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Fun fact: one of the very first reasons I got into calligraphy was because I wanted to write my own greetings on handmade holiday cards. I used to spend a fortune at Michaels buying cute little stickers to stick on the front of my cards – until one year I thought…

“Wait. I’m crafty. I could probably just learn to write this myself.”

And here we are. 😄

So if that sounds like you – you love making holiday cards but want the lettering to look really good – I’ve got you. In this tutorial, I’ll walk you through how to write common holiday phrases in a fun, bouncy calligraphy style… and I’ve made a free worksheet you can print and trace along with.

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Supplies I Used

• Small Brush Pen (Tombow Fudenosuke – my fav!)
• Paper or cardstock (Rhodia – my fav!)
• Pencil + eraser (for layout drafts)
• Optional: Tracing paper (optional but helpful!)

If you’ve never done brush lettering or calligraphy before – no worries at all. You can follow along with the worksheet…

BUT if you feel lost on the basics (thick + thin strokes, pen angles, etc.), I highly recommend starting with my free crash course: ShowMeYourDrills. It covers everything you need to know before diving into full words like these.

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Rather watch than read? Check out the full video by clicking the video below!

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Let’s Get Started!

Here are the phrases I demonstrate in the video:

• happy holidays
• merry christmas
• holly jolly
• merry & bright
• joy (because why not!)

I write all of these in lowercase letters – because for my holiday cards, I love a style that’s playful, bouncy, and non-traditional.

BUT inside the worksheet, I’ve also included uppercase alphabet options, so you can mix and match however you like.

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Stacking Words for Holiday Card Layouts

Once you’ve written all the words, you can mix and match them to build little phrases. This is where tracing paper comes in handy!

Here’s how to stack them step-by-step:

1. Trace your first word (e.g., happy).
2. Slide the tracing paper up and position it above the next word (e.g., holidays).
3. Keep shifting it until the spacing looks right – watch for overlapping ascenders and descenders!
4. Once you like the layout, tape it down or re-trace it onto your card.
5. Add symbols like &, +, or a decorative ampersand to connect words.

I show several versions in the tutorial – including different ampersands and “and” symbols, so you can test out what fits best.

Want help with spacing and layout? I have a full post + video on layout hacks you can find HERE.

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How to Transfer Your Layout to a Card

Once you’ve finalized your phrase, you can transfer it:

• Using a light box
• By lightly sketching in pencil
• Or with my favorite trick… a chalk/graphite transfer (I have a full tutorial on this!)

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Download your FREE Holiday Words Template!

I made a free worksheet that includes:
✔ Traceable versions of every holiday phrase
✔ Uppercase alphabet options to pair with lowercase words
✔ Blank practice space to experiment with layout

This is such a fun way to level up your handmade cards – and once you learn these words, you can apply the same process for birthdays, weddings, thank you cards, and more.

If you create any holiday cards after this tutorial, I’d love to see what you make.
Happy lettering, and happy holidays! ❄️✨

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And finally, your dad joke…

How do you organize a space party?
You planet.