Handwritten Fonts
Handwritten fonts have been growing in popularity over the last few years, which is fantastic for me because that’s what I design! I’ve noticed on some design resource marketplaces that handwriting fonts are now even getting their own special search category.
What exactly makes a font “handwritten” though? A handwritten font is any font that was created by your own hand – pen to paper, Apple Pencil to iPad, calligraphy pen, marker, you name it. There are so many (gorgeous) fonts that are mouse-made — created totally on the computer by dropping anchor points and forming the letter — but handwriting fonts possess very special qualities because of the love and care that comes from drawing each & every part with your own hand.
Handwritten doesn’t necessarily mean handwriting, though – if you take a look at the variety of handwritten fonts available to designers, you’ll find that a lot of them don’t even really look like our idea of handwriting at all, and that a lot of craftsmanship goes in to creating these fonts.
I’ve mentioned before that my own handwriting is total crap, and I still stand by that. I typically explain to people that handlettering is a lot like drawing — I mean, it basically is, but instead of drawing a landscape or a comic or an animal, I draw a letter!
Handwritten fonts can make all the difference!
Lemonlove Script Font
Why You Might Need Handwriting Fonts
I am 100% biased, but I think there are so many reasons why any designer needs handwriting fonts. My top reason, though? It makes design fast and easy, and alleviates the need to learn handlettering by designers.
Don’t get me wrong – I think it’s a fantastic, and often relaxing, skill to learn and being able to whip out some handwriting goodness for your client is awesome. But, if you’re on a tight timeline that wouldn’t allow for hours & weeks of practice…or you simply don’t have the inclination to learn & develop those skills…handwriting fonts are where it’s at!
The phrase, “Work smarter, not harder.” comes to mind. Handwriting fonts make it easy to focus on other very important details of any given project, especially when you know, understand, and appreciate the level of craftsmanship that goes into creating a handwriting font!
Handwritten fonts can be used for many applications – logo design, invitations, advertising, even using handwritten fonts on products or packaging. There are handwriting fonts for any occasion, seriously.
Handwritten fonts span a variety of styles – in this category of “handwritten” you might find a sans serif font, a script font, a display font … if the original letter set were created by your hand using some type of writing instrument, it’s a handwritten font.
I do all of my lettering digitally. My trusty iPad and Apple Pencil have helped me to produce over 140 fonts (and another 50+ on the way to being released as I’m writing this). I use the Procreate app, which I think is super cool because you can choose from a variety of brushes to use for your lettering. I typically use a calligraphy brush, but I love using marker brushes and pen brushes, too, because it enables me to produce a font with a slightly different style.
Let me show you a few of my handwritten fonts, because the variety you can get with hand lettering is truly astounding!
A Few of My Favorite Handwritten Fonts
Brioche Family – A Serif Font
Brioche is a handlettered serif font that comes in four variations – regular, bold, italic, and outline. I think you get more bang for your buck when you purchase a font family like this. The bold weight is my favorite of the four!
Brioche has a bit of a textured edge, giving it a rustic farmhouse chic look. Because Brioche is very legible, it would make a fantastic fit for headers or even body text – even at a small size, it’s still quite easy to read. It has a slightly vintage aesthetic to it, but the handwritten nature of the font gives it such a nice personality. One of my favorite things about Brioche are the uppercase A, J, K, and R that have “legs” that drop below the baseline, adding a bit of play and interaction within the word.
Font families like Brioche are very valuable to designers that need more than one option, but also need them to look totally cohesive and like they belong together.
Insider tip: if you’re looking for a font that has an even more rustic style, check out Spring Market, which is by far the most popular typeface I’ve ever designed!
Azusa Trio – A Funky Sans Trio
Azusa is another font that has a few variations – regular, italic, and outline! In contrast to Brioche, Azusa is much more whimsical, and is an all caps font. Azusa could be used for headlines or creating quote graphics for social media. It’s a bit bubbly and feminine in nature. As far as legibility goes, it is definitely easy to read so keep this one on your list of legible, eye-catching, playful fonts!
Fall Ember – A Calligraphy Script Font
Fall Ember would be considered a casual calligraphy font. It’s the perfect mix of flowy handwriting paired with the elegance of calligraphy. This handwritten font is one of my favorites to use in feminine designs and wedding invitations. This style of calligraphy is modern, and would make a fantastic fit for a bride who wanted something beautiful and effortless. My favorite things about this font are the ligatures – check out the title image and the name “fall ember.” Look at the ll, em, and er ligatures — notice how they connect a little differently, giving the font a truly handwritten feel based on the slight differences in how the letters were written!
Saison – A Signature Script
Saison is a personal favorite of mine. I love its spontaneity, messiness, and all of the imperfections. Saison was a labor of love for me, because I created it and modeled it after my own logo that I handlettered. Over time, I received so many requests from designers asking what font I’d used — I always had to tell them that it wasn’t a font, it was hand lettering, and that I didn’t have a super close match in mind.
I don’t have to worry about that anymore, because out of my own logo, Saison was born. Saison would be considered a signature font or handwriting font, because it mimics the way a person might sign their name or hurriedly scrawl a note down. Legibility isn’t necessarily a strong point for Saison, which is intentional, but it does evoke a very modern, contemporary feel. Saison boasts 118 alternate characters and 78 ligatures, so that the user can make modifications to the text to enhance the handwritten vibe.
Branding projects are a perfect fit for Saison, especially for those individuals who want their logo to look like they’ve signed their own name. Check out the example below – I’ve included my own logo, as well, so you can compare!
Dear Journal – The Must-Have of Calligraphy Fonts
Dear Journal is another calligraphy font beast! There are so many extras!! Feature-rich fonts are my thing, y’all. I feel like if you’re going to design and letter handwritten fonts, you should always make them actually look like they’re handwritten instead of striving for totally perfect lines and corners. That’s not to say that you can’t or shouldn’t refine them…but there should be no mistaking that what you’ve produced is actually handwriting. Handwriting is imperfect, and there are always slight variations and inconsistencies, and being able to offer that option is something that will never get old for me.
In contrast with the effortless, flowy Fall Ember, Dear Journal is chunkier and bouncier – it is a bounce calligraphy font! “Bounce” means that the characters do not stay on the same line. They vary a bit, making the letters look like they’re dancing around. The standard lowercase set is the “median” version of the lowercase letters. They’re not too tall, and not too short. The first stylistic set is super bouncy with exaggerated ascenders and descenders, and big loopy flourishes. The second stylistic set is much more subdued. These letter sets can be mixed and matched according to how you’d like your project to look. I’ve included an example of what I mean below – look at how much the words change simply based on your letter selection!
As far as calligraphy fonts go, this one is my go-to when people ask what font I use in my SVG files. Insider info – I don’t actually use fonts, those are all handlettered, too. BUT, I designed and lettered Dear Journal so that I could point people to an option that would be the closest stand-in possible. I think that this is the font to use for crafters and creators — I say as much on the main image, anyway. This font makes it so easy for someone to produce products that have a handwritten look & feel, provide enough variation, and make it look like the real thing. I mean, I guess technically it is the real thing since it is handlettered, after all!
PS, your secret is safe with me. I won’t tell anyone that you didn’t do it yourself. 😉
Get Access to 140+ Handlettered Fonts through my Website
If my case wasn’t strong enough already, I have the best deal around for handwriting fonts. A few years ago when I started producing fonts more prolifically, I decided to bundle them all up together. As a logo & branding designer, I thought about what I, personally, would want in a bundle. The answer was…well, all the things, really. I want all of the fonts I could possibly get, and I would want to feel like I’m getting a tremendous value.
Enter my Handlettered Font Bundle.
Y’all, I truly love what I do, and nothing makes me happier than seeing my fonts in the wild, getting used for a variety of things. It’s so rewarding, and exciting, and I feel like this is one thing I can do to “take care” of the customers who have trusted my creative work and continue to inspire me to produce handwriting fonts.
Ultimately, you’re getting what will eventually amount to hundreds of fonts worth thousands of dollars — it really is a fantastic deal, and I’m so excited for you to take advantage of it. If you’re on board with adding over 140 handwritten fonts to your font collection, click that button below and get started. You won’t regret it!
If you have any questions, please feel free to drop me an email or a contact form. I want you to feel totally comfortable with your investment!
