In my day job, I am surrounded by fonts. There are the fonts we use at work: a sans serif (Helvetica) and a serif font (Times New Roman). Pretty boring, but it does the job for what I do which is present information.
Then there are the fonts I use in ads. It runs the gamut of Arial to, ohmygawd, Hobo. Yikes. Whatever the client wants. Who I am to tell them that using Rickshaw touting something even slightly Asian is unspeakably horrible? But then there are the fonts I truly despise. Comic Sans is at the top of my list and that sentiment is growing online as well.
I can go on about why I hate Comic Sans: the lack of elegance in its lines, no thought about the negative space and the mere fact that it has comic in its name when I don’t find anything comedic about it at all. But some people apparently do.
Click on image for headache inducing font usage.
Enter Hillcrest Farmers Market (or any farmers market for that matter). Besides a bounty of fresh foods, it is a bounty of fonts. Olde English, Papyrus, Lithos and even Comic Sans. Just looking at the signs is enough to give me a headache, especially when it involves gradients and morphing the letters. They certainly are eye catching but in a bad way.
It seems that Papyrus is the default font for anything organic, natural and healthy. It’s become so overused that many people in the design field think Papyrus is right up there with Comic Sans in the fonts-to-avoid column. It makes you wonder what those people think when they combine Comic Sans and Papyrus. What message are they saying using those fonts? Is it funny but wholesome and natural?
As for me, my favorite font is Futura. I save it for all my favorite projects at work. Or maybe because it is the featured font in all those Wes Anderson films.
My Burning Kitchen 
WTF are you talking about I use Rickshaw on my business cards for my Oriental Rug business!
Oh gosh, I have no idea about any of this stuff, but I'm starting to realise that every tiny detail can make such a difference to a business, its a complete minefield!Its so interesting how peoples first impressions are so different. I probably wouldnt notice a font, but I might notice how I just dont like a sign.
I ADORE Futura… I have to slap myself sometimes because I use it on projects waaaay too much. That usually means I just march on over to Gill Sans….
Goodness! Look at all those badly kerned signs! Soooooo, um, OK, I admit it. I like Papyrus. I use it sparingly on personal projects but I do like and use it. And my go to font is Helvetica Neue Ultra Light. I love it. And I use it probably a bit more than I should. š
I saw a poster at a local alteration business that had no less than six different fonts! I was at a red light when I noticed it; not the message it was trying to convey, but the fonts. The next time I drive by I have to take a photo and share with you.
Can you post that photo mosaic on flickr and label the fonts for those of us who are kind of ignorant to a lot of it? I'm scare to type this, but I tend to gravitate toward Verdana. Is that one okay? I really don't want you, Jenn, Kevin, and Paul to stop being friends with me.
That's really funny – I don't really register it at the time, but I'm definitely influenced by these things in how I view the vendors. etc. I also like Futura – I used it for my resume and was asked in the interview for my job what font it was, I think it helped me get hired!
JustJenn–I thought your handwriting was modeled after the Rickshaw font!Jennywenny–Once you see it, you can never not see the how some fonts are used. I've cursed you!Chris–Yay, two people in the Futura club!Photogirl–Helvetica Neue Ultra Light is my go to font at work.Mrs. Wong–Photo please! (Or am I looking at more headaches?)Jodi–I believe the photo is on Flickr but I still need to tag the fonts. Hang on…Alice Q. Foodie–Another one for the Futura team. Thanks!
Oooh, great topic! My favourite font is Trebouchet. But Futura and Garamond are also at the very top.
All very nice fonts!