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 Friday, May 09, 2008
Build Your Own Font
If you've got a little time to kill today, check out FontStruct from Fontshop. You can use the online tool to build your own modular fonts. Browse the gallery for lots of inspiration.  via PoppytalkPosted by Megan
Typography
5/9/2008 11:26:11 AM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00) 
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Friday Font Find
Calgary, designed by Alejandro Paul, was inspired by the brush script on a "Welcome to Calgary" sign.   Posted by Megan
Typography
5/9/2008 8:23:39 AM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Found On Flickr . . .
this paper alphabet made by Argentine creative Lala Ladcani.  Posted by Megan
Typography
5/7/2008 1:05:49 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Tuesday, May 06, 2008
So Do I
This inspiring typographic drawing was created by 22-year-old design student Will Bryant.  via BySoAndSoPosted by Megan
Illustration | Typography
5/6/2008 1:24:16 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Monday, April 28, 2008
Smoking Type
For a treasure trove of early 19th-century typographic inspiration, check out Rolling Paper Graphics from Gingko Press. This unique collection presents 540 different kinds of rolling paper plus seventy posters.  via FlyPosted by Megan
Typography
4/28/2008 12:50:09 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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The 27th Letter
Launched by the Art Directors Club and Moleskine, The Undiscovered Letter was a creative competition developed to raise awareness about lettera27, a nonprofit literacy organization. The challenge was to create a 27th letter for the alphabet. My favorite entry was submitted by Rei Inamoto, global creative director for AKQA. The letter “space” isn’t really a letter because there is nothing
there. But without it, ourlanguagewouldnotfunctionanditquicklybecomesunintelligiblewhenalltheletters arestrungtogetherlikethis.
It’s a letter that’s not a letter. You can’t see it but when it’s not there, you definitely notice the lack of it.
You can see Rei's concept fully explained here.  Posted by Megan
Typography
4/28/2008 11:05:17 AM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Thursday, April 24, 2008
Sweet Lettering
I was following links today, looking for some inspiration, when I stumbled on designer/typographer Marian Bantjes website. Clicking around her portfolio, I found an amazing project where she created the letters from sugar. It turns out it was an assignment for Stefan Sagmeister's book " Things I Have Learned in My Life So Far," which has been sitting on my shelf waiting for me to take the time to really look through it. So I let myself spend some time with a few of the chapters, which are bound seperately. Whatever you might think of Stefan and his design star status, the book is inspiring and fun to look at. It's clear that Mr. Sagmeister is very much in touch with an impish, child-like impulse to create something out of nothing.  Posted by Megan
Typography
4/24/2008 2:34:46 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Tuesday, April 22, 2008
A Type of Candidate
On the NYTimes.com Campaign Stops blog, design writer and critic Steven Heller asked several industry notables to weigh in on Sen. John McCain's choice of Optima for his campaign logo. (Actually, it's not like McCain himself actually chose the face.) Heller previously posted about Sen. Barack Obama's use of Gotham by Tobias Frere-Jones. Read the whole post, which includes Seymour Chwast's curmudgeonly-in-kind-of-a-funny-way comments and Cyrus Highsmith's comparison of the campaign to his dentist. And then there's a fun bit from Matthew Carter, who goes so far as to set the names of potential VP candidates in Optima: "The moment of typographic truth will come when Senator McCain picks a
vice presidential running mate and two names have to be combined on
banners and bumper stickers. By choosing Optima, a rather distinctive
typeface, he may have seriously limited his options."
Carter notes that both Huckabee and Romney look a little silly in Optima, but that Rice fits the typeface quite nicely. 
Typography
4/22/2008 1:06:44 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Font Bots
Jonathon Yule, a Canadian Designer, has a series of three robot illustrations on his site that are created from sans serif fonts. I love you, helbotica.  via Boing BoingPosted by Megan
Typography
4/22/2008 9:24:26 AM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Monday, April 14, 2008
A Poster You Can't Refuse
L.A. Pop Art creates and sells posters with images formed by handwritten letters. The Godfather poster, for example, includes the entire script of the film in the image. Los Angeles Pop Art creates pop
art images using the ancient technique of “micrography,” an art form
that dates back millennia to the Egyptians, Jews, and Muslims.
Micrography is the art of writing texts in very small letters to form
the illusion of an image. Entire texts, such as a movie script or book,
are used to form posters and other artwork.
  via NOTCOT Posted by Megan
Typography
4/14/2008 2:26:30 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Thursday, April 10, 2008
Attractive Face
The very attractive 4-weight text face Adriane is on sale for $111.30 from the TypeTrust. Designed between 2006 and 2007 by Marconi Lima, it can be
classified as a transitional typeface and recently won an award at Tipos Latinos 2008.  Posted by Megan
Typography
4/10/2008 3:09:23 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Friday, April 04, 2008
Friday Font Find
I love how Joshua Darden's font Omnes changes as it increases in weight from demure to serious to ebullient.  Posted by Megan
Typography
4/4/2008 1:09:24 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Tuesday, April 01, 2008
Type Love
I just fell in love with the captial A in the font Maryam, designed by Ricardo Esteves Gomes. The script face, available in two weights for $45 from T26, includes more than 70 ligatures for variation.
Posted by Megan
Typography
4/1/2008 11:44:52 AM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Friday, March 28, 2008
You're Not My Type
Here's some Friday fun, courtesy of our friend Steve Gordon: Extensis has a little Flash-based dating game called Typecaster that lets you pair up two typefaces on a date to see if they're compatible. Warning: Mistral is a real jerk, so steer clear, ladies. 
Just for Fun | Typography
3/28/2008 1:20:29 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Wednesday, March 26, 2008
We Like Your Type
Typography
3/26/2008 2:09:04 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Friday, March 21, 2008
Tons Of Type In Motion
Popping up all over the blogosphere today is a link to a wonderful post on Always Watching about TV and movie scenes that rely entirely on type and sound. But what happens when you combine typography with motion? That''s the process of kinematic typography and the results, when paired with some excellent scenes from your favorite films and TV shows, can be moving and marvelous.  Posted by Megan
Typography
3/21/2008 11:38:24 AM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Thursday, March 20, 2008
No Bag
Part of It works
with artists to create products for causes they are passionate about.
Sales from products benefit charities chosen by the artists. For instance, sales of this alphabet bag by London-based designer Daniel Eatock benefit The International Dyslexia Association. Posted by Megan
Gifts and Goodies | Typography
3/20/2008 1:58:42 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Friday, February 29, 2008
Leap Day Sale
Typography
2/29/2008 8:25:38 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Mmmm, Lettering
Poking around on Flickr last night, I came across some playful lettering by designer Jon Contino, which made me want to know more. It turns out he has a blog as well as a site for his design studio Onetwentysix, so you can see work from early sketches through finals.  Posted by Megan
Designers | Typography
2/26/2008 9:58:15 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Monday, February 25, 2008
Temporary Type
Creativity | Typography
2/25/2008 11:25:40 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Thursday, February 21, 2008
Mmmm, K
I just fell in love with a K, the K from a font called Cape Rock, to be exact. It looks like the second half of an H that's transforming into a claw in order to grab something it wants. 
Typography
2/21/2008 3:19:54 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Good Penmenship
Typography
2/19/2008 10:48:21 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Thursday, February 14, 2008
But If You're Not In The Mood . . .
you could send someone this ambivilent e-valentine created by calligrapher Maybelle Imasa-Stukulls for Kate Spade's Behind the Curtain site. (Click on "B Mine" for the entire selection of sentiments.)  Posted by Megan
Just for Fun | Typography
2/14/2008 1:24:25 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Overheard On The Forum
What if Comic Sans was a dude, who would he date? Find out with the Extensis Typecaster. (Turns out Comic Sans and Papyrus are a match made in heaven.) You can also discover which font you should hook up with. (Mistral? I don't think so.)  Posted by Megan
Just for Fun | Typography
2/13/2008 9:50:36 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Historic Type
Typography
2/12/2008 2:13:56 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Monday, February 11, 2008
Type Talk
I Love Typography has a nice interview with Jean François Porchez who designed Parisine, one of the fonts we use in the magazine. What advice would you give to aspiring type designers?
Practise calligraphy and read a lot on type history. Then draw and draw every day. Don’t copy others, but try to be yourself; use your own cultural resources and background to create new trends in type design. You are unique. When the above is achieved, the next steps are (and these are equally applicable to life in general):
• Respect tradition;
• Clear analysis of the problem, because as designers our work is problem solving;
• Finally, utmost respect for the user/reader.
Posted by Megan
Typography
2/11/2008 11:08:04 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Letterpress Mini Doc
If you've never seen a letterpress in action, you must watch this short documentary about Firefly Press. It really captures the feeling of the process, one that I enjoy immensely. Posted by Megan
Typography
2/11/2008 10:16:32 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Wednesday, February 06, 2008
Overheard On The Forum
What's your favorite font right now? One forum members offered this list: thesis
gotham
trade gothic
filosofia
bembo
rockwell
clarendon
Posted by Megan
Typography
2/6/2008 9:08:04 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Monogram Mugs
I got over my Jonathan Adler mug obsession from last week when I came across these monogrammed mugs at Anthropologie for only $6. I liked the bird on the P better than the flowers on the M, so I went with the that. The store has plenty of type-centric products to choose from, including another series of monogram mugs and large metal letters to put on a shelf or hang on the wall. I never get tired of looking at letters!   Posted by Megan
Gifts and Goodies | Typography
1/29/2008 11:19:57 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Monday, January 28, 2008
Such A Pretty Face
Hoefler & Frere-Jones just announced a new geometric slab serif face called Archer. Sweet but not saccharine, earnest but not grave, Archer is a colorful new slab serif designed to hit just the right notes of forthrightness, credibility, and charm. Romans and italics in eight weights each, including a delicate hairline, plus small caps, tabular figures, and fractions, to tackle the most demanding applications.
 I like that this face is friendly and trustworthy at the same time. It's little suprise that it was first developed for Martha Stewart Living. Posted by Megan
Typography
1/28/2008 3:36:08 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Friday, January 25, 2008
OurType
If you're looking for contemporary fonts with strong roots in classic typography, check out the Belgium-based OurType.  via notcot Posted by Megan
Typography
1/25/2008 11:37:42 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Thursday, January 24, 2008
Big Bio
Clarendon EF is the star of the Biography Channel's recent rebranding by New York-based design and production firm Leroy and Clarkson. At the heart of the rebrand is a bold new logo comprised of the word 'bio' followed by a dot or period. "It's modular, easy to use and distinctive in its simplicity so that it functions well globally," notes principal and creative director Daniel Fries, "it's a design package with a very accessible but sophisticated graphic language."
The Clarendon EF letterforms, which make up 'bio.' serve as a toolkit for the rebranding packages. "The logo is the toolkit. Each package utilizes the typography abstractly to create rich and dynamic packages" says Senior Art Director Ryan Moore. "The simplicity of our approach yielded a surprisingly diverse and modular brand package. Each element was derived from the logo therefore inherently tied to the brand, an idea the client found very exciting."
   Posted by Megan
Typography
1/24/2008 1:17:56 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Monday, January 21, 2008
Font & Order
Friend of HOW Grace Dobush (who once was an intern here) just started a new blog to chronicle her obsession with Friz Quadrata a.k.a. the Law & Order font. It all started with a chicken-flavored seasoning packet, now she can't be stopped. Dun Dun  Posted by Megan
Typography
1/21/2008 9:49:38 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Monday, January 07, 2008
Type On The Web
Typography
1/7/2008 2:07:01 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Friday, January 04, 2008
Handwriting On The Screen
I love movies, so I saw several during my Christmas vacation. My favorite, by far, was Juno. It was sweet and heartwarming, but not icky or overdone. And one of the coolest things about it was the opening titles designed by Shadowplay Studio.    Posted by Megan
Illustration | Typography
1/4/2008 9:07:03 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Thursday, December 20, 2007
Huh? Cool!
When I first read this release from P22, I was a bit confused. But then I tried it. So cool! P22 announces the P22 Music Text Composition Generator, a free online music utility that allows any text to be converted into a musical composition. This composition is displayed in musical notation and simultaneously generates a midi music file that is played back on your computer. The P22 MTCG was programmed by designer Colin Kahn from an idea conceived by P22 creative director Richard Kegler.
 Posted by Megan
Just for Fun | Typography
12/20/2007 10:54:56 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Tuesday, December 04, 2007
Extras
P22 and Lanston Type recently released LTC Goudy Extras, a set of over 50 ornaments, connecting borders, flourishes and decorative motifs originally designed by Frederic Goudy throughout his career. Many of these designs were used by Goudy at his Village Press and offered by his Village Foundry in the 1920s. The styles range from complex title page illustrations to simple linking borders, but all have the unique Goudy style.  Posted by Megan
Typography
12/4/2007 9:27:33 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Readable Script
Ventura, a recent relase from TypeTrust, is a legible script with a nice set of alternate characters. The single-weight face sells for $26.  Posted by Megan
Typography
11/27/2007 8:59:35 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Thursday, November 15, 2007
Typeflakes
We just looked out the window and it's totally snowing! Sure, it won't last, but suddenly we're in a winter-time mood. If you want to generate your own flakes, check out TYPEflake from Firstborn Multimedia. Just type in a phrase, choose a font and watch your words get turned into a beautiful snowflake. You can even email your creation to a friend.  Posted by Megan
Just for Fun | Typography
11/15/2007 9:42:01 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Nice Signs
Check out the website of artist and sign painter Jeff Canham for some great examples of hand lettering.  via Oh Joy!Posted by Megan
Typography
11/14/2007 1:46:27 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Monday, November 12, 2007
Creative Type
The type-design firm Underware has a reputation for giving amazing workshops. They recently held a workshop during Dutch Design Week in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, and the results are captured here. While all the projects have a certain Stefan Sagmeister-esque quality, they are interesting to look at, nonetheless. via SwissmissPosted by Megan
Typography
11/12/2007 2:29:19 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Thursday, November 08, 2007
Design Your Own Font
I Love Typography recently posted a two-part article about how to design a font. If you've ever wanted to try your hand at this, here's a good place to start. Part 1 and Part 2.
 Posted by Megan
Typography
11/8/2007 3:19:23 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Happy Halloween
Awesome design/fashion blog Fly has a link to illustrator Andy Smith's portfolio today. I stopped by for a look and realized I'd seen his work before. In fact, the poster below was hanging on my office wall for a while (maybe last Halloween).  Posted by Megan
Typography
10/31/2007 12:47:46 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Fresh Font
Designer Marian Bantjes, known for her masterful use of type, has just released her first font, called Restraint. Here's how she describes it: The font contains the 26 letters of the alphabet, numbers, a hyphen, an
ampersand and a question mark, plus a whole ton of squiggly bits for
making fantastic shapes and borders. Simply masses of entertainment
value.
 Posted by Megan
Typography
10/30/2007 8:58:18 AM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Tuesday, October 16, 2007
"Funny"
HOW Books art director Grace Ring just sent me a link to The "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotation Marks, which collects and posts pictures of signage sporting this all-too-common mistake. There are also lots of examples of vernacular typography. (Grace said the site reminded her of a chapter in Milk Eggs Vodka about the grocer's apostrophe.)  Posted by Megan
Just for Fun | Typography
10/16/2007 12:49:31 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Tuesday, October 09, 2007
Spooky Type
Just in time for Halloween, Veer has put together a gallery of spooky typefaces and ornaments like this image collection from Lanston Type. I particularly like the scripty cat, ornamental spider web and bat silhouette. 
  
Posted by Megan
Typography
10/9/2007 11:32:22 AM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Wednesday, October 03, 2007
A French Alphabet Book
A French Alphabet Book of 1814 (published by Rizzoli) is a charming collection of watercolor illustrations of French country life, along with lovely examples of hand lettering. It would make a wonderful gift for type lovers and Francophiles alike.    Images courtesy of Charles Plante Fine ArtsPosted by Megan
Typography
10/3/2007 1:18:33 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Monday, October 01, 2007
New In Type
Zebra and Kiub are two notable new releases from our favorite alpha-numeric font founderies P22 and T26. Zebra was originally designed by Karlgeorg Hoefer in 1965 and is available digitally for the first time. The font is clearly vintage in style, but it will be interesting to see how designers might put it to use in contemporary application. | |