Sometimes lettering without any frills or formality gets a message across better than the use of fancier typefaces. The simple charm of the hand-lettered phrase "Safety Comes First" found on a vintage WPA (Works Progress Administration) poster served as the model for Basic Lettering JNL.

A circa-1940s textbook for the Esterbrook Drawlet Pens (similar to Speedball pens) offered numerous samples of lettering that could be obtained by following the simple directions and using the book as a guide. One example was a classic Art Deco design made with a round nib pen, and it has been redrawn digitally as Lettering Book JNL in both regular and oblique versions.

From a vintage textbook on "modern" lettering circa the 1930s or 1940s comes a simple chamfered sans with oddly irregular shapes. Amateur Lettering JNL is available in both regular and oblique versions.