Debra Ferreboeuf is The Quill’s dedicated calligrapher. She has made a career from her art, crafting pieces for exhibitions and fulfilling custom lettering for Quill clients since 2000. 

Her forty years of training shine through whenever her calligraphy nib touches paper, and she’s always looking to improve her craft. She began her calligraphy journey in a community classroom, and she continues to attend seminars, classes, and workshops to this day. Like most calligraphers, Ferreboeuf developed mastery over a historical alphabet through her training, allowing her to efficiently create elegant – but consistent – handwritten script.

The Pacific Grove resident adores her work. She finds immense joy in work that others might find mundane, such as individually handwriting wedding invitations for each guest. Ferrebeouf often pauses after she completes a piece, admiring the beautiful lettering on display before she begins the next.

She also loves the practical side of the craft. Whether she’s writing down a recipe or addressing a greeting card, Ferreboeuf expresses her art through handwriting. In this way, calligraphy brings beauty into her everyday life.

Of course, handwriting – and by extension, calligraphy – is not as common as it once was. Ferreboeuf laments the decreased emphasis on handwriting in society after the rise of personal computers. While the specialized craft of calligraphy is alive and well, she feels that handwriting has been unfortunately left by the wayside.

“Something is lost by just typing; you don't have that connection of writing something out that I think is really valuable,” the artist said. “I'm hoping, in time, people are going to realize how important actual handwriting is.”

The calligrapher has made a comfortable home for herself in Pacific Grove. She enjoys the small town feel of her neighborhood, where children play in her street and her grocery store is in walking distance. She also admires the town itself, which finds itself in a unique geographical reality.

“Pacific Grove is located on the very edge of the continent,” Ferreboeuf said. “Once you get here, there's no other place to go, so it has a very small town hometown kind of feeling.”

Besides her professional lettering work, Ferrebouef also creates calligraphy art pieces. She typically chooses a famous quote or inspirational phrase, then transforms it into a multimedia art piece using watercolors, acrylics, and her calligraphy tools. She frequently exhibits her work, such as a current exhibition at the San Francisco Public Library.

You can find examples of Ferreboeuf’s work in The Quill’s invitation studio. To craft your own wedding invitations with her lettering, be sure to book an appointment through the-quill.com