From the Stacks: Berthold Type Foundry Specimen

As type designers we naturally have many type specimens stashed away in our collection, though very few of them manage to elevate type beyond the typical waterfall showings and text settings. There are exceptions of course, but the latest addition goes the extra mile.

With its gorgeous layouts and ersatz ads, we can’t help but appreciate this specimen from Berthold Type Foundry, numbered “525B”. Find many more mid-century (no specific year is given) specimen layouts after the jump.

Tags:  Berthold  |  From the Stacks  |  Specimen

Free Bryant webfont upgrade

The desktop version of Bryant, our warm and modern take on the geometric sans serif, features stylistic alternates that have been unavailable in our webfont packages  – until now! Due to popular request, we’ve now made this typographic flexibility available, giving you more ways to use Bryant 2, Bryant Compressed, and Bryant Condensed on your site.

While stylistic alternates are becoming easy to access in desktop applications that support OpenType, browser support for these features online is still, for the most part, on the horizon. This means that translating this feature to webfonts requires taking a few more steps.  We have broken the stylistic sets into separate font files to allow access to these special features on the web with @font-face or Typekit.

Already have a webfont license for Bryant 2, Bryant Compressed or Bryant Condensed? Just log in and go to “My Account” to view your recent orders and re-download Bryant to receive your free upgraded stylistic sets. If you are using Typekit to display Bryant on your website, you should find the new options in your font library.

Tags:  @font-face  |  Bryant  |  Bryant Compressed  |  Bryant Condensed  |  Webfonts

In Use: Capucine and Anchor Pair Up in Seattle

Seattle Met, a magazine covering the local scene in Seattle, WA, has been using Anchor and Bryant Compressed since May, when designer André Mora came on board. But it was for the summery July issue, with its focus on farms, foraging and other foodie adventures that Mora paired Anchor with the agile Capucine, named after the French word for the Nasturtium flower.

As the newest addition to our family of typefaces, it’s great to see Capucine being put to use here in a way that showcases its flexibility, from display headlines to captions.

See more photos of Capucine in use here.

Tags:  Anchor  |  Capucine  |  Seattle Met

Summer Reading

When we saw today’s release of the summer reading list for the University of Reading typeface design students, one title stood out. Gerry Leonidas, director of the program, has put together a great index of references that includes an influential monograph by William Addison Dwiggins.

Dwiggins, an American illustrator and book designer, came to type design later in life. He wrote WAD to RR: a letter about designing type to colleague Rudolph Ruzicka in 1940, offering rare insight into the typeface design process. We pulled out our copy of the Dwiggins text from our collection.

Dwiggins, who is credited with coining the term “graphic designer”, is a particularly compelling character for the lively variety of his work. In addition to his work in advertising, book design, calligraphy and type design, he also operated a marionette theater (recently highlighted in The Daily Heller). Though he studied lettering with Frederic Goudy as a young man, he didn’t take up type design until his late forties, when he was invited by the Mergenthaler Linotype Company to create a contemporary sans-serif typeface that then turned into the idiosyncratic sans Metro.

View more photos of our copy on Flickr, or read the entire letter here.

Tags:  Books  |  From the Stacks  |  Type Design

Now Hiring: Communications Manager (Filled)

This position is filled and we are no longer accepting applications.

We’re seeking a multi-talented individual who will promote our retail typefaces, tell our story, and differentiate us from our competition to ultimately increase recognition, visibility and sales. Working in collaboration with the owners, you’ll develop and execute a communications strategy that includes traditional print ads and email alerts, along with social media initiatives, directing or writing website content, developing media relationships, being attentive to overall customer experience and any other plans worth doing.

As an extension of managing customer experience, this position will also take the lead on licensing-related tasks. Responsibilities include promoting our various licenses, answering pre- and post-sales questions, creating quotes and invoices, shepherding the contracting process, and recommending then implementing approved policy changes.

At a micro-business like ours, job descriptions are starting off points not inhibitors. You should be willing to capitalize on your existing skills, learn new ones, expand your responsibilities, be flexible, embrace challenges and contribute to creating a more successful and productive studio as a matter of course.

This is a full time position working on-site with the potential to work remotely one or two days a week once work routines are fully established. Benefits and perks include healthcare, personal time and work/life balance.

The ideal candidate has the following:

• A passion for typography, typefaces and type design
• 3+ years of professional experience in the design industry (graphic or web design specifically); involvement with the type industry is ideal
• Demonstrated skills and experience in the realms of online marketing and communications
• A belief in communication efforts driven by authenticity and value over hype
• Ability to determine the success of your efforts through data and use research to aid in decision-making
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills including copywriting and editing
• An unwavering attention to detail with an ability to simplify the complex
• The confidence to collaborate with strong-willed individuals
• Exceptional self-motivation; capable of thriving with minimal direction
• Good knowledge of Word and Excel; InDesign, Photoshop, or HTML/CSS skills a bonus
• Last but not least, tolerance for a small dog that frequents the studio

How to Apply:
Send the following materials to work (at) processtypefoundry.com. Incomplete submissions
will not be considered.

• Resume or CV
• Salary requirements
• Three typography-related writing samples

No phone calls, please.

Tags:  Work here

Found Type: Adhesive Helvetica

Hidden within a large collection of rub down and transfer type we acquired last fall was this set of adhesive Helvetica caps and matching Samsonite logos. The stuffy palette says 1984 (as does the fine print on the bottom) but we can only guess at their use. We assume the letters’ original owner, an interior designer by trade, first personalized her luggage (her initials were VR) and then… well we’re not sure. The destination of S & O will have to remain a mystery.

Tags:  Found Type

Not All Who Wander Are Lost

Designer Ross Moody and his 55 Hi’s imprint are one of the reasons we love running our own type foundry. It’s been said that type design is a lonely, difficult and frustrating endeavor and while that can be true, it’s also immensely gratifying when the bi-product of your work is so surprising.

‘Is that our FIG Script?’ we wondered. When set in all caps, a script face doesn’t traditionally connect. So what gives? Capable hands. Ross deftly connected the caps, modified certain letters and added flourishing touches.

‘Not all who wander are lost’ is a derivative of a line from a J.R.R. Tolkien poem titled, ‘All that is gold does not glitter.’ The poem appeared in the Lord of the Rings trilogy and the original line read, ‘Not all those who wander are lost.’ The poem and its place in the trilogy is documented on Wikipedia.

Ross has created limited edition, hand screen printed posters and postcards of ‘Not all who wonder are lost’ that are available on his site.

Tags:  FIG

The Fine Print, Literally

The February issue of Print magazine, guest art directed by ProjectProjects, featured our oldest typeface Kettler. Starting on the cover and continuing throughout the issue, Kettler quietly punctuates conversations between a panel of selected guests on the subject of collaboration between disciplines.

Kettler played a role in another magazine designed by ProjectProjects called Work, now out-of-print. It’s been a joy to see Kettler used by such capable hands.

Tags:  Kettler