full 😅). Use our Contact us page or send us an email with your event details to see how we can bring live personalization to your party.
Bonus: Did we mention we have an ongoing list of our favorite Austin vendors and event venues? Whether you’re planning your next event at The Omni, The Contemporary Austin, Hotel Van Zandt, or a stunning vineyard in the Austin Hill Country, we know the ins and outs of local spaces. Let’s chat!