Handwriting Designed for Advertising
A collection of unique handwriting created for advertising and design
Handwriting Designed for Advertising
The goal of handwriting created specifically for an advertising campaign is to express an authentic voice in a way that can’t be achieved with a font. The public is smart: they know when something is one-of-a-kind. An authentic hand-written text conveys quality, care, and an appreciation for the unique character of human expression.
A typical handwriting project first involves discussions of the style direction, the demographic being reached, and the range of reproduction methods. Then I do tests on a short line of copy in a variety of styles to see what has the right look and feel for the actual text. The writing may be done with one of dozens of different kinds of pens and papers I keep in my studio, each one giving a different character to the writing. I use traditional ink nibs and dip pens, fountain pens, markers, brushes and sticks –– whatever will result in the right look for the text. After the testing phase the style is approved or revised and I create final art and send it via email. Usually I recommend using a high resolution tif file for reproduction, as the vector process used in logo design will compromise fine detail and the flow.
The examples here include projects for Starbucks, a print and web campaign for SAP Software, elegant catalog headings for Nordstrom, campaign print ads for Merck and positioning statements for a variety of clients. You can see more examples of handwriting applied to favorite projects in the Handwriting Projects portfolios and in my blog, where I post recent work and write the occasional essay about handwriting and type design in popular culture.
All artwork © Iskra Design