So by now I expect you'll already know that this weekend we're celebrating the Shakespeare's 400th anniversary. That's quite a milestone isn't it? To celebrate Viking, the stationery suppliers asked if I'd create something with a favourite Shakespeare quote.

But where to start?

There are so many well known Shakespeare quotes - even Prince Charles was getting in on the act today - but which one would I choose. I decided to steer clear of the obvious ones and was surprised just how much influence Shakespeare has had on our language.

Knock, knock! Who's there?
Good riddance
Heart of gold
Baited breath
Dead as a doornail
The world is my oyster
Off with his head
What's done is done
Vanish into thin air
Too much of a good thing

Yes all of these are derived, and attributed to Shakespeare and these aren't all of them either. You'd be surprised, well I was anyway.

So which quote would I choose? Here's some of the letters...

Did you guess?

I choose Nothing will come of nothing from King Lear.

I cut the two nothing's using my die cutter and decided to try my hand at calligraphy for the rest of the quote.

Realising it's been a (long) while since I've done this - I hope to share more of one of my early attempts soon - I decided to dig out an old book titled "Good Handwriting & how to acquire it" which I picked up a few years ago for £4 in a charity shop. I've no idea if it's worth anything - four pounds or anything more - but it's a beautiful book.

And having swotted up on the Centaur font I was ready to go. With my quill - everyone has one right? - I set about adding some text to my parchment background. Well parchment just seemed the right way to go...

And there you have it.

"Nothing will come of nothing."

And you know what? It's perfect for my once empty frame in the "spare" pigeon shelves which have found a home in my craft-room-cum-study!

In case you're wondering about my quote...

It means that you will gain nothing if you invest nothing. And that's something I totally believe in, (sadly) I'm not the type of person where everything comes easy. Where and when I have success there's hard work behind it, I truly believe that nothing worthwhile is ever handed to you on a plate, it's something you have to work for and on to make the best of.

In King Lear, he is telling his daughter Cordelia that she will gain no favors from him if she does not make elaborate speeches saying she loves him. I'll admit I'm not familiar with the whole story, but this quote spoke to me. I do remember though, studying Macbeth and Henry IV part 4 at senior school with a very enthusiastic English teacher.

Do you have a favourite Shakespeare quote? Let me know in the comments.

This is a collaborative post with Viking, the stationery suppliers to celebrate 400 years of Shakespeare but all opinions are my own