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There are plenty of handy graphics on the web to help understand the terminology you’ll need.įor more information on creating letters on paper, you can check out this tutorial from Tuts+. Moving the page, instead of your hand, will allow you to create smoother curves.Look at other fonts to see where shapes are repeated within a character set.Mark out the baseline and other important height lines to use as a guide.

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You don’t need to draw a full character set – recommended ‘control characters’ are often “H”, “n”, “o” and “y”.

Here are a few useful tips for creating letters on paper: Trying to create the shapes that represent your vision could potentially be awkward and time-consuming on a computer, and putting pen to paper is often easier and quicker to begin with.

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While it can be tempting to go straight to your software, many professional font tutorials advise that the early design work should be done on paper. Once you have the answers to these questions, you can then move onto planning out your font’s design. Have you come across any fonts you could use for inspiration?.Do you want the basic font type be Serif or Sans Serif?.Will that application require a large or small font size?.Will your font be project specific, or have a broad application?.Here are some potentially important questions to ask when creating your own design brief:

As with any design project, it’s imperative that you outline your objectives from the outset.

This is the most important step in the font creation process.

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However, before we get to the software itself, there are a couple of introductory steps we need to take.

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If you’re a little more serious about creating a unique font, and want more customization options, there are several free tools to choose from.

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How to Create Your Own Font (In 6 Simple Steps) Now we’ve looked at the simpler options for creating fonts, let’s move onto the more technical method. Metaflop’s design interface is colorful and minimalist. Metaflop (Free) : This tool enables you to customize basic fonts by adjusting a simple set of parameters.Fontself ($49) : This enables you to turn hand drawn characters into fonts within Adobe Illustrator, and will soon be compatible with Adobe Photoshop.FontStruct (Free) : Using FontStruct, you can create your own font using geometrical shapes.PaintFont (Free) : This service enables you to turn your handwriting into a font by filling out and scanning a template.

These solutions can also be a good jumping off point for becoming familiar with some of the technicalities of font creation: Some Basic Tools for Getting Startedīefore we dive into the tutorial, let’s take a look at some basic tools for those who simply want to have fun creating a custom font. This is the route we’ve taken throughout this piece.įinally, if you’re creating a font that’s intended for use by others, you’ll likely need to invest a lot more time in the development process, and spend money on some professional software. If it’s for a specific project, you may want to take the time to learn some vital techniques, and also use more sophisticated software. If it’s just for fun, a basic font creation tool such as a handwriting converter could be all you need. The intended use of your font will help decide how much time and financial investment you want to put into its development. Why Create a Custom Font?įont creation can become very technical, time-consuming, and expensive – so it’s worth figuring out how deeply you want to dive before you start. However, before that, let’s figure out why you’d want to create a font in the first place. We’ll also offer suggestions for some less technical options, as well as more advanced alternatives. This article will take you on a step-by-step journey through creating a custom font with intermediate-level software. There are various motivations for wanting to create your own font, and similarly lots of options for doing so. However, you’re still only limited to selecting a font that someone else has created. With packages such as Google Fonts and Typekit collectively offering thousands of different fonts, there is almost a countless amount options for choosing the right font for your specific project.