Typography Task 3: Type Design and Communication
16 June 2025 - 19 July 2025 / Week 8 - Week 13
Caitlin Alina Anthony - 0383177
Typography - Bachelor of Design in Creative Media - Taylor's University
Task 3: Type Design and Communication
Typography - Bachelor of Design in Creative Media - Taylor's University
Task 3: Type Design and Communication
Table of Contents
- Lectures
- Task 3
- Feedback
- Reflections
- Further Reading
Lectures
Instructions
Task 3: Process
Inspiration from Pinterest
During class I started looking for inspiration on different kind of fonts, I wanted to go for something more out of the box, like butterfly like or different shapes. Figure 3.1 shows some of the pins I liked.
Figure 3.1 - Pinterest Ideas
Potential Sketches
From the ideas I got from Pinterest, I started sketching some different fonts on the graph paper. (Figure 3.2).
Figure 3.2 - Sketches
After showing Mr. Max he said some look too basic and so I went out of the box, thinking of cool elements for a font, ultimately I ended up choosing a wave as a core part of my font design. After showing Mr Max he was very pleased with it and told me to continue making the rest of the letters for the wave font in Figure 3.3.
Figure 3.3 - Final Font Sketch
In this week we learned how to dissect letters by known fonts in class. At first I found it pretty confusing and was not the best at it (to be seen by the M).
Figure 3.4 - Letter Dissection
Font Digitization
Figure 3.5 - Digitized Font in Adobe Illustrator
Figure 3.6 - Font Height
Font Measurements
Caps Height: 703 px
X-Height: 500 px
Baseline: 0 px
Descender: -100 px
FontLab
After finalizing in Illustrator I copied them into FontLab. After completing the letters, I adjusted the kerning between each one to ensure they appeared evenly and visually balanced.
Figure 3.7 - FontLab Font
Font Download: Here
Figure 3.8 - Final Beach Waves Font
Figure 3.9 - Final Beach Waves Font (PDF)
Figure 3.10 - A4 Poster
Figure 3.11 - A4 Poster (PDF)
Feedback
Week 8:
Specific Feedback: Said I had very nice handwriting and that the font designs I made were nice but a bit basic (cursive, hearts, etc). Mr Max said to venture out more out of the box to stand out in the grading.
General Feedback: Explained the concept of the font, bring final fonts next week.
Week 9:
Specific Feedback: Really liked my wave concept font, told me to work on all the letters and to use upper case, because lower case can become very busy fast with all the waves. Once I showed Mr Max all the letter, he was pretty pleased, I had to work a bit further on the M and B. I could also go ahead and start digitalizing.
General Feedback: Tutorial was on how to make the correct file size for the fonts and the guides etc. How to create the shapes of the letters later on, and got homework for the deconstruction of 3 letter, we did 2 of them in class with Mr Max.
Week 10:
Specific Feedback: (online consultation) Mr Max chose out which of my new B and M's I could use for my final fonts.
Week 11:
Specific Feedback: Standard feedback like last time that the capital letter in AI are looking good and to continue making them.
Week 12:
*Had high fever so did not show up for class.
Week 13:
Specific Feedback: Import fonts from AI to FontLab and continue to complete in e-portfolio.
Reflection
Experience
This was a super fun project for me, especially because we started off by drawing the letters by hand. I really enjoy experimenting with creative lettering styles, so it was exciting to play around with different forms and ideas. It definitely pushed me to think outside the box, which was challenging at times, but in a good way. When it came to digitizing the letters, it was more difficult than I expected. Still, I managed to get through it and learned a lot in the process.
Findings
One of the biggest things I learned was how much thought and effort goes into making each letter look like it belongs to the same family, even if they're all different. It's not just about making something look cool, every curve, spacing, and shape has to be intentional. I also realized how much small adjustments, like kerning, really matter when it comes to the final look.
Outcome
Overall, it was really satisfying to see my font go from a hand-drawn concept to a fully digital typeface. It felt like my design actually came to life. The whole process gave me a much deeper appreciation for type design, and how much detail and creativity go into every part of it.
Further Reading
1. The 7 Principles of Design and How to Use Them
Figure 4.1 - Cover Art Website
As I did not take the design principles class because I am an exchange student, I found it super important to read up on it to grasp my classes better.
2. 20 Typography Rules Every Designer Should Know
Figure 4.2 - Book Cover
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