5 highly recommended Typefaces to kickstart 2022
In this article I've brought you a selection of beautiful, and practical Typefaces that I highly recommend for 2022.
As you may already know, I'm a massive Type fan. Oh, I do love me some beautiful Type.
Great Type, when used well, can elevate your designs significantly and should always be given plenty of consideration for every one of your projects.
So. Just for you. Here's another small selection of beautiful and practical Typefaces that I highly recommend to kickstart your next project in 2022.
Let's take a look at them...
Lexend
Lexend is one of those typefaces that impressed me pretty much from the start, not just with its versatility and charming good looks but because of, like Atkinson Hyperlegible (which I talk about later), it’s excellent for ethical reasons too.
In recent times I’ve become a great fan of Typefaces like Lexend that make a change for good in the world and aim to benefit as many people as possible.
Like the creators themselves state...
“For more than 60 years the U.S. Department of Education has found that nearly 70% of the populations experiences some reading difficulty.”
That’s a whole lot of people, people!
Created by educational therapist Dr. Bonnie Shaver-Troup, alongside Thomas Jockin. They observed that reading issues masked an individual’s true capability and intelligence, so they set about to create a Typeface that reduced visual stress in many different ways and help improve reading performance immensely, and boy did they achieve that with Lexend.
Download Lexend from Google Fonts.
Resist Sans
Resist Sans is one of those Typefaces that shares many similarities with good old 'neo-grotesque' regulars such as Helvetica and DIN but has a few little quirks that make it rise above its predecessors mentioned above.
Resisting uniformity, perhaps?
I've enjoyed using Resist with its letter-spacing pulled in fairly tight for headlines, and this is where I think it works best when used at Display sizes in a slightly heavier weight, saying that though I've found it equally adept at long-form content also, so it's a versatile all-rounder in many ways.
Created by Eugene Tantsurin, a Type Designer based in St. Petersburg, it's a slightly quirky take on the neo-grotesques of this world, and for that, I like it a lot. Dare to be different, right?
Purchase Resist Sans from Type Department.
Magilio
So you want elegance? You want luxury? You want your Type on a Vintage flavour tip? Awesome! Magilio has this in spades.
Now. It’s not a workhorse Typeface like many of the others mentioned in this article and will only suit a very select choice of projects. But still, when the job calls for something decorative and softer, I think Magilio is right up there with some of the best.
Like with any decorative Type, you need to go big in font size. The bigger, the better (think huge Display sizes here) suits Magilio just fine and where it makes a big statement when needed.
Created by Prio Nurokhim Aji at Prioritype Co, it’s, like I mentioned, got a natural playfulness and vintage flavour about it and holds its own really well against other great decorative typefaces.
Purchase Magilio from Prioritype Co.
Atkinson Hyperlegible
I’ve mentioned Atkinson Hyperlegible in a previous article but wanted to shine a light on it again as I feel it’s got such an essential place in the world and deserves all the exposure it can get, and it looks pretty fantastic at the same time.
Like I mentioned before, Atkinson is a different kind of Typeface, but for very good reasons, to improve readability and increase legibility for readers with low vision.
I wasn’t too sure about Atkinson at first, but having spent a little time with it, I came to the realisation that...
A: I’m not a jerk. And folks with low vision should be able to enjoy long-form content in the best way possible, just as much as anyone else,
and...
B: As someone with ‘ok’ vision, I appreciate how great a Typeface it is for those long text passages. Simple as that.
Created by the Braille Institute alongside Applied Design Works, it’s different for a very ethical and practical reason, and that’s why I like it so much.
Download Atkinson Hyperlegible from Google Fonts
Montagu Slab
Let's end things on a good old Slab-Serif. They don't get talked about as much as the 'others', but when you have something as superb as Montagu Slab, they deserve a mention here.
Montagu is one of the new Slabs on the block, but it's made an excellent first impression on me.
I like Montagu because even though it has those blunt serifs on the letters, it can still look quite ornate and equally presentable at smaller sizes, compared to something like the ancient Rockwell (another famous Slab), which screams 'Display sizes only'.
I would say it has more of the slight subtleness of Clarendon than something like Rockwell mentioned above, and that's why it works great in both larger Display and long-form text sizes.
Created by Florian Karsten, it’s a bit of an all-rounder, which is rare in the world of Slab-Serifs, and that’s why I enjoy using it and highly recommend it.
Download Montagu Slab from Google Fonts.
As I mentioned at the beginning of this article, great Type can elevate your designs massively, so I hope a few here in this little collection can help you do just that in 2022.
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Thanks for reading the article,
Marc.