Hand engraving is becoming more popular by the day and I've seen so many fellow calligraphers struggle with not knowing where to start, which supplies to buy and what to bring once they book their first on-site engraving job, so I decided to put together a short list of the items I swear by + a few recommendations.

If you want to book my engraving services for your next event or activation, please complete this form or email me at hello@ahandfulofletters.com

Please feel free to contact me via Instagram or email, hello@ahandfulofletters.com if you have additional questions, I’ve also listed additional resources at the bottom of this blog post.

Tips for Success: 

• You are representing two brands, so be professional! Punctuality is KEY (I always arrive at least 30 mins early to set up and maybe do a sample or to). Keep your table organized and clean and of course, look the part! Black is always the best choice, unless your client says otherwise. Makeup and hair must be perfect!

• Work fast and efficiently, but with close attention to detail so you don’t make expensive mistakes aka practice, practice, practice!

• Stay organized and clean, especially when it’s crazy busy or when you don’t have anything to do. These events are a hit-or-miss and vary drastically depending on the time of the day/season, so don’t worry! You’re still getting paid.

• Set clear expectations, even before you book the gig!

  • Ask for samples so that the clients know what your work looks like, most people have never seen this type of service + make sure you let everyone know you can engrave metal, glass and certain cosmetics!

  • Tell the customer and clients you can only engrave a certain number of words per item, this will avoid delays and will guarantee all clients get the chance to have their items engraved

  • Stick to your schedule, but be open to stay longer if needed. Your client may be able to increase the budget for you if the clients are happy, so smile (even if it is under the mask)!

Now, onto the good stuff! You’ll find all my favorite engraving supplies below, these are the items I use and swear by:

• Micro-drill engraver

  PRO TIP! Bring two in case you run out of battery or your main engraver malfunctions.

  • Ink Me This Engraver (35,000 RPM, professional and portable — what I use for all my events)

  • Engraving Drill (30,000 RPM, this my backup engraver) *beginner, needs outlet, aka not portable

• Diamond burs (multiple sizes) – make sure they fit your machine specially if you’re using the Ink me This Engraver

  • 1mm (for metal and faux calligraphy)

  • 2.0 mm (perfect for all surfaces and what I use for most of my engravings)

  • 2.5 to 3mm (for larger items)

• Stabilo wax pencil (perfect for drafts, you can remove it with water)

• Fudenosuke brush pen (perfect for light perfume and bottles and metallic surfaces, but save yourself a headache and *do not* use it on powder coated bottles)

• Pencil sharpener, hand sanitizer, washi tape (to cover labels)

• Calligraphy/Engraving Sign or Name Plate (my friend Rosie from wander crafter makes beautiful ones, check them out here)

• Bur Lube (makes everything super smooth, especially on dense glass but I wouldn't recommend it for metallic surfaces)

• Small makeup brush to dust off the glass/metal particles, microfiber cloth to clean it up afterward (you don’t want to scratch the surface!) and q-tips, tons of q-tips for rub and buff + mistakes! (Double points if everything is black)

• Rub and buff (this is what we use to fill in the engravings, glass only!)

  • Silver leaf

  • Gold leaf (my favorite!)

  • Autumn gold (closest to rose gold)

• Tissue paper to clean up the rub and buff

• Makeup Case for storage (bonus points if (you guessed it!) it’s black)

• Microbead pillow (this little guy will absorb some of the vibrations and sound and will make engraving more comfortable for you + it looks professional)

• Business cards, duh!

• WATER

Additional supplies I recommend bringing (not essential, but make your life so much easier!)

• Spray bottles with alcohol and tree oil (only thing that can remove rub and buff)

• Flat lay items (make sure you get some good pics!)

• Sticky notes, although most clients provide branded ones for the guest to write their text on.

• Portable light (better safe than sorry)

• Backup supplies aka calligraphy pen, brush pens, oil pens in gold, white, silver, and black, etc (some surfaces are simply not suitable for engraving and you don’t want your guests to miss out on the experience)

*Disclaimer* These are items I know and in all my engraving jobs and some of the links above are affiliate links. If you take action (i.e. make a purchase), I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you!

I recommend keeping a checklist next to your engraving bag to make sure you’re not forgetting anything, there’s nothing worse than arriving to your event and realizing you forgot your engraver, lol (hope this never happens to me)!

If you want to add engraving to your offerings but don’t know where to start, email me at hello@ahandfulofletters.com to book one-on-one lessons (in person or online).

Wanting to take things to the next level and learn how to prepare + book luxury gigs? Check out Luxury Lettering + Engraving by ViaCalligraphy and Someday Art Co (this is the course I took when I first started offering these services)

Happy engraving!

XO,

Valentina