How To Use That Type face

Characters like N and O that in ordinary alphabets are the same width are very dif-ferent in University Roman Conversely, characters like M and T that are normally dif-ferent are alike

That font you love won’t work just anywhere;

it has a style that needs to be complemented

Here’s how to work to its strengths.

How to use that typeface

Continued 

Ever spot a typeface that you really like and

can’t wait to use? It’s exciting, but go slow

Before you buy it, you’ll want to know if the

lines, shapes and little doodads that make it

so appealing here will work as well over there

How to tell? Reading a typeface is a little

like reading a real face Tiny differences in

the arch of an eyebrow, the curve of a lip and

the contour of a cheekbone convey real

pres-ence, personality and attitude These need

complementary presence and “attitude” from

the other visual elements, or the result will be

awkward, weak or just funny looking Here’s

how to do that.

How to use that typeface That font you love won’t work just anywhere; it has a style that needs

to be complemented Here’s how to work to its strengths.

University Roman Spotted on Monterey’s famous Cannery Row, funky University Roman on this slab of a gift-shop sign is out of its element Its offbeat letterforms, opulent curlicues and toothpick serifs are like a mardi-gras costume in political science class Not a match This is a typeface that wants to party! Let’s find it one!

AaBbCcDdEeFfGgHhIiJj KkLlMmNnOoPpQqRrSs TtUuVvWwXxYyZz

1234567890!$%&?

Make a visual overview

Set the full alphabet and make a visual overview Write down what you see

Why write it down? To make sure you’ve actually seen it Seriously.

Thick-to-thin stroke differences are subtle but present on every character

If the signmaker on the previous page had been writing this stuff down, he wouldn’t have affixed the V to his signboard backward

A and e have extremely small counters,

or enclosed spaces

Characters like N and O that

in ordinary alphabets are

the same width are very

dif-ferent in University Roman

Conversely, characters like M

and T that are normally

dif-ferent are alike here

Other letters have REALLY BIG counters

Flamboyant University

Roman was developed

in 1983 by the Letraset

Type Studio It’s quirky

and popular as a display

typeface, especially on

greeting cards It’s good

for more than that, as

we’ll see

Swashy tails

Opulent swirls and curlicues

® 4 of 13

PRAB

Look at the details

University Roman is full of swashy idiosyncracies that give it a hand-made, Christmasy style especially suitable for fanciful and romantic topics.

Wacky x-heights Bulbous, rubbery letters have an land quality; some have HUGE tops, some have HUGE bottoms,

Alice-in-Wonder-no apparent rhyme or reason

Oddball character widths All straight letters are thin Really thin

All round letters are wide Really wide—so wide that round lowercase letters are wider than their uppercase counterparts! (Ee, above right)

N O Ee

to tickle three ters over

charac-Radical 50°- angle serifs and terminals! But only in lowercase!

Exaggerated sizes

Serif extensions rise above cap height and drop below baseline

Asymmetrical

serifs

How to use that typeface

Note strengths and weaknesses

The irregular proportions and embellishments that make University Roman an entertaining display face make it very hard to read in text Key is to keep it big.

Big, tight, even University Roman looks best big Its enormous, round letters create a lot of internal white space that looks better when it’s squeezed out, so set your words tightly and as evenly spaced as possible (below)

Texture and flasp net exating end mist of it snooling Spaff forl isn’t cubular but quastic, leam restart that can’t prebast It’s tope, this fluant chasible Silk, shast, lape and behast the thin chack “It has larch to say fan.” Why? Elesara and order is fay of alm A card whint not oogum or bont Pretty simple, glead and tarm Texture and flasp

Texture and flasp net exating end mist of it snooling Spaff forl isn’t cubular but quastic, leam restart that can’t prebast It’s tope, this fluant chasible Silk, shast, lape and behast the thin chack “It has larch to say fan.” Why? Elesara and order is fay of alm A card whint not oogum or bont Pretty simple, glead and tarm Texture

University Roman, a display face

Bembo, a text face

Its irregularities make University Roman unsuitable for text, where a rhythmic, medium typeface works best (above) University Roman can be used for very brief pass-

ages (left), but for anything more than a sentence

or so, use a real text face

Best of the

Season to you!

straight letters, less between round

® 6 of 13

Put it to work

The challenge now is to combine type with graphics in a coherent whole To learn how, let’s start at the end—with two cards that illustrate University Roman perfectly tuned to its environment

Two beautiful cards The lines, shapes and colors of type and image are so tightly integrated that the designs appear completely natural and unforced Both type and image are strong but together are greater than the sum of their parts

How to use that typeface

Look for common shapes

To find an image that goes with your typeface, start with shapes Round letters go naturally with round images Avoid triangles, squares and ambiguous shapes, which will compete and weaken your design.

Circles (Right) Round shapes are

obvious in the round letters, but look

at the smaller parts, too—the loops

and swirls and negative spaces that

are also round

Teardrops (Below) Teardrops in the

image mirror those in the swashy S

Complementary typeface (Above) Pair a fancy display face with an ordinary typeface for contrast

plus readability at small sizes Look for similarities What’s interesting here is how different Futura is

from University Roman, yet they have roundness in common

NOW THROUGH MARCH 28

® 8 of 13

Blend type and image using color and “edge”

Now bring the image into the type, which in this case means literally Wrap the type around the edge contours, then apply its beautiful gradients to the lettering.

Blend using color

Magenta to yellow (above) and

cyan to green (left) are light,

fresh combinations Sample

color pairs from the image, add

to the color palette as gradient

swatches, then apply to the

type, which will take on a

natu-ral radiance that blends

beauti-fully into the image

NOW THROUGH MARCH 28

Blend using a common edge Wrap the words tightly to the contours of the image (left) As a rule with display type, you’ll

do this by eye, paying attention to the nooks, crannies and other details that the software would miss

NOW THROUGH MARCH 28

How to use that typeface

Faint image activates a space

A smaller, lighter duplicate image in the upper left activates the passive white and balances the design

Lay out the card

Place type and image on the small card, which confines and focuses the design A small, duplicate image activates the opposite corner and completes the layout.

NOW THROUGH MARCH 28 NOW THROUGH MARCH 28

NOW THROUGH MARCH 28

Splashy composition is ful in open space (left), but its ele-ments must work on a card, which confines them Set as big as pos-sible, bleeding beyond the lower right corner (below)

Flowers, flourishes and detailed textures mimic the extravagant forms of versity Roman Monochromatic gold is direct and intense and will partner well with the typeface Multicolor masks (left, top) are so engaging they require the stage to them-selves Real faces are similarly distracting; instead of a powerful design, the viewer will

Uni-be wondering who it is RememUni-ber: common lines and shapes.

MASQUERADE

YOUR PRESENCE IS REQUESTED FOR A FESTIVE EVENING OF INTRIGUE, MYSTERY AND FANTASY.

YOUR PRESENCE IS REQUESTED FOR A FESTIVE EVENING OF INTRIGUE, MYSTERY AND FANTASY.

MASQUERADE

YOUR PRESENCE IS REQUESTED FOR A FESTIVE EVENING OF INTRIGUE, MYSTERY AND FANTASY.

The image then designs the page

With type and image together, now transfer the colors, ornaments and textures

of the mask to the rest of the page Result—a unified, powerful design.

Sample two colors Combine light

to dark monochromatic golds sampled

from the mask into a gradient swatch,

then apply to the typeface As we saw

earlier, the new radiance beautifully

reflects the qualities of the image (right)

Ornamental border Corners of the barely-there border—just enough to frame the page—mimic the image

Woodcut Final, matching ornament punctuates the page with a full stop, completing the design

Symmetrical mask is naturally “centered.”

Centered layout then doubles its power

MASQUERADE

b) 46 pt

2 Futura Light | 18/21.5 pt

3 Futura Extra Bold | 10 pt

4 Adobe Caslon Regular | 10.7/17 pt

5 Adobe Wood Type Std Regular

ImagesImages: iStockphoto.com

11

1311

14

12

1213

6

7

45

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 How



That font you love won’t work just anywhere;

it has a style that needs to be complemented

Here’s how to work to its strengths.

How to use that typeface

X

How

U

Ever spot a typeface that you really like and

can’t wait to use? It’s exciting, but go slow

Before you buy it, you’ll want to know if the

lines, shapes and little doodads that make it

so appealing here will work as well over there

How to tell? Reading a typeface is a little like reading a real face Tiny differences in

the arch of an eyebrow, the curve of a lip and

the contour of a cheekbone convey real

pres-ence, personality and attitude These need

complementary presence and “attitude” from

the other visual elements, or the result will be

awkward, weak or just funny looking Here’s

how to do that

University Roman Spotted on Monterey’s famous Cannery Row, funky University Roman on this slab of a gift-shop sign is out of its element Its offbeat letterforms, opulent curlicues and toothpick serifs are like a mardi-gras costume in political science class Not a match This is a typeface that wants to party! Let’s fi nd it one!

How

U

AaBbCcDdEeFfGgHhIiJj KkLlMmNnOoPpQqRrSs TtUuVvWwXxYyZz

1234567890!$%&?

Make a visual overview

Set the full alphabet and make a visual overview Write down what you see

Why write it down? To make sure you’ve actually seen it Seriously

Thick-to-thin stroke differences are subtle but present on every character

If the signmaker on the previous page had been writing this stuff down, he wouldn’t have affi xed the V to his signboard backward.

A and e have extremely small counters,

or enclosed spaces.

Characters like N and O that

in ordinary alphabets are

the same width are very

dif-ferent in University Roman

Conversely, characters like M

and T that are normally

dif-ferent are alike here.

Other letters have REALLY BIG counters.

Flamboyant University

Roman was developed

in 1983 by the Letraset

Type Studio It’s quirky

and popular as a display

typeface, especially on

greeting cards It’s good

for more than that, as

we’ll see.

Swashy tails

Opulent swirls and curlicues

X

U

PRAB

Look at the details

University Roman is full of swashy idiosyncracies that give it a hand-made, Christmasy style especially suitable for fanciful and romantic topics

Wacky x-heights Bulbous, rubbery letters have an land quality; some have HUGE tops, some have HUGE bottoms,

Alice-in-Wonder-no apparent rhyme or reason.

Oddball character widths All straight letters are thin Really thin

All round letters are wide Really wide—so wide that round lowercase letters are wider than their uppercase counterparts! (Ee, above right)

N O Ee

QuiltA tail long enough

to tickle three ters over.

charac-Radical 50°- angle serifs and terminals! But only in lowercase!

Exaggerated sizes

Serif extensions rise above cap height and drop below baseline Asymmetrical

serifs

How

entertaining display face make it very hard to read in text Key is to keep it big

Big, tight, even University Roman looks best big Its enormous, round letters create a lot of internal white space that looks better when it’s squeezed out, so set your words tightly and as evenly spaced as possible (below).

Texture and flasp net exating end mist of it snooling Spaff forl isn’t cubular but quastic, leam restart that can’t prebast It’s tope, this fluant chasible Silk, shast, lape and behast the thin chack “It has larch to say fan.” Why? Elesara and order is fay of alm A card whint not oogum or bont Pretty simple, glead and tarm Texture and flasp

Texture and flasp net exating end mist of it snooling Spaff forl isn’t cubular but quastic, leam restart that can’t prebast It’s tope, this fluant chasible Silk, shast, lape and behast the thin chack “It has larch to say fan.” Why? Elesara and order is fay of alm A card whint not oogum or bont Pretty simple, glead and tarm Texture

University Roman, a display face

Bembo, a text face

Its irregularities make University Roman unsuitable for text, where a rhythmic, medium typeface works best (above) University Roman can be used for very brief pass- ages (left), but for anything more than a sentence

or so, use a real text face.

Best of the

Season to you!

Chris & Robin aloe Even spacing Put more space between

straight letters, less between round.

Two beautiful cards The lines, shapes and colors of type and image are so tightly integrated that the designs appear completely natural and unforced Both type and image are strong but together are greater than the sum of their parts.

How

U

Look for common shapes

To fi nd an image that goes with your typeface, start with shapes Round letters go naturally with round images Avoid triangles, squares and ambiguous shapes, which will compete and weaken your design

Circles (Right) Round shapes are

obvious in the round letters, but look

at the smaller parts, too—the loops

and swirls and negative spaces that

are also round.

Teardrops (Below) Teardrops in the

image mirror those in the swashy S.

Complementary typeface (Above) Pair a fancy display face with an ordinary typeface for contrast

plus readability at small sizes Look for similarities What’s interesting here is how different Futura is

from University Roman, yet they have roundness in common.

NOW THROUGH MARCH 28

O C D b a e

X

U

Blend type and image using color and “edge”

Now bring the image into the type, which in this case means literally Wrap the type around the edge contours, then apply its beautiful gradients to the lettering

Blend using color Magenta to yellow (above) and cyan to green (left) are light, fresh combinations Sample color pairs from the image, add

to the color palette as gradient

swatches, then apply to the type, which will take on a natu- ral radiance that blends beauti- fully into the image.

NOW THROUGH MARCH 28

Blend using a common edge Wrap the words tightly to the contours of the image (left) As a rule with display type, you’ll

do this by eye, paying attention to the nooks, crannies and other details that the software would miss.

NOW THROUGH MARCH 28