A classic “American” sans serif with a kink Desphalia belongs to the kind of sans serif fonts that were created in the 19th century. You could also name it “American Gothic”, a sans serif in the style of fonts like Franklin Gothic, News Gothic and similar. Above all, the high x-height characterizes this typeface style, as do the identical heights of uppercase and ascenders. However, I allowed myself a few peculiarities ;-) On the one hand, there is the gently sloping horizontal middle line on letters such as H, E, F, A and e. The M also got gently slanted sides. Some of the lower-case letters have an up- or down-stroke: a d m n p u. This "kink" on the shaft also serves to better distinguish the small l from the capital I — as can be seen clearly with the term »Illinois«. In keeping with the tradition of American typefaces, Desphalia does not have a true italic. Rather, the letters of the “Italic” have the same character forms as the normal upright variant, but in oblique — and so it is not called “Italic” but “Oblique”. Style Set 01: Another American peculiarity is the capital I with dashes above and below. It is included in the Desphalia as an alternate character form. An alternative small l with the “kink” in the ascender is also included — as is a y with the “kink” in the descender. Style Set 02: The corresponding “straight” forms a d l m n p u without the break are included as alternatives in a separate style set. Small caps are uppercase letters that are optically the same size as lowercase letters. They offer a very classy way of emphasis. Desphalia is available in the widths Condensed, Normal and Expanded, the weights include Thin, Light, Book, Bold, Black. Using the variable font, all intermediate levels can be freely selected. The figures are optionally available as tabular figures, proportional lining figures or old style figures.

The 10th Regiment of Foot is a British military unit raised more than three centuries ago—and perhaps most famous in the U.S. for seeing action on American soil during the Revolutionary War in the Battle of Lexington and Concord and the Battle of Bunker Hill. Military Scribe is modeled after the compact, utilitarian script on the mid- to late-1770s muster rolls of the Tenth of Foot. I incorporated the work of at least three separate scribes, merging their neat old penmanship into a legible disconnected cursive. Perhaps the most versatile of all our vintage handwriting fonts, Military Scribe might faithfully reproduce antique letters, labels, lists, or just about any document of the period. OpenType features include multiple stylistic sets, scores of historical, contextual, and discretionary ligatures (including nine terminal “d”s) lining and old-style figures, ink blots, cross-outs, and full support for Central and Eastern European alphabets—more than 1,000 glyphs in all.

Polli Sans is a sans serif geometric font, designed with both proportional and fixed-width styles in mind. Polli is great for large scale display purposes and small scale copy. The proportional’s curvy form makes it super useful for title type, and the detailed technical fixed-width sub-family is perfect for any informative body of text. Polli is designed as an homage to common type practices of the early 21st centric corporate America. Borrowing from friendly styles you’ve seen before but with contemporary challenging elements.

I spend a lot of time following two obsessions: packaging and hand lettering. Alongside a few other minor obsessions, those two have been my major ones for so many years now, I've finally reached the point where I can actually claim them as “obsessions” without getting a dramatic reaction from the little voice in the back of my head. When you spend so much time researching and studying a subject, you become very focused, directionally and objectively. But of course some of the research material you run into turns out to be tangential to whatever your focus happens to be at the time, so you absorb what you can from it, then shelf it — like the celebrity bobblehead that amused you for a while, but is now an almost invisible ornament eating dust and feathers somewhere in your environment. And just like the bobblehead may fall off the shelf one day to remind you of its existence, some of my lettering research material unveiled itself in my head one day for no particular reason. Hand lettering is now mostly perceived as an American art. Someone with my historical knowledge about lettering may be snooty enough to go as far as pointing out the British origins of almost everything American, including lettering — but for the most part, the contemporary perspective associates great lettering with America. The same perspective also associates blackletter, gothics and sans serifs with Germany. So you can imagine my simultaneous surprise and impatience when, in my research for one of my American lettering-based fonts, I ran into a German lettering book from 1953, by an artist called Bentele. It was no use for me because it didn't propel my focus at that particular time, but a few months ago I was marveling at what we take for granted — the sky is blue, blackletter is German, lettering is American — and found myself flipping through the pages of that book again. The lettering in that book is upbeat and casual sign making stuff, but it has a slightly strange and youthful experimentation at its heart. I suppose I find it strange because it deviates a lot from the American stuff I'm used to working with for so long now. To make a long story short, what’s inside that German book served as the semilla, which is Spanish for seed, for the typeface you see all over these pages. With Semilla, my normal routine went out the window. My life for a while was all Bezier all the time. No special analog or digital brushes or pens were used in drawing these forms. They're the product of a true Bezier process, all starting with a point creating a curve to another point, which draws a curve to another point, and so on. It’s a very time-consuming process, but at the end I am satisfied that it can get to pretty much the same results easier and more traditional methods accomplish. And as usual with my fonts, the OpenType is plenty and a lot of fun. Experimenting with substitution and automation is still a great pleasure for me. It is the OpenType that always saves me from the seemingly endless work hours every type designer must inevitably have to face at one point in his career. The artful photos used in this booklet are by French photographer and designer Stéphane Giner. He is very deserving of your patronage, so please keep an eye out for his marvelous work. I hope you like Semilla and enjoy using it. I have a feeling that it marks a transition to a more curious and flexible period in my career, but only time will tell.

The Crew Pro is based on the logo of the seminal punk band 7 Seconds. It was expanded to include extended Latin, extended Cyrillic and Greek alphabets so it will work with most languages in Europe and the Americas.

Cape Horn is a typeface inspired by seafarers who have perished by navigating the treacherous seas surrounding Cape Horn, which is at the southern-most tip of South America. A-Z Numbers Multi-language support Symbols Special Characters Uppercase

Ilustrations of different "moves" in Mexican wrestling; a sport popular in the late 60s and 70s.

Kaaos Pro is based on the logo of the Finnish hardcore band of the same name. It was expanded to include extended Latin, extended Cyrillic and Greek alphabets so it will work with most languages in Europe and the Americas.

Utshani means "grass" in the African language: Zulu. Grass has softness but it also has great strength and many African craft implements are made from it. When we describe someone as being "like the grass", it is meant as a compliment for it means that they can be tender and strong. The fluid African font, Utshani, was designed to suggest the flexibility and strength of grass. In this way it contrasts with the majority of other "African-inspired" fonts, which tend to be heavy and hard-edged. It can be used in a wide variety of situations, in adverts and on posters and invitations. The font includes all upper and lower case letters, all numerals and punctuation as well as all special and accented characters. The font has been professionally letterspaced and kerned, and the inter-line gap has been carefully checked.

Kunjani, (the Zulu word for "How are you?") is a feisty, contemporary "African Renaissance" font, vibrant and richly decorative, embodying the spirit of modern Africa. The characters are full of movement and excitement, combining a hand-carved look with contemporary elegance. Traditional and contemporary designs are used to make the upper-case alphabet essentially African, while lending variety to the already interesting structure. The font is a must for creators of the contemporary look of Africa. It is perfect for music media & promotions, film media & promotions, clothing hang tags & promotions, posters for "Support Africa" events, and indeed, any project that has its focus on Africa. The font has been carefully letterspaced and kerned. All upper and lower case characters, punctuation, numerals and accented characters are present.

Roadstar is a script designed in the style of the classic American advertising font from the 1940's-1950's. Roadstar is a retro brush-style script designed for logotype, packaging, posters, T-shirts, signage & design projects with a retro & vintage feel. Roadstar comes with two styles that both contain all upper and lower case characters, punctuation, numerals and mathematical operators, as well as all accented characters.

The pattern for this face was designed by Will Bradley in 1894 for the cover of Inland Printer magazine, and was licensed the following year to American Type Founders. Its classic lines and condensed footprint make this typeface a natural for elegant and inviting headlines. All versions of this font include the Unicode 1250 Central European character set in addition to the standard Unicode 1252 Latin set.

He's a man of character; a Man for All Seasons. He upholds the values of Truth, Justice and the American Way and he's never averse to a slice of Ma's homemade apple pie. He's not a man of yesteryear, nor a man caught in the here and now. He's a human being of great honor, a citizen of the world -- a Man of Tomorrow!

Ad Lib designed by Freeman Craw for the American Type Founders (ATF) in 1961. A bold Grotesque with irregular rectangular counters in round characters. This type was designed by cutting the letter images out and thus has some wood-cut character. Some lower case characters have slight inclination. Initially numerous alternative characters were provided. Unusual shapes make this typeface useful for advertising and display work.

This typeface is inspired from the old display fonts that used to decorate the world around us, but just because we don't see such beautiful signage these days, doesn't mean we should lose the great typefaces used. Foreman is a condensed serif display typeface, with hard geometric lines inspired from fonts used in the 1930s and 1940s, and very much used by the American Art Deco movement.

Neue Rinjani is a all-caps sans serif with Wide Stretch contemporary typographic, vintage futuristic art-deco touch Streamline influence of the 1930s and 1940s. A mix from the old Euro-American signage/advertising letters and modern clean sans serif, carefully mousecrafted to bring you the genuine feel of the era. If you're into classic/vintage letter designs, then this typeface suits best for you.

This is an American face designed by Lucian Bernhard for ATF in 1929. An extra light face with tall ascenders and stylized bars that extend off to the left. The lower-case sits on the baseline and the much-taller-than-normal capitals have an imaginary baseline that sits about two-thirds of the distance from the real baseline to the bottom of the EM.

Karaoke JNL is one of the many alphabets created by the late Alf R. Becker that was showcased in Signs of the Times magazine from the 1930s through the 1950s. Thanks to Tod Swormstedt of ST Media (and who is the curator of the American Sign Museum in Cincinnati, Ohio) for providing Jeff Levine the research material from which this font design was modeled.

Yukas is a funky and sexy typeface where the proportions are based on the optical balance between black strokes and white shapes. Ideal to enjoy on a large scale. It takes its references from the psychedelic movement, old-school western movie posters, and mid-19th century American wood type with those big, heavy capital letters. Includes several Open Type alternatives to customize your design however you want.

Generous curves above and below the straight-sided Railroad Gothic parallel those of Figgins’s elephantine Grotesques, lending to both British and American series their monumental qualities. Shrinking the center strokes and counters to emphasize a massive periphery, David Berlow has used this curious similarity to suspend a complete family of sanserifs between the two forms, a manly series of great dignity and presence; FB 1997

Working at American Type Founders from a Bruce Foundry recutting, Morris Fuller Benton worked out the dramatics of the English Fat Face, and in 1928 produced Ultra Bodoni, a headline spectacular. Using Benton’s 1933 Ultra Bodoni Extra Condensed, Richard Lipton digitized Bodoni FB Bold Condensed, then took compression even further and designed Bodoni FB Bold Compressed, a real technical tour de force; FB 1992

General Chang JNL is one of a number of fonts redrawn by Jeff Levine from the creative output of the late Alf R. Becker. Becker's alphabets were a monthly feature of Signs of the Times Magazine from the 1930s through the 1950s. Thanks to Tod Swormstedt of ST Media (who also is the curator of the American Sign Museum in Cincinnati, Ohio) for the resource material.

Introducing Laguna Font Collection. Inspired from American motor inn signs and vintage restaurant signs in 50s-70s. Laguna comes with open type features such stylistic alternates, stylistic sets, contextual alternates & ligatures. Also available in variable font format. Laguna Font Collection is best uses for headings, Logo type, quotes, apparel design, invitations, flyer, poster, greeting cards, product packaging, book cover, printed quotes, cover album, movie, etc

The pattern for this graceful, subtly modulated Art Deco typeface was designed by Willard T. Sniffin for American Type Founders in the 1930s. True to the original design, the Swash Caps version features Sniffin's twelve decorative variants. The Postscript and Truetype versions contain a complete Latin language character set (Unicode 1252); in addition, the Opentype version supports Unicode 1250 (Central European) languages as well.

The Englishman William Caslon (1672–1766) first cut his typeface Caslon in 1725. His major influences were the Dutch designers Christoffel van Dijcks and Dirck Voskens. The Caslon font was long known as the script of kings, although on the other side of the political spectrum, the Americans used it as well for their Declaration of Independence. The characteristics of the earlier Renaissance typefaces are only barely detectable. The serifs are finer and the axis of the curvature is almost or completely vertical. The overall impression which Caslon makes is serious, elegant and linear. Next to Baskerville, Caslon is known as the embodiment of the English Baroque-Antiqua and has gone through numerous new interpretations, meaning that every Caslon is slightly different. American Type Founders presented a Caslon in 1905 which is true to the forms of the original. This font is relatively wide and comes complete with small caps and old style figures.

The retail storage box for a vintage metal numbering stamp manufactured by the American Numbering Machine Company had its brand name hand lettered in an Art Nouveau style that most likely went back to the 1920s, as the company was in existence from 1908 to around 1971. Numbering machines were used in offices, schools, libraries, and anywhere a series of numbers needed to be marked onto printed items. Similar to what was called a ‘crash numberer’ used in letterpress shops, the machines could be set to do a run of digits [for example: 4000, 4001, 4002] or repeat numbers for forms used as carbon copies. As computers took over most forms of printing, the use of numbering machines dwindled, but they are still available. The American Numbering Machine Company was one of several Brooklyn, New York companies that specialized in the manufacture of these machines. Retail Packaging JNL replicates the lettering from their packaging, and is available in both regular and oblique versions.

The inspiration source for Monarchy Initials is the 1934 Book of American Types by American Type Founders. In that specimen book, they had created a sophisticated two color initial design they called "Stationers Initials" which was only available in metal type at 24, 36, and 48 points. This wonderfully detailed initial style is now digitally recreated and revived for modern use. Monarchy Initials is only capable of initial or single letter monograms due to its unique design. The two color aspect of the original design has been preserved and made accessible within all programs. The Capital character slots contain the background color glyphs, and the lowercase slots hold the outline art for the letters. You can choose a color, type a capital letter, then switch to black and type a lowercase letter for the two color effect, or just tpe a lowercase letter on its own. It's that easy! Download and view the Monarchy Initials Guidebook if you would like to learn a little more.

A unicase typeface inspired by Latin American wrestling. Versus is a type system designed for use with short and block text. The font, based on well-known typefaces found on boxing posters, combines Latin American elements and wrestling; it is this mixture of widths and weights and different styles which helps give your designs a unique flavour and personality. Versus is a unicase sans serif font well-suited for display use; its orthogonal terminals and short ascenders and descenders make it ideal for block of texts. By mixing different weights, you can have a wide range of design options—short text, isolated words, logos, titles, branding design, posters, etc. The Versus family comes in 9 weights—from a lightweight and condensed Extra Light to an expanded and heavy Ultra. Its character set supports over 200 different languages. The font also includes a large number of stylistic alternates and a complete ligature set which give your compositions a strong identity and personality.

The 1765 Stamp Act ignited in American colonists a simmering distrust of the distant British Parliament, whose oppressive trade duties they deemed unfair assaults on their rights as English subjects. Before long, of course, this little dustup spawned The Boston Tea Party, the American Revolution, and the birth of the U. S. of A. But before the Battles of Lexington and Concord, a group of Philadelphia merchants made one last-ditch call for commercial cooperation across the Atlantic. This futile appeal survives to this day on a three-page broadside, finely engrossed by a penman of the period and passed down through the generations of a family named Remsen. Remsen Script is an interpretation of that penman’s neat, formal cursive—from its broad antique flourishes to its subtle unevenness and gently ragged strokes. Perfect for event announcements, fine product packaging, recreations of historical documents, or anywhere you wish to offer a whiff of a bygone era.

The inspiration source for Memoriam Initials is the 1934 Book of American Types by American Type Founders. In that specimen book, they had created a sophisticated two color initial design they called “University Initials” which was only available in metal type at 24, 36, and 48 points. This wonderfully detailed initial style is now digitally recreated and revived for modern use. Memoriam Initials is only capable of initial or single letter monograms due to its unique design. The two color aspect of the original design has been preserved and made accessible within all programs. The Capital character slots contain the background color glyphs, and the lowercase slots hold the outline art for the letters. You can choose a color, type a capital letter, then switch to black and type a lowercase letter for the two color effect, or just type a lowercase letter on its own. It’s that easy! Download and view the Memoriam Initials Guidebook if you would like to learn a little more.

Aspen is a refreshing and resilient typeface for text of any kind. Functional but not faceless, Aspen derives a very distinctive character from an unusual pedigree. It is loosely influenced by early American and European grotesques, but with more warmth and improved legibility. And where these historical models were rigid and bulky, Aspen’s curves have a gentle sway that makes for very comfortable reading. Relatively generous ascenders and descenders allow the typeface to feel spacious even when set with tight leading. These amiable qualities are matched with a lively italic based on cursive writing. The family consists of nine weights, and is intended for both text and display usage. Visit this minisite to see Aspen in action.

We all love a good burger here at Vette Letters. We also love to prepare them ourselves. Grilling the patties, cutting the tomatoes and cucumber, nothing beats a home made hamburger. And the best and tastiest way to grill a burger is on a wood charcoal grill. So all in all we can safely say that burgers and wood are a pretty darn good combination. This made Donald Roos decide to design VLNL Woodburger, obviously based on 19th century American wood type alphabets. Donald decided to add cyrillic characters, as he strongly believed that Russians would be equally partial to home made burgers. VLNL Woodburger is not really polished font, it will give any design a rough sturdy edge.

LTC Kaatskill was made specifically for use in an edition of Rip Van Winkle for the Limited Editions Club. "I feel that Kaatskill owes nothing in its design to any existing face, and the type therefore is as truly an American type as anything so hidebound by tradition as type can be."- F. Goudy This face was one of the first digital typefaces released by the Lanston Type Co. Ltd. Jim Rimmer took painstaking measures in his faithful revival. Goudy had never designed a specific Italic to accompany this face. The Italic completed by Rimmer is a variation on Deepdene Italic. The font set was re-mastered in 2006 by Colin Kahn.

A vintage look layered label font named "Quick or Dead". This font was inspired by American wild west history. The family includes six styles (including effect styles), for sample look at preview. This font will good viewed on any retro design like poster, t-shirt, label, logo etc. For using effects layers: - Type your text in Regular. - Copy that and paste at the same position. - Change the style to Shadow or Texture. Alternates and catchwords: - Capital letters are different than small (look to the preview). - Several small letters have alternates (look to the preview). - For the catchwords type the word (for sample 'with'), select that and turn on 'Discretionary Ligatures' on the 'OpenType' tab. Or paste it from 'Glyphs' tab in any place on your text. This in Illustrator. In Photoshop 'Discretionary Ligatures' you can find in the menu Type - OpenType.

Santiago is a gorgeous handmade typeface. Each letter was decorated by hand. It took weeks to get everything right and looking beautiful. You can use Santiago for Mexican themed logos, restaurants, menus, business cards, posters, flyers, invitations, greeting card, advertising, apparel, magazines, etc. The possibilities are endless. If you're in need of a decorative Mexican culture typeface, then Santiago is for you!

Stars & Type is a display font inspired by a road trip around the USA. It is bold, abstract and experimental and is meant for attention grabbing large headlines. Utilising stars to give a sense of Americana, it would be suited to editorial, advertising and display typography.

Mtwane is a contemporary font, fusing the vigor of African design with the clean-lined sophistication of the European fonts popular at the turn of the 20th century. In the wake of African Renaissance, European and African cultures are counter-influenced, resulting in an exciting fusion of the two. Mtwane plays on the line between upper and lower case characters, creating a young, powerful, in-your-face effect. Use Mtwane for clear, powerful impact in contemporary design. Mtwane contains over 250 characters - (upper and lower case characters, punctuation, numerals, symbols and accented characters are present). It has all the accented characters used in the major European languages.

Introducing Astro, a charming serif font designed to bring an elegant and classic touch to your designs. Crafted with meticulous attention to detail and inspired by mid-millennium Serifs, Astro seamlessly blends traditional sophistication with contemporary elements, making it suitable for a variety of design projects, both print and digital. Enchanting Letter Shape Designs: Astro exudes charm with its letter design that is heavily inspired by the mid-millennium Serifs often found in European and American designs. Each letter is carefully carved to create a charming and luxurious impression. Unique Alternative Glyphs: Astro is not just a font; it is a standout typographic masterpiece. By offering several unique alternative glyphs, such as the letters a, g, and k, Astro gives designers the freedom to express their creativity in a unique and personal way. Mid-Millennium Serif Elegance: Astro features smooth lines and proportions, creating an elegant impression characteristic of mid-millennium Serifs. This design provides a timeless classic touch making it suitable for a variety of design needs, including books, magazines, posters and other printed materials. Ease Readability: While the Astro exudes striking elegance, its design also prioritizes readability and comfort. Each letter is created with balanced proportions and optimal contrast, ensuring text appears clear and easy to read, whether on a large or small scale. Flexible Use: Astro is designed to provide flexible use across a variety of design platforms. From the logo design to the magazine layout, Astro adapts beautifully, maintaining a consistent feel that enhances the aesthetic quality of the design. European and American inspiration: Astro creates a bridge between European and American typographic styles, combining the best elements of both traditions. This makes it the perfect choice for projects that combine elements from both continents. Astro is more than just a font, it is an artistic statement that leaves an unforgettable impression on any design project. Suitable for designers who appreciate classic beauty and modern uniqueness, Astro brings a special and charming feel to every character it creates.

First introduced by the American Type Founders Company in 1906, Railroad Gothic was the quintessential typographic expression of turn-of-the-century industrial spirit—bold and brash in tone, and a little rough around the edges. A favorite for the plain speak of big headlines, Railroad Gothic quickly gained popularity among printers. Its condensed but robust forms were likely a source of inspiration for later families of industrial sans serifs. The design feels like a cleaned-up version of some earlier Victorian gothics, notable for their uneven proportions and awkward letterforms. ATF offered a number of sizes of Railroad Gothic as metal type, with cuts varying in design considerably from size to size. Creating this new digital version involved interpreting the characteristics of different sizes and making some aesthetic choices: where to retain the design’s familiar unstudied gawkiness, and where to make improvements. The new ATF® Railroad Gothic features a measured, harmonious interpretation of the original, and has been extended with four new weights (each bolder than the last). The heaviest weights are carefully designed to keep counters open, no matter how dense the overall effect may be, maintaining legibility at any display size. This contemporary rendition of a historic American design boasts a full Latin character set, including glyphs undreamed-of in the heyday of railroads.

McKnight Kauffer is a casual sans derived from poster and book cover lettering by the American designer, Edward McKnight Kauffer, who mainly worked in England through the 1920s and 1930s. The style owes much to Louis Oppenheim's Fanfare of 1927, but without the Germanic blackletter inflection. The two display fonts, regular and outline, have a playful art deco feel, and share spacing and kerning so can be overlapped for bicolor effects.