I once had a client that would constantly ask: "Can we unify this text?" Meaning, they wanted it all the same font!
*shakes head* No! I was accommodating to the request but I did explain that having more than one font is okay! And making more than one font work is actually awesome. This is why ...
It's just text right? WRONG! Using correct typography can make or break your branding, marketing materials and packaging. Typography is defined as the art and technique of arranging type to make written language legible, readable, and appealing when displayed. The arrangement of type involves selecting typefaces, point sizes, line lengths, line-spacing, and letter-spacing, and adjusting the space between pairs of letters. Here I'll go over the main points for getting it right.
Let's Begin
Font vs. Typeface
This is a very common question. Most people use the terms interchangeably, but when it comes to style guides and brand consistency, it's important to make the distinction. Simply put, a font is but a piece of a whole. For example:
What is a font family?
A font family is what we call the group of fonts included in a typeface. Like in the image above, the typeface is for example Arial, and with it comes a "font family" including Arial Regular, Arial Italic, etc. Designers can choose to utilized all members of a font family in their style guides, allowing creative freedom within the family or only allow a select few.
Serif vs. Sans Serif
A serif is a decorative stroke that finishes off the end of a letters stem, sometimes also called the “feet” of the letters. In turn, a serif font is a font that has serifs, while a sans serif is a font that does not (hence the “sans”). Using a serif or sans serif font can drastically change the feel of a design. Serif typefaces tend to evoke a personality that is sophisticated, traditional, and classic. Sans serif typefaces are clean, modern and minimal.
Font Pairing
Combining fonts from different styles is where the fun comes in. Not every serif font will go well with a script font and so on. Play around with combinations until it looks right. You want to look for a good balance in size, weight and white space around the combination. Try it out!
