{"id":22039,"date":"2014-09-10T18:30:37","date_gmt":"2014-09-10T10:30:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/?p=22039"},"modified":"2023-06-29T13:36:02","modified_gmt":"2023-06-29T05:36:02","slug":"overused-typeface","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/overused-typeface\/","title":{"rendered":"&#8220;Overused&#8221; Typefaces: When Should You Say Goodbye To A Font?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Depending on your individual opinion, Helvetica is either a classic, truly neutral English typeface with universal appeal and functionality \u2013 or it\u2019s <strong>an overused, bland set of letters with its own cultural and historical baggage<\/strong> that needs to hurry up and die already. Lettering artist Jessica Hische claims that the iconic font <em>\u201conly really looks good when paired with itself.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>But I\u2019m not here to talk only about Helvetica (personally I have no real qualms with it), but to talk about <strong>the idea of fonts that some designers consider to be \u201coverused.\u201d<\/strong> Who gets to decide when a font has \u201cjumped the shark,\u201d so to speak? Does using a so-called overused font diminish others\u2019 perceptions of your creative abilities? Or does it signal that you know what current clients need and are actively looking for?<\/p>\n<div class=\"ref-block ref-block--post\" id=\"ref-post-1\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/free-fonts-commercial-projects\/\" class=\"ref-block__link\" title=\"Read More: 100 Free Fonts for Commercial Projects\" rel=\"bookmark\"><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">100 Free Fonts for Commercial Projects<\/span><\/a>\n<div class=\"ref-block__thumbnail img-thumb img-thumb--jumbo\" data-img='{ \"src\" : \"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/thumbs\/250x160\/free-fonts-commercial-projects.jpg\" }'>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<noscript>\n<style>.no-js #ref-block-post-17110 .ref-block__thumbnail { background-image: url(\"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/thumbs\/250x160\/free-fonts-commercial-projects.jpg\"); }<\/style>\n<\/noscript>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"ref-block__summary\">\n<h4 class=\"ref-title\">100 Free Fonts for Commercial Projects<\/h4>\n<p class=\"ref-description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tSpice up your commercial projects with 35 free fonts that bring style and versatility to your designs.\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Read more<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2>What If It\u2019s Your Signature Font?<\/h2>\n<p>Were you using Helvetica before it was trendy? (Probably not, unless you were designing before 1960). Is there a particular type style that\u2019s all the rage now, making your work look like it\u2019s just one of the crowd? What do you do when people suddenly decide that<strong> the font you\u2019ve been using for years is suddenly cool<\/strong>?<\/p>\n<p>In my opinion, there are two main paths to take here. The first is to<strong> simply keep doing what you\u2019ve been doing, and let the imitators move on to something else once the fad has faded<\/strong>. You know this typeface inside and out; it\u2019s part of your work and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/personal-branding\/\">your unique identity as a designer<\/a>. As long as you are a master of your craft, you probably don\u2019t have to worry about anyone lumping you in with those who came after you.<\/p>\n<p>The other option \u2013 and I\u2019m not picking sides here \u2013 is to <strong>update your font library a bit<\/strong>. Being a creative professional means changing and adapting to the current landscape and the expectations of your newest clients. If you feel like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/dynamic-design\/\">your style<\/a> could use a face lift, then by all means start shopping around for some other fonts that would suit your purposes just as well, but be distinct from what you were using before. This is <strong>a good way to subtly evolve your style without going all out<\/strong> and possibly turning off previous fans of your work.<\/p>\n<h2>Details Matter<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Type is all about details<\/strong>. It\u2019s what makes different type applications different from each other. There are only 26 letters in the English alphabet, after all. How else are we going to get all the variety possible out of type and letterforms except through tiny details that go unnoticed by the majority of viewers, but that make a world of difference to the design?<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s the key takeaway: <strong>don\u2019t worry about the font \u2013 worry about the details<\/strong>. Is the ascender of that d too high for the logo you\u2019re designing? Does the bowl of the lowercase a curve just right, or is there something you would change? And what\u2019s the deal with that ampersand?<\/p>\n<p>Perhaps you should find another font that suits your needs better. There are hundreds of thousands of fonts out there, all incrementally different from one another in sometimes very subtle ways.<strong> There\u2019s absolutely no reason to stick with something just because it\u2019s popular or expected.<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2>Design Is Like A Symphony And Type Is But One Instrument<\/h2>\n<p>Designers are like composers. <strong>Type, color, and composition all matter separately, and they can\u2019t be discarded without a good reason<\/strong>. The audience sees the final product, but only the professional can see and appreciate the separate elements that went into the whole. In this way, design is like a symphony orchestra. All you, the layperson, hear is the harmony and beauty of the music, but the conductor and musicians are hearing something very different.<\/p>\n<p class=\"note\"><strong>Read Also:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/design-vs-art\/\">Design Vs Art \u2013 The Difference And Why It Matters<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Or, to use one of my favorite analogies, <strong>design is like a harmonious plate of food served up at a restaurant by a master chef<\/strong>. You may not know all of the individual ingredients that went into creating it, but believe me, if the chef had left any one of them out, you\u2019d be able to tell that something was wrong.<\/p>\n<p>Your expectations of a high quality meal are the same regardless of how much training you have, and the same is true for users, clients, and anyone else who is looking at your design work. They can\u2019t necessarily tell when your design is working, but they\u2019ll certainly know when it\u2019s not.<\/p>\n<h2>Pick The Best Font For The Job<\/h2>\n<p>Let\u2019s face it \u2013 <strong>the most popular typefaces look good<\/strong> and work well in a lot of the most popular types of projects commissioned by clients today. Even if you feel it\u2019s an \u201coverused\u201d font, or that too many people have jumped on the band wagon. <strong>If it works, use it<\/strong>. You\u2019ll find that if you make the right choice, your design will hold up in the future while all those bandwagon hoppers fall by the wayside. After all\u2026<\/p>\n<p class=\"note\"><strong>Read Also:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/keeping-design-skills-fresh\/\">How To Keep Your Design Skills Fresh<\/a><\/p>\n<h2>There\u2019s Usually A Reason They Are Used So Much<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Certain typefaces have an elegance and internal structure that is hard to deny<\/strong>. That\u2019s why people use them so much \u2013 because <strong>they\u2019re well-designed<\/strong>. Their popularity may wax and wane, but the talent and thoughtfulness that went into their creation is forever. Nobody uses a poorly designed typeface over and over again in professional design work (so Comic Sans doesn\u2019t count).<\/p>\n<h2>What Do You Think?<\/h2>\n<p>What typefaces do you think have earned the label of \u201coverused\u201d lately? Do you think the accusation is justified? Are any of your favorite or go-to fonts in danger of being slapped with this label?<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Depending on your individual opinion, Helvetica is either a classic, truly neutral English typeface with universal appeal and functionality \u2013 or it\u2019s an overused, bland set of letters with its own cultural and historical baggage that needs to hurry up and die already. Lettering artist Jessica Hische claims that the iconic font \u201conly really looks&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":129,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[352],"tags":[866],"topic":[4520],"class_list":["entry-content","is-maxi"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v22.8 (Yoast SEO v27.6) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>&quot;Overused&quot; Typefaces: When Should You Say Goodbye To A Font? - Hongkiat<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Depending on your individual opinion, Helvetica is either a classic, truly neutral English typeface with universal appeal and functionality &ndash; or\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/overused-typeface\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"&quot;Overused&quot; Typefaces: When Should You Say Goodbye To A Font?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Depending on your individual opinion, Helvetica is either a classic, truly neutral English typeface with universal appeal and functionality &ndash; or\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/overused-typeface\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Hongkiat\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hongkiatcom\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2014-09-10T10:30:37+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-06-29T05:36:02+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Addison Duvall\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@hongkiat\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@hongkiat\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Addison Duvall\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/overused-typeface\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/overused-typeface\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Addison Duvall\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/ee39080532d48918a80a4e7c76bdbc65\"},\"headline\":\"&#8220;Overused&#8221; Typefaces: When Should You Say Goodbye To A Font?\",\"datePublished\":\"2014-09-10T10:30:37+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-06-29T05:36:02+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/overused-typeface\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":997,\"commentCount\":5,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"Typography\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Web Design\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/overused-typeface\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/overused-typeface\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/overused-typeface\\\/\",\"name\":\"\\\"Overused\\\" Typefaces: When Should You Say Goodbye To A Font? 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