How to Draw Block Letter L
Block letter L is two strokes: a vertical stem and a horizontal foot at the baseline. It's structurally one of the simplest letters but creates the largest amount of negative space in the alphabet, especially next to letters that lean away from it (V, W, A, T, Y). L is the kerning challenge of the alphabet — without manual adjustment, words containing 'LA' or 'LV' will always look broken.
Letter L in Block-Letter Styles
Block lettering covers a range of sans-serif styles — from heavy poster blocks to condensed industrial faces. Here's how the letter “L” looks across the most common block variants.
Heavy Block
Bold Italic
Industrial
Poster
Condensed Bold
Stencil Lite
How to Draw Uppercase Block “L”
Block L is a vertical stem with a horizontal foot at the baseline. Draw the stem top to bottom, then add the foot extending right from the bottom.
- ✗ Foot too short — should extend at least 60% of cap width
- ✗ Foot drooping below the baseline
- ✗ Foot at a slight angle instead of perfectly horizontal
How to Draw Lowercase Block “l”
Lowercase 'l' is a single vertical ascender stroke. Some styles add a small horizontal foot at the bottom; most block styles leave it bare.
- ✗ Confusing it with capital I or the digit 1
- ✗ Drawing it shorter than other ascenders
- ✗ Curling the bottom (that's a different style)
Letters Often Confused with Block “L”
Spacing & Kerning Companions for “L”
L creates the alphabet's most extreme kerning challenge: its empty upper-right next to letters that slope away leaves a gaping hole. Always tighten LA, LV, LY, LW manually.
Words Starting with “L” in Block Lettering
These uppercase words look particularly strong in block lettering. Use them in our cursive generator when you want a script comparison.
Practice Tips for Block Letter “L”
- 1Make the horizontal foot at least 60% of the cap width — a stubby foot looks weak.
- 2Always kern LA, LV, LW, and LY tighter than the default — the empty upper-right is huge.
- 3Test L next to T (LT) — the wide T arms float above L's empty space.
- 4Keep the foot perfectly horizontal — even a 1° tilt is visible at headline size.
- 5When LL appears, the two L's should be visibly tighter than HH for the same word.
Frequently Asked Questions about Block Letter L
Why is LA the hardest pair to kern?
How long should L's foot be?
Learn More
Cursive L
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