For my final typeface, I decided to work with the idea of creating thinner strokes in replace of the thicker strokes used in Caslon, which would only be visible when blown up to a large enough scale.
Due to restrictions in creating my design, I was not able to make the new strokes thin enough to only be visible when large scale. These strokes had to be created at a minimum of 0.001 point weight, so although this was not my original intention, I continued to work with the design.
In producing the thinner strokes I has to create a way in which to attach these to the serifs, which were much larger in weight, so that they joined together well as one single letterform. This meant that I had to make the bracketed serifs a lot sharper and thinner, however this can be seen to enhance the idea of flimsiness and being of a thin material.
Although my initial idea did not work completely, there is a noticeable difference in the type when printed at large scale than small scale. Due to the extremely thin strokes used, these start to break up slightly the bigger they are printed which shows how something flimsy is fragile and can be easily damaged. The effect this gives is that of an old typewriter font, therefore could potentially be used as a font for newspapers and other such publications. At small scale, the high contrast between thick and thin strokes means there is an inky feel to the type. Printing this typeface onto newsprint, a very thin paper used in these publications, would therefore be quite effective.
Due to restrictions in creating my design, I was not able to make the new strokes thin enough to only be visible when large scale. These strokes had to be created at a minimum of 0.001 point weight, so although this was not my original intention, I continued to work with the design.
In producing the thinner strokes I has to create a way in which to attach these to the serifs, which were much larger in weight, so that they joined together well as one single letterform. This meant that I had to make the bracketed serifs a lot sharper and thinner, however this can be seen to enhance the idea of flimsiness and being of a thin material.
Although my initial idea did not work completely, there is a noticeable difference in the type when printed at large scale than small scale. Due to the extremely thin strokes used, these start to break up slightly the bigger they are printed which shows how something flimsy is fragile and can be easily damaged. The effect this gives is that of an old typewriter font, therefore could potentially be used as a font for newspapers and other such publications. At small scale, the high contrast between thick and thin strokes means there is an inky feel to the type. Printing this typeface onto newsprint, a very thin paper used in these publications, would therefore be quite effective.
I decided to name this typeface Caslon
Slimline, meaning slender in design or build. Some of it’s defining
characteristics are: sharp bracketed serifs, high contrasts between thick
and thin strokes, large counters, particularly in letters O and Q. The J extends just below the baseline, whereas all other letterforms fit within the cap-height.
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| Fig. 1. Final Typeface Design - Caslon Slimline. |
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| Fig. 2. Stage one of final typeface design - cutting out the thinner strokes. This developed into my final typeface design shown in Fig. 1 (above). |
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