Calligraphy and engraving aren’t dying artforms—just ask gift designer Leah Spiros who uses these artforms to curate and personalize gifts around recipients and occasions. For these reasons fans intentionally seek out her work. “There is an interest, a fascination, when I talk about my work and excitement when they see photos,” she says. “I believe a main reason for that is each gift is created by a human hand, not mass produced, machine-generated and clearly not grabbed from a store.”
In fact, calligraphy and engraving might be the next “slow artforms” to rise in popularity just like baking sourdough from scratch was during Covid and knitting and gardening are now. They are all tactile activities that counter the pace and stress of modern life and feel important because they were made by human hands in the dawn of AI, she says. “That’s what people want today—to know that they and their work are seen and valued,” says Spiros. “A fine gift, created by hand-engraved, calligraphed, painted-thoughtfully communicates that.”
She takes her inspiration from nature, architecture and historic fashion. Case in point, she recently created corporate retirement gifts for a client. “The client wanted a design that spoke to the next chapter in their clients’ lives, and I thought of the things I love about an old English library—things like Downton Abbey-rich colors, ivory pages, warmth and shadows.” She created handwritten letters inspired by these ideas and painted motifs featured on the accompanying wine bottles.
Spiros started working in calligraphy and engraving years ago when she first took a lettering workshop taught by a Trader Joe’s lettering artist. “She taught a couple of unique lettering styles and layouts, and I took to it instantly,” she recalls. “I have always loved a beautiful handwritten script, making words look pretty.” Growing up, she admired her mom’s cursive and her grandmother and eventually was surprised with her very first calligraphy set on her 9th birthday, all of which were her earliest building blocks that set her on the path to becoming a successful calligrapher. “There’s a purposeful mindfulness to these forms that I deeply appreciate—slowing down, intentionality, creating beauty to share.”
It’s this mindfulness that inspired her to create her business, Wrapped + Written Fine Gift Services, which brings thoughtful elevated intentionality into gifting, from process to finished piece. “I provide engraving, calligraphy and product painting both in-studio and live for real-time customizations at events,” she says. “Branded merchandise and gifts have their place. But Wrapped + Written is for the moments when you want someone to feel personally considered.”
See more at https://www.wrappedwritten.com/portfolio
