One Word Space Art

Looking for some simple but good looking art to do? Then this is perfect for you! Write one word over and over, only changing the color, and produce something really cool that all of your friends will like.

Supplies

-Lots of different colored pens/pencils/sharpies or highlighters
-Ruler
-Piece of paper (any size you want, but the measurements are for a standard 8x11”)

Step 1: Setting It Up

Begin by laying the paper down so it’s facing you horizontally. Next, mark off an inch and a half of space at the bottom of the paper. This space will be where you can write a quote at the end. If you don’t want a quote, than you can skip this step. Once you’ve marked off the bottom, then draw the desired image in the space above. To draw the earth, you can grab a compass, or anything that’s big and circular, and draw a big circle in the middle of the paper. Then, looking at a picture of the earth, draw in the continents, and add some stars around the outside of the Earth.

Step 2: Setting It Up Continued

Once you’ve finished making the design, use your ruler to make 1/4 inch marks up either side of the paper, starting by the line 1 1/2 inches up from the bottom. After both sides have been marked all the way up, use a ruler to connect the marks, making straight lines all the way up your paper.

Step 3: Beginning to Write

In the top left corner of your page, pick a word, and start writing it over and over. I picked the word “explore”. Try to take up most of the space on the line you are writing- the more space the words take up, the better! Keep writing until you hit the end of the paper. Your word most likely will end mid word, but that’s a good thing. After you finish the first row, go down to the second row, and pick up where you left off mid word. For example, if you ended with the partial word “expl”, than you’d start the next line with “ore”. This helps ensure that your word doesn’t just form column after column. Your project will look much better if the words don’t line up.

Step 4: Swapping Colors

When you hit a star, or the beginning of the globe, it’s time to swap colors. Don’t worry, it’s not complicated. Sometimes, a full letter will be a different color, and that’s the easiest scenario. The other thing that may happen is you have to change color mid letter. Just write the letter in the color you’re in until you hit the line. Then, pick up the color you’re changing over to and finish off the letter. One tip is to draw the full letter in the air, and only press down on the paper where that color is supposed to be. This make the letter flow more naturally, and less like you picked up your pen in between colors.

Step 5: Creating More Contrast and Finishing the Writing

If the difference between the blue and black or blue and green isn’t big enough, go over the pen with highlighter. This will help the earth stand out even more from dark, star filled space. You can either highlight the pen as you go, do it all at the end, or write about half of the words in, go over them with highlighter, and do the rest at the end. Whichever way you prefer. Just make sure the ink is dry when you do it to avoid smudging.

Step 6: Adding the Quote

Google space themed quotes online and pick your favorite, or make one up! Then write it at the bottom in pencil first, making sure to space it evenly. One thing you can do to make it more creative is spice up the fonts a bit. Try writing the quote out in two or three different fonts, varying the fonts depending on the word. Some easy, fun ones you can do are all capital letters, lower case cursive, or one of my favorites, shadow letters. To draw a shadowed letter, start by drawing a big uppercase letter. Then, on the left side, draw another line with the same curves of that letter in the same color as the letter. For example, if you drew an uppercase E, the outside line would just be a straight line. (The pictures above show this better) To finish off the letter, pick an accent color and draw short, diagonal lines to connect the other two lines. Boom! A simple but fantastic looking font!

Step 7: Finishing

Now’s the time to go back and erase all of the leftover pencil marks. Just be sure that the ink is dry, and erase gently. Doing these things will help keep the ink from smearing. Once that’s done you’ve finished! Congrats! Keep it, hang it up, or give it to a friend. Leave a comment below if you make one, and let us know how it turns out!