DIY Design #2: All About Fonts

Posted in DIY DESIGN

salutations

Hooray, it’s time for DIY Design! Today, we’ll be talking about fonts. 😀

DIY DESIGN 2 Fonts

Fonts are one of my favorite parts of graphic design, simply because there are just so many options out there!

What is a font?

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a font as an assortment or set of type or characters all of one style. You may see the word “font” and the word “typeface” used interchangeably in the design world because they mean pretty much the same thing.

What types of fonts are there?

Here are just a few of the many font types:

FontTypes

There are so many different styles of fonts out there, so you really have unlimited options when designing with fonts.

Where do I get fonts?

There are several different ways to get fonts that can be used in your graphics. The first way is to use the fonts that are already on whatever design software you are using.

For example, PicMonkey has quite a few free fonts available and quite a few more that are available with a Royale membership. To access them, just click the “Tt” symbol on the toolbar in PicMonkey:

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Canva also has a ton of free fonts. Just open up a blank canvas, click the “T” symbol, choose a font template, and click the drop-down at the top to pick a font:

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The thing about using the built-in fonts in PicMonkey and Canva is that almost everyone uses them, so it’s harder to be unique in your graphics.

How do I get unique fonts that aren’t overused?

There are so many places out there that offer thousands of unique fonts for free. Some of my favorite places to get them are 1001 Fonts, DaFont, FontSpace, and FontBundles. It’s important to keep in mind that most free fonts on the internet are for personal use only. This means you can’t use them for anything that you’ll be getting a profit from. These fonts are perfectly fine to use in your designs, as long as you’re not making any money off your blog.

Some other amazing places to get free fonts are Creative Market and The Hungry JPEG. A lot of their stuff isn’t free, but if you sign up for their email lists you’ll get weekly freebies. I’ve gotten some really amazing fonts from them, a lot of which have commercial licenses!

How do I download and install fonts?

First off, go to the font site of your choice. Scroll through, pick a font you like, and click on it. For my example, I’ve chosen a font called “Observant” from 1001 Fonts. To download the font, click the “Download” button and your font will be downloaded as a .ZIP file:

giphy (1)

Once the font is downloaded, you have to actually install it onto your computer to be able to use it. Installing fonts is a little different on each computer – I have a Linux computer, but I know that everyone has different computers – Mac, Windows, etc. DaFont has an excellent FAQ page that goes into detail on how to install fonts on different types of computers. Click >>HERE<< to read it. If you’re confused, please don’t hesitate to ask me any questions in the comments and I’ll do my best to help you out!

How do I see my fonts?

To start, go to PicMonkey. Unfortunately, Canva does not offer a free way to use your own fonts on their site. However, PicMonkey does!

In PicMonkey, hover over “Design” at the top of the page. Click “Blank Template,” and then select the template you want. PicMonkey will open up their editor. Click the “Tt” symbol on the toolbar, which will take you to the fonts sections. Above all the fonts, you’ll see 2 options: “Ours” and “Yours“. Click “Yours” to see all the fonts that are installed on your computer:

giphy (1)

How do I use fonts in my graphics?

In PicMonkey’s editor, click the “Tt” symbol, and just as before, click “Yours” to view your installed fonts. Then click on the font you want to use, click the “Add text” button, and type in the text box that will appear on the canvas. You can use the options in the toolbox to center your text and change its size and color.

giphy (4)

What are some effects I can add to my fonts?

A fun thing to do with fonts is to layer them. It gives them some depth and makes them really pop! First, add some text to your canvas, then right-click the text box and select “Duplicate Text“. Then change the duplicated text’s color to white, right-click it, and select “Send to Back“. Then change the colors as needed to achieve the desired look:

giphy (1)

When you’re layering fonts, it can be interesting to experiment with different blend modes. Start by clicking your text and choosing a color from the toolbox. Then click on the “Blend Modes” dropdown in the toolbox, scroll down, and select “Difference“. Now right-click the text box, select “Duplicate Text“, and change the blend mode of the duplicated text to “Normal”, like so:

giphy (1)

Another cool thing to do to with your fonts is to stretch them! To do this, hold down the “Shift” key on your keyboard and drag up the top bar of the text box:

giphy (1)

You can also fade your text so that it blends into the background a bit. Just click on the text box and play around with the “Fade” slider in the toolbox:

giphy (1)

That’s about it for today! Of course, there’s so much more you can do with fonts – I’ve barely scratched the surface. It’s so much fun to choose new fonts and experiment with using them in your designs. 😀

Remember to head over to A Barefoot Gal next week to read her post on combinations!

Did you learn anything new from this post? What are some of your favorite fonts?

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P.S: Guys! Madi made an amazing stop-motion called “The Goodbye.” It’s SO well done and has an amazing message! Click >>HERE<< to see for yourself how awesome it is. 😀

Published by Clara

Hey, I'm Clara! I'm a photographer, writer, and Christian who loves road trips, music, writing letters, and playing with my dog Maude. See more @ clara-and-co.com. :)

67 thoughts on “DIY Design #2: All About Fonts”

    1. You’re welcome, Gracie! Thanks for commenting. 😀 Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be a way to do that with WordPress (as least, not with the free version.) :/

      -Clara ❤

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

        1. I’d like to wish you a happy Poem in Your Pocket Day with this quick poem by Shel Silverstein:

          There is a voice inside of you
          that whispers all day long,
          ‘I feel that this is right for me,
          I know that this is wrong.’
          No teacher, preacher, parent, friend
          or wise man can decide
          what’s right for you – just listen to
          the voice that speaks inside.

          Liked by 1 person

          Reply

          1. This is so cool, I’ve never heard of Poem in Your Pocket Day before! Thanks for the lovely poem – I LOVE Shel Silverstein. Have you read his book “Where the Sidewalk Ends?” 😀

            Liked by 1 person

            Reply

            1. You should check out my latest post, then, maybe. But I think you already have?
              I just read that poem (Googled it, you know), and it’s really pretty. I haven’t read that one before, but I’ve read a fair bit of Shel Silverstein and it’s amazing.

              Liked by 1 person

              Reply

  11. Fonts are amazing, aren’t they? 😉 I can spend a long time trying to pick the right one…

    Hopes and dreams are balms of life
    That help us to survive
    When castles fall and gardens wilt,
    And nothing seems to thrive,
    For we must pray to God for Grace-
    To make our dreams come true-
    And, in our prayers, we find the strength
    To heal–and build, anew.

    Happy Poem In Your Pocket Day, Clara!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Ooh… braces. grim look Good luck, soldier. XD Are you excited? When I got mine, I was kinda excited but mostly nervous. 😛
      As for colors, I usually get some shade of blue or green because I wear those colors a lot. 😉 It really just depends on what colors you like, I guess! Also, sometimes they don’t give you rubber bands at first (that’s what adds the color) so you may have plain braces at first. Mine are actually just plain metal right now because I’m hopefully getting them off soon! Hopefully. XD

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      2. Haha! XD Yep, I’m actually super excited, surprisingly. My teeth are actually really straight, but my bite doesn’t quite fit. So hopefully it won’t hurt so much. And yes, I’m getting bands, so I don’t think it’ll hurt as much…hopefully, anyway. crosses fingers I’m going for a blue or purple-ish look…I love those colors.
        Anyway, thanks for the tips! 😀

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        1. Oh, good! That’s better than being nervous. 😛 Yeah, hopefully they won’t hurt as much! Mine felt like a had a bear trap in my mouth. XD
          Ooh, blue and purple will be pretty! 🙂 Hopefully your orthodontist isn’t like mine…mine announced to the entire building that I was getting braces and everyone stared at me. So fun. XD

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              1. I will! XD (And thankfully I only have to have them for 12-14 months! happy dance XD )
                Haha! I’ll bet. Poor you… 😛 XD

                Btw…Bella (The Daydreaming Damsel) gave me all of the KotLC books (minus Lodestar) for my birthday, and now she’s reading them and is a huge fan. 😉

                Liked by 1 person

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                1. WOW LUCKY YOU. I’ve had mine for almost a year. sob XD
                  Ooooh! YAY! Another KEEPER fan! 😀 Me and one of my friends like to come up with theories for the upcoming KOTLC books together and keep a list of them to see if we were right when the book comes out. 😛

                  Liked by 1 person

                  Reply
  15. Pingback: DIY Design #3: Combinations – A Barefoot Gal
  16. Pingback: DIY Design #4: Free Photos and Design Resources – Clara's Craft Corner

  19. This is absolutely wonderful! And those gifs! WOW. Those must have taken a lot of effort to make, like screenshots and turning them each into gifs. Just–wow.
    And I love how detailed this post is. You’ve answered pretty much every basic thing anyone wants to know about fonts. Really awesome post!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

      1. My first thought when I saw the first gif was “Oh wow that’s cool! She made a gif” and then when I saw the REST of them I was like “No. Way. This must have taken hoursss (O)”
        so like I’m just amazed by the dedication and hard work you put to making this 😊

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply

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