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 story of Scripps College Old Style is a heart-warming and inspiring chronicle about a young librarian, a handful of students, a wealthy grandmother, a dedicated educator -- and two eminent American type designers. The story begins in 1938, when Dorothy Drake, the newly hired librarian at Scripps College, a small women's college in southern California, became an impromptu dinner companion of the American type designer Fred Goudy. By the 1990s, the original fonts that Goudy had created for Scripps College in the 1940s had become prized -- but they were seldom-used antiques. Scripps needed digital versions of the metal fonts. This goal posed two immediate challenges: finding a designer familiar with letterpress printing who was skilled at creating digital fonts, and locating the money to commission the designer's services. The first challenge was the easiest to conquer. Sumner Stone was my first and only choice," recalls Kitty Maryatt, the current curator of the Scripps College Press. "I knew he had letterpress experience, was an accomplished calligrapher, and that his typeface designs were simply exquisite. The choice was easy."The second challenge was more difficult. It took the dedication, hard work and tenacity of Maryatt to bring the beautiful Goudy designs into the twenty-first century. While Stone was eager to begin work on the project, the college had no more money for new typeface designs in the 1990s than it did in the1930s. Years of lobbying, cajoling and letter writing were necessary to obtain the college's approval for the design project. Once she had the necessary funding, the design brief posed yet a third challenge. Goudy had provided two sizes of type to the Press: 14 point and 16 point. Which would serve as the foundation for Stone's work? In addition, the Goudy fonts were quite worn. Should Stone use printed samples as his design master, or base his work on the original Goudy renderings? The 14-point master drawings were the ultimate choice, with the stipulation that the finished fonts would provide both a seamless transition from the worn metal versions and a faithful representation of the original Goudy designs. Once the budget and design brief were established, the process of converting the original Goudy drawings into digital fonts took just a little over two months. Stone delivered finished products to Scripps in the fall of 1997. The first official use of the fonts was to set an announcement for a lecture by Stone at Scripps in February of 1998. But the story is not quite finished. Maryatt was so pleased with the new digital fonts, she wanted to share them with the graphic design community. At Stone's suggestion, she contacted Monotype Imaging with the hope that the company would add the new designs to its library. An easy decision! Now Monotype Imaging is part of the story. We are proud to announce the release of Scripps College Old Style as a Monotype Classic font. The once exclusive font of metal type is now available in digital form for designers around the world. "

Out of a lifelong inner struggle, Philip Bouwsma unleashes a masterpiece that reconciles classic calligraphy with type in a way never before attempted. Maestro takes its cue from the Italian chancery cursive of the early sixteenth century. By this time type ruled the publishing world, but official court documents were still presented in calligraphy, in a new formal style of the high Renaissance that was integrated with Roman letters and matched the refined order of type. The copybooks of Arrighi and others, printed from engraved wood blocks, spread the Italian cancellaresca across Europe, but the medium was too clumsy and the size too small to show what was really happening in the stroke. Arrighi and others also made metal fonts that pushed type in the direction of calligraphy, but again the medium did not support the superb artistry of these masters or sustain the vitality in their work. As the elegant sensitive moving stroke of the broad pen was reduced to a static outline, the human quality, the variety and the excitement of a living act were lost. Because the high level of skill could not be reproduced, the broad pen was largely replaced by the pointed tool. The modern italic handwriting revival is based on a simplified model and does not approach the level of this formal calligraphy with its relationship to the Roman forms. Maestro is the font that Arrighi and his colleagues would have made if they had had digital technology. Like the calligraphic system of the papal chancery on which it is modelled, it was not drawn as a single finished alphabet, but evolved from a confluence of script and Roman; the script is formalized by the Roman to stand proudly in a world of type. Maestro came together on screen over the course of several years, through many versions ranging widely in style, formality, width, slant, weight and other parameters. On one end of the spectrum, looking back to tradition it embodies the formal harmony of the Roman capitals and the minuscule which became the lower case. On the other it is a flowing script letter drawing on the spirit of later pointed pen and engravers scripts. As its original designers intended, it works with simple Roman capitals and serifs or swash capitals and baroque flourishes. The broad pen supplies weight and substance to the stroke which carries energy through tension in balanced s-curves. Above all it is meant to convey the life and motion of formal calligraphy as a worthy counterbalance to the stolid gravity of metal type. The Maestro family consists of forty fonts distributed over two weights. The OpenType version compresses the family considerably down to two fonts, regular and bold, each containing the entire character set of twenty fonts, for a total of more than 3350 characters per font. These include a wide variety of stylistic alternates, ligatures, beginning and ending letters, flourishes, borders, rules, and other extras. The Pro version also includes extended linguistic support for Latin-based scripts (Western, Central and Eastern European, Baltic, Turkish, Welsh/Celtic, Maltese) as well as Greek. For more thoughts on Maestro, its background and character sets, please read the PDF accompanying the family.

ITC Tactile is a puzzle of subtle typographic contradictions. Capitals have traditional epigraphic proportions, but the lowercase has a uniform optical width. Light weights are stately and elegant, but bold designs are almost jolly. This paradoxical alphabet even combines two distinctively different serif designs. Designer Joe Stitzlein says, “I wanted to create a modern and dynamic serif face that draws its forms from antiquity. I also wanted to have as much fun as possible with the drawing and architecture of each letter. Hopefully I've created a very legible typeface that grabs the reader's eye in a nice, 'tactile' way.” The apparent inconsistencies of the design are the result of careful consideration. Of the seemingly odd serif design, Stitzlein explains, “The transitional serif is an entry point for the eye into the letterform, and the long slab is an exit, leading to the next letter.” The result is a typeface that's easy to read at text sizes but offers surprising details when enlarged to display sizes, setting ITC Tactile apart from more traditional designs. While this is his first commercial typeface design, Stitzlein has ample experience creating custom typefaces for corporate branding, including companies such as Silicon Graphics and Sempra Energy. His graphic design business has served a wide range of clients, including Apple Computer and the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics. The ITC Tactile family is available in three weights, with complementary italic designs and a suite of small caps for each of the roman designs. Stitzlein drew the small caps to match the height of the lowercase x-height, which enables “bi-form” or “unicase” setting in display copy.

Astrid Grotesk is a normalized version of Schizotype Grotesk. Normalized; not neutralized. Where many neo-grotesks appear cold with their harsh neutrality, Astrid has a warmth, eminating from its (for want of a better word) clunkiness. With the latest update, it becomes a true workhorse, with a range of widths and italics for the normal widths. Astrid Grotesk, while being clearly a neo-grotesk in appearance, has a personality all of its own. Standout characters include the f and t, and the default binocular g, unusual in neo-grotesks. And the right angled terminals on c, e and s. Stylistic sets offer up alternate forms of a, g, y, I, @, dutch IJ, german eszett and l. A full complement of numerals is included: proportional and tabular, lining and oldstyle, plus fractions, subscript and superscript. Note also that the tabular figures are duplexed across weights - very useful when highlighting specific entries in tables. The tabular figures feature also substitutes in fixed width (across all weights) comma and period, so your decimals line up perfectly always. Lastly, case sensitive forms of certain glyphs are included for all-cap settings. This typeface will be useful for corporate identities and branding work. It’s spaced more for text settings in the normal width, and gets more display-optimized as the width decreases, but with careful tracking, all styles can sing at display sizes. Bored of those other Swiss style typefaces? Astrid Grotesk could be the face you need to breathe new life into your designs. Coupled with Schizotype Grotesk, its more eccentric cousin, you've got an unorthodox branding system ready to use straight out of the box.

Originally conceived while sketching outline typefaces for a client, Minotte Pro has blossomed into a font one thousand glyphs strong and is chock full of alternates and contextual swashes! By enabling swashes, style sets, and contextual alternates in your OpenType savvy application, headlines and text set with Minotte Pro will transform into unique combinations of initial, middle and final swash forms! There’s also an alternate Cap set with a partial fill for even greater variety! Perfect for travel ad headlines, Minotte Pro adds a light, carefree touch. If your app doesn't support OpenType, then check out the split out versions, Minotte, Minotte Swash, Minotte Fil and Minotte Swash Fil. Minotte Pro Minotte Solid Pro contain these OpenType features: Contextual Swashes, Stylistic Alternates, Standard & Discretionary Ligatures, 6 Style Sets, Superiors & Inferiors, Fractions and Ornaments. The Minotte Extras Pro Pak includes three chromatic effects fonts, Minotte Center, Minotte Gradient and Minotte Shadow. These Extras fonts are intended to be used with Minotte Pro and Minotte Solid Pro, allowing colorizing and 3-D shadow effects. There are numerous combinations when using all three together! The three Extras fonts support the entire Pro character set and all OpenType features! Intended for users that do not own or use OpenType savvy apps, the four alternative fonts capture the best of the Pro version and will provide you with the glyphs needed to duplicate some of Minotte Pro’s typographic richness. Minotte and Minotte Fil are fully usable, whereas the Minotte Swash and Minotte Swash Fil are intended to work in tandem with the basic Minotte fonts. Set your headlines and text in Minotte, then switch to Minotte Swash and manually select the appropriate swash glyphs. Switch to either of the Fil fonts for full sets of Cap alternates sporting a partial fill. Minotte Pro, Minotte, Minotte Fil, Minotte Swash and Minotte Swash Fil support an extended European character set.

Introducing "Korge", a captivating and versatile retro bold slab serif font that seamlessly marries vintage aesthetics with modern functionality. With its bold design, serif form, and a trio of regular, rounded, and extruded versions, Korge offers a wealth of creative possibilities for your design ventures. Korge is a font that transports your projects back to the golden eras of design. Its bold and distinct serifs evoke a sense of nostalgia, lending your creations a classic and enduring appeal. Korge provides not one, but three distinct styles to choose from. The regular version exudes a commanding presence, while the rounded variant softens the edges for a more approachable feel. The extruded version adds depth and dimension, giving your text a 3D, eye-catching quality. Korge is a font that speaks the language of design across borders. With its multi-language support and PUA encoding, it ensures your message resonates with audiences from diverse linguistic backgrounds. From logo design to branding, packaging, posters, and beyond, Korge adapts seamlessly to a wide array of design projects. Its bold slab serifs demand attention, making sure your message is delivered with both authority and style. Korge invites you to embark on a journey of creative exploration. Craft memorable headlines, iconic logos, or striking signage – this font is your canvas for pushing the boundaries of design. With Korge, the possibilities are limitless. Its vintage-inspired bold slab serif design, multi-language support, and versatile styles make it the ideal choice for designers seeking to infuse their projects with timeless charm and contemporary appeal. Get ready to bring your visions to life with Korge, where classic meets cutting-edge. ——— Korge features: A full set of Uppercase & Lowercase letters Numbers and punctuation Multilingual language support PUA Encoded Characters OpenType Features +237 Total Glyphs Rounded Style + Regular Style Extruded Style Korge Includes: Korge Regular Korge Regular Extruded Left Korge Regular Extruded Right Korge Regular Extruded Left Italic Korge Regular Extruded Right Italic Korge Rounded Korge Rounded Extruded Left Korge Rounded Extruded Right Italic Korge Rounded Extruded Left Korge Rounded Extruded Right Italic

Ambiguity is a type family with five distinct personalities or ‘states’, created as a tool for coaxing designers and brands out of their comfort zone. It embraces both tradition and radicality, as well as generosity and thrift, encouraging us to question our beliefs about the intersection of style and meaning. The family is designed by Charles Nix, who describes Ambiguity as “as much thought experiment as typeface.” Its five states—Tradition, Radical, Thrift, Generous and Normate—each express or subvert different aspects of typographic tradition. Tradition is conservative, relying on historical letter shapes. Radical rejects inherited ideas of proportion, making typically slender letterforms wide, and wide letterforms slender. “It’s contrarian,” says Nix. Thrift cherry picks the condensed shapes from Tradition and Radical, while Generous does the same for wide forms. Normate sits at the center, a synthetic blend of all of the others. “Tradition is very comforting,” says Nix. “It’s the mask of conservatism. It’s calming because it delivers the proportions we expect. With Thrift more fits into a smaller space, so it’s great where words want to get large, like gigantic headlines, or text needs to cram in, like small screen type. You get a sense of carefree and luxury from the Generous cut. One would expect the Radical to be used in a sort of Dadaist way, but in a classic context it provides an enjoyable jolt.” Ambiguity is a litmus test. Designers could spend hours trying on typefaces that offer just one of these voices. Ambiguity provides five different personalities—ideas—beliefs—each of which also work seamlessly together. “It’s a palettea, like idea cards,” he says. “It’s a way of making yourself see differently. My hope is that traditionalists will try on radical clothes and vice versa. It’s a way of exploring outside your comfort zone, breaking out of the doldrums, by stepping through a variety of voices.”

You wrote on your school notebooks, didn't you. Of course, just about everyone did. And those that didn't are probably in therapy trying to overcome the repression and guilt. Balloon letters are fun, easy to draw and have a light-hearted presence. With little autonomy, what young person can resist the opportunity to make a public, personal statement on their notebook. Guess what! Adults do it too - with our cars, our houses, our toys, our accessories and so on. And how "grown-up" are we really? Anyway, my niece, Cori, made this nice, colorful, hand-drawn birthday card. It was so vibrant and fun - in warm circus colors - that I could not resist making it into a font. Use it for positive, fun stuff, stuff with a light touch - an invitation for an informal party perhaps, but probably not a formal dinner at the White House. This font is not comfortable in a bowtie. But don't be fooled. Casual as Cori is, you can set at least twelve major European languages with it, in addition to English: Albanian, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish and Swedish. Cori Valentine adds a decorative Valentine border to the upper case of Cori. By leaving out the bow in the upper center of the border we were able to fit the border around the accented caps. Similarly, we omitted the butterfly for the Ccedilla glyph. Blank versions of the regular border & the bowless border are provided at positions 135 & 137 in case you want to put a border around your signature or something like that. Just for reference, the letterforms for Cori Valentine are 75% the size as the regular Cori font. We would like to assure you that it is permissible to use Cori Valentine to create a romantic card, flyer or note during any month with less the 32 days.