TypeLabMNL was the first type conference event in the Philippines that featured talks about not only typography, but calligraphy, lettering and everything type-related under the sun. Organized by Type Kita, the event catered to the ever-growing Type Community/type-nerds in the country. Here are just a few of the valuable lessons we picked up from the event speakers:

As the fairer half of husband and wife tandem Googly Gooeys, Tipsy writes about their daily life and holds watercolor workshops when she isn’t busy being a freelance layout artist, cartoonist, photog, and lifestyle blogger. Googly Gooeys, a design and humor blog, has appeared in books and magazines around the world. Tipsy’s work is characterized by vibrant colors — a reflection of her personality.

At the young age of 22, Jelvin Base is no stranger to lettering, graphic design, logo design, and layout projects. He also works with front-end web design and development, but still manages to find time to devote to studying design, as he says that he finds writing and drawing type to be therapeutic. One of his goals is to do large scale typography projects (think buildings), and to work with his favorite musicians.

Jelvin believes that trial and error is good training, and that “basics are love, basics are life, and that community is a huge factor in an artist’s success.

Abbey Sy is many things rolled into a neat little package; apart from being a letterer, she’s a traveler of countries, collector of books, and enjoyer of music. She likes to chronicle her adventures when she isn’t giving workshops or making things happen. As a freelance letterer and designer (Type by ABC), she has experience creating branded merchandise (Made by ABC) and curates a blog as a creative lifestyle blogger (Le Rêveur). She is also contributor of Pepper.ph, a local food blog.

Despite his dyslexia, Patrick Cabral decided to leave college and pursue design, moving to Manila from his hometown of Sipocot, Camarines Sur with only P4,500 in his pocket. The risk paid off, as the now Manila-based designer gets his feet wet in various passions, ranging from web-design, motion-graphics, illustration, and typography. His work is now a fixture in the local art scene; his talents have even caught the attention of international art communities, resulting in collaborative works with Jessica Walsh (of Sagmeister and Walsh).

Kay is a Manila-based illustrator who works with murals and hands-on chalk lettering projects. Her work can be see in numerous local and international publications, and when she isn’t busy with And A Half Design Studio and Ang Ilustrador ng Kabataan, Kay heads workshops and spends time with her cat, Bubwit.

According to Kay, there are “3 Sacred Things to Remember: Purpose (What are your flourishes and design elements are for?), Content (Is it inspiring, witty or motivating?), and Legibility.”

June Digan’s delicate and whimsical pieces from her 365-day project has evolved into a powerhouse in design, getting featured in countless blogs and garnering thousands of followers worldwide. She manages herself by being Bruce Wayne (i.e., her day job) during the day, and Batman (her artists self for passion projects) during her down time.

“Remember WHY you started,” she says. “‘It doesn’t matter how slow you go as long as you do not stop.'”

John Ed De Vera is constantly innovating, working with paper cutting, interactive MaKey-MaKey circuit boards, painting in public spaces, money folding, and even 3d wooden letters. While his crafting projects are very analog, he manages to marry digital design into his style.

“Create with passion, create what you love and create for the good,” says John.

Fozzy Castro-Dayrit can be called a lot of things, mother of two and calligrapher being at the top of the list. Fozzy used to be part of the corporate world before she fell back in love with lettering and crafting while she prepared for her own wedding. She diverted from advertising and now listens to Taylor Swift as she sips coffee and works on her calligraphy and paper designs.

“Observe, study and incorporate,” says Fozzy. “If you made a mistake, who cares? Just ‘Shake it Off’!”

Share your lettering projects and inspiration pegs with us in the comments!