My mind wanders. And that's not a good thing, 'cause it's too small to be out there alone. Posts: 3129 | From: Tooele, UT | Registered: Mar 2005
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I suggested that you name your Jack font 'Jack Russell'.... I'm gonna stick with that theme and suggest you name this one 'Rustler' or maybe even 'Russtler'....
Also, where are you selling your fonts? Can you post a link? Thanks.
HIGHJACK--- I also wanted to tell you that your Scratchboard Tutorial on your website is excellent... very well written and informative. I'd like to try that sometime. ---UNHIGHJACK
-------------------- Jon Jantz Snappysign.com jjantz21@gmail.com http://www.allcw.com Posts: 3395 | From: Atmore, AL | Registered: Nov 2005
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posted
I like it, Russ. looks like fun to paint....doing dry brush with latex on a flat finish, then age it. also for some glass gildin' i'm gonna trace those letters offa my screen and do it!
-------------------- John Lennig / Big Top Sign Arts 5668 Ewart Street, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada bigtopya@hotmail.com 604.451.0006 Posts: 2184 | From: Burnaby, British Columbia,Canada | Registered: Nov 2001
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posted
Jon, thanks for taking a look at my scratchboard page. You probably saw all the broken links too. My server crashed once, and I haven't gotten around to restoring everything. I figured nobody was even looking at it.
You sure do have a knack for coming up with great names. Unfortunately, someone beat you to that one. I did a Google search and noticed Rustler is already in use.
I got the idea to do this font from a post on Typophile.com. Someone had posted a t-shirt logo with a very similar font on it, but nobody could figure out what font it was. They guessed it must be custom. I thought it looked cool, and in this area we use a lot of western fonts. It would be nice to have another one. There were 7 unique letters in the logo, and I expanded on that to make the alphabet, a set of numbers, and the punctuation.
So far I haven't been selling my fonts. I have several that are basically complete and ready to go, but I keep wondering if I have missed something. I have only tested them on my own machine and the one at work. If anything it would probably be kerning pairs that I have missed. I shouldn't worry so much. I have bought plenty of fonts with crappy kerning.
Michael, that song was stuck in my head too, so I was just passing on the musical virus.
John, I hope you will post your results. I like what you are describing.
My mind wanders. And that's not a good thing, 'cause it's too small to be out there alone. Posts: 3129 | From: Tooele, UT | Registered: Mar 2005
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posted
Great job Russ!! We can always use more western fonts.
-------------------- Ricky Jackson Signs Now 614 Russell Parkway Warner Robins, GA (478) 923-7722 signpimp50@hotmail.com
"If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants." Sir Issac Newton Posts: 3528 | From: Warner Robins, GA | Registered: Oct 2004
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posted
Might i suggest you offer it as a "distressed" type letterstyle as well?
Nice Work!
-------------------- Bruce Bowers
DrCAS Custom Lettering and Design Saint Cloud, Minnesota
"Things work out best for the people who make the best of the way things work out." - Art Linkletter Posts: 6451 | From: Saint Cloud, Minnesota | Registered: Jun 1999
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just my opinion... does not look western, old or good for a nich although might be useful, cause would be fairly easy to layout and hand letter also could pass for a old western look but to me ugly font excuse me if offensive to ya ... but I say whats on my mind, thats what I thought seeing it
I have a more intersting font like that used for a trucking firm ...whoopy secound time I've used it in 10 years lol
posted
Okay, you asked for comments and criticisms, so I'll give ya mine "expert" font-makin' advice! That and $4.00 will get you a gallon of gas!!!
Mostly on these font experiments, try to watch the weights and widths of the characters, i.e., study carefully how they occupy the space with the other characters. All the characters you show here look pretty good, but the O comes across as too smallish, too narrow. Don't constrain yourself to making it exactly the width of the U, for example. Bump some nodes out and make it a width that looks visually right. Trick the eye this way and the kerning becomes less of an issue.
But remember also that a little strategic kerning can save a font that otherwise appears to be off-kilter to the eye, even after you've made all of your width and spacing adjustments. At the very least, kern all the pairs that will undoubtedly give you trouble.
So what font software are you using? I was gonna give some kerning advice, but it might depend on what software you have. Kerning is always nice, if you have the time. But to do it right requires a minimum of about 2,000 to 4,000 kerned pairs per font. Not a simple or quick process!
One good way to check kerning and character weights is to type the following pangram, centering the 2nd line below the first (don't forget to repeat the word "BIG"):
JACKDAWS LOVE MY BIG BIG SPHINX OF QUARTZ
Depending on the font style, this should magically help you to see not only glitches of weight, but also the horrors of the negative space around the letterforms.
This one will help too, but maybe not as much, it just depends on the font:
QUICK JOLTING ZEPHYRS VEX FAMED BOW
Or you can make up your own problem-solving pangrams, perhaps one that is useful only to the font you are working on at the moment. The idea is to find a combo of letters/words that aren't working well together so you can hammer out the problem areas.
Anyway, kerning advice is always free too, if you need it!!! And remember: There are no bad fonts, just bad uses of fonts.
later!!!
-------------------- Michael Gene Adkins The Fontry 1576 S Hwy 59 Watts OK 74964 Posts: 845 | From: Watts, OK USA | Registered: Jun 1999
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My mind wanders. And that's not a good thing, 'cause it's too small to be out there alone. Posts: 3129 | From: Tooele, UT | Registered: Mar 2005
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posted
Russ, a good way of distressing a font is to tell it that it is going to be illegally downloaded and misused by some vynull cutting cowboy with a dull blade cutting Avery and used on peeing Calvin decals applied to dirty windshields. Love....Jill PS Nice alphabet.
Posts: 8834 | From: Butler, PA, USA | Registered: Jan 2001
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Jillbeans is so funny!!! That's also a good way to distress the type designer. By the way, has anyone noticed that Jillbeans is alllllwaaaayyyys posting on these font topics? I think Jillbeans is a big font nerd-!!! And that's a big compliment, Jill-!!! Wait 'til I tell her that I've updated my Atkinson fonts to include a wide range of handy-dandy alternate characters and vastly improved kerning. Bet she'll email me and give me permission to get her upgraded right away-!!!
Email me Jill-!!!
the_fontry@yahoo.com
mike @ the fontry
-------------------- Michael Gene Adkins The Fontry 1576 S Hwy 59 Watts OK 74964 Posts: 845 | From: Watts, OK USA | Registered: Jun 1999
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Ooh Mike you just gave me the tinglies! As soon as I get some extra cha-ching I will order them. I consider myself more of a font fondler, but I'll take any compliment I can get. Love....Jill
Posts: 8834 | From: Butler, PA, USA | Registered: Jan 2001
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