www.mightyape.co.nz
Online ordering: YES
Mighty Ape stock a selection of calligraphy supplies. What I like about Might Ape is that it tells you the status of the stock really clearly ie. ‘In stock ships tomorrow’ or ‘Available but will ship in 2 weeks’. And it usually arrives at your door really fast!!
INKS: They have a good selection of Winsor & Newton Calligraphy Inks and all the beautiful Pilot Iroshizuku Inks (the colours of these inks are so vibrant!)
NIBS & HOLDERS: Mighty Ape have a very small selection of calligraphy nibs and holders.
They do have a couple of beautiful calligraphy box sets including a J Herbin set which would be great for starting pointed pen or copperplate calligraphy, and a Winsor & Newton set would help you get started in formal calligraphy.
CALLIGRAPHY PENS: Mighty Ape stock a range Pilot Pen products including the Pilot Parallel Pens and Pilot Calligraphy pens. These are great for getting started in formal calligraphy without needing to dib your nib into ink.
BRUSH PENS: Mighty Ape have a range of brush pens.
Both the Artline Brush Markers and the Artline STIX Brush Markers are great for beginners to brush lettering. Their brush nib size is similar to the Tombow brush pens I regularly use in my workshops, and is also nice and firm which is ideal when learning.
The Pentel Fude brush pens are a great smaller nibbed brush pen which makes them great for lettering on invitations, certificates, journalling etc. And they come in a whole range of colours.
Another nice smaller brush pen is the Faber Castell: Pitt Artist Brush Pen. They also sell box sets of these pens with a whole range of colours.
Aqua brush pens can be great once you have got the hang of using a brush pen (the nibs on these are quite a lot softer) and you can create cool watercolour lettering.
BOOKS: Mighty Ape have quite a few books - a couple that I think could be helpful for beginners are:
Mastering Copperplate Calligraphy - great if you want to get into really elaborate detailed copperplate script.
Left- Handed Calligraphy - for the lefties :)
Want to know more about calligraphy supplies in New Zealand? I have put together an overview of four physical Auckland stores – two of which you can easily order online:
- Gordon Harris (There are 4 Auckland stores, plus stores in Hamilton, Wellington and Christchurch. Online ordering available)
- Takapuna Art Supplies (Online ordering available)
- Daiso (2 Auckland stores, 1 in Wellington)
And two other online platforms for those not in Auckland:
- Inkt (there is a physical store in Whanganui)
If you have some information about supplies at a calligraphy store in your town please do send them through and I can add to this list.
PS. Some of these may be affiliate links which means I may get a tiny commission when you purchase through them. This doesn’t affect any of the recommendations though :)
PPS. Photos and products are from June/July 2020. Current instore stock may differ.