Hand Lettered Food Picks

As the weather warms up, it’s the perfect time for entertaining and enjoying outdoor activities! If your family is anything like ours, that means lots of cookouts with neighbors and friends that start with grill food and end with games, laughter, and delicious desserts. Even though the gatherings are casual, I love adding a few personal touches to make our guests smile. Here is a fun way to spice up whatever you’re serving, whether it’s a cheeseburger or a gourmet cupcake, in no time at all! These hand lettered food picks are sure to be a hit!

You’ll need:
– white cardstock
– scissors
– toothpicks
– tape
– markers {mine are Tombow Dual Brush Tips}

Step 1: Write your word using the brush tip of your marker.
For an everyday occasion, words like “eat,” “yum,” “tasty,” and “enjoy” are great choices. If it’s a special celebration, feel free to use any other words you like or even your guests’ names. For the writing itself, I use a brush script, where I press harder on the downstrokes of each letter to create a thicker line and use less pressure when I move the pen upwards for a thinner line. If you haven’t mastered that technique, you can simply write the word in your normal handwriting then go back and thicken the downstrokes as a separate step. Check out my Basic Hand Lettering tutorial for step by step photo instructions of this!

Step 2: Add accent shadow lines with the fine tip of your marker.
I like to use a darker shade of the same color for this, but you can also mix colors or use black or grey as the shadow.

Step 3: Add detailing and highlights to your letters using a white or silver marker.
I like to do three dots above a vertical line, but you can play around with it and find a style you like!

Step 4: Cut out your word and tape a toothpick to the back.

That’s all there is to it! Now your picks are ready to use! Stick them into hamburger and hot dog rolls, cupcakes, brownies, fruit, or anything else you’re serving at your gathering.

What do you think? Is this something that might make an appearance at your next cookout? Happy lettering! For more tips, tricks, and tutorials, check out my other Hand Lettering Posts and Projects!