Finding Your Type: Using The Right Fonts For Your WordPress Website

Readability is a very important part to every website and yet it is taken for granted. Choosing the right font can make all the difference in any design. Learn how to select the right type, design your fonts correctly, and add them to your WordPress website.

Transcript

1. Finding Your Type
   Using The Right Fonts
   For Your WordPress Website
   

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2. Typography
   

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3. Typography Demo Code:
   https://codepen.io/amberrhewitt
   

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4. Typography Basics
   1
   

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5. Web design is
   95% typography
   Oliver Reichenstein
   

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6. Typography must often
   draw attention to itself
   before it will be read.
   

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7. Yet in order to be read,

   it must relinquish

   the attention it has drawn.
   

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8. Legibility doesn’t
   equal readability
   

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9. Just because you can read
   the text doesn’t mean
   your readers can.
   

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10. Common Classifications
    

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11. Tracking (Letter Spacing)
    Hamburge
    Hamburge
    Hamburge
    

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12. Kerning (Space Between Letters)
    Hamburge
    H amburge
    

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13. Leading (Line Height)
    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur
    adipiscing elit. In in tempus metus, sit
    amet aliquam nunc. Ut pharetra
    condimentum diam quis eleifend. Nunc
    fringilla quam magna, sit amet gravida
    elit malesuada varius.
    Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur
    adipiscing elit. In in tempus metus, sit
    amet aliquam nunc. Ut pharetra
    condimentum diam quis eleifend. Nunc
    fringilla quam magna, sit amet gravida
    elit malesuada varius.
    

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14. Italic & Oblique
    regular
    italic
    oblique (faux italic)
    

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15. Choosing the Right Fonts
    Know your context…
    

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18. Choosing the Right Fonts
    • What are you trying to convey?
    • Is it long-form reading or short bursts of text?
    • Use word association: powerful, playful,

    innocent, handmade, industrial, etc.
    • Is it appropriate?
    

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19. Pairing Fonts
    • Look for distinction
    • Look for harmony
    • Some fonts have a sans and serif 

    (Freight Sans Pro & Freight Text Pro)
    • Look at other websites for good 

    font pairings
    • Do you need more than one font?
    

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20. Setting Your Type
    • Type Size

    (16px for mobile, 18-22px for desktop)
    • Line-width

    (45-75 characters wide)
    • Line-height

    (for reading comfort)
    • Type color & contrast

    (for readability and accessibility)
    

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21. Setting Your Type
    Hamburge
    Hamburge
    Hamburge
    Hamburge
    Hamburge
    Hamburge
    Hamburge
    Hamburge
    Hamburge
    Hamburge
    Hamburge
    Hamburge
    Hamburge
    Hamburge
    

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22. Headings
    Use a modular scale
    

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23. Breathing room
    (a.k.a. white space)
    

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24. Too busy
    

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26. Just right
    

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30. Don’t be afraid
    to experiment
    

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31. …but make sure
    there’s a logical reason
    for your design.
    

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32. SANS-SERIF
    Open Sans
    Proxima Nova
    Lato
    Avenir
    Brandon Grotesque
    Fira Sans
    SERIF
    Garamond
    Georgia
    Freight Text
    Merriweather
    Kepler
    Libre Baskerville
    

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33. The best kind of originality is that
    which comes after a sound
    apprenticeship, that which shall prove
    to be the blending of a firm conception
    of useful precedent and the progressive
    tendencies of an able mind.
    The best kind of originality is that
    which comes after a sound
    apprenticeship, that which shall prove
    to be the blending of a firm conception
    of useful precedent and the progressive
    tendencies of an able mind.
    #000 #FFF
    

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34. The best kind of originality is that
    which comes after a sound
    apprenticeship, that which shall prove
    to be the blending of a firm conception
    of useful precedent and the progressive
    tendencies of an able mind.
    The best kind of originality is that
    which comes after a sound
    apprenticeship, that which shall prove
    to be the blending of a firm conception
    of useful precedent and the progressive
    tendencies of an able mind.
    #333 #CCC
    

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35. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. In in tempus metus, sit amet aliquam nunc. Ut pharetra condimentum diam quis
    eleifend. Nunc fringilla quam magna, sit amet gravida elit malesuada varius. Aenean justo neque, lobortis at nisi id, cursus dapibus odio. Nunc
    sed fermentum elit, nec pharetra sapien. Praesent fermentum diam a purus rutrum tristique.
    Fusce posuere sodales pellentesque. Praesent nec tempus sem. Aenean eleifend arcu vitae varius pretium. Proin ac tempor purus.
    Vestibulum sed tortor eu velit sollicitudin tincidunt. Vestibulum ante ipsum primis in faucibus orci luctus et ultrices posuere cubilia Curae;
    Vivamus pharetra facilisis congue. Etiam sit amet felis placerat, vehicula nibh ut, blandit eros. Phasellus malesuada elementum diam et
    commodo.
    Text is too small
    

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36. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. In in tempus metus, sit amet aliquam nunc. Ut
    pharetra condimentum diam quis eleifend. Nunc fringilla quam magna, sit amet gravida elit malesuada varius.
    Aenean justo neque, lobortis at nisi id, cursus dapibus odio. Nunc sed fermentum elit, nec pharetra sapien.
    Praesent fermentum diam a purus rutrum tristique.
    Fusce posuere sodales pellentesque. Praesent nec tempus sem. Aenean eleifend arcu vitae varius pretium.
    Proin ac tempor purus. Vestibulum sed tortor eu velit sollicitudin tincidunt. Vestibulum ante ipsum primis in
    faucibus orci luctus et ultrices posuere cubilia Curae; Vivamus pharetra facilisis congue. Etiam sit amet felis
    placerat, vehicula nibh ut, blandit eros. Phasellus malesuada elementum diam et commodo.
    Line length is too long
    

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37. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. In in
    tempus metus, sit amet aliquam nunc. Ut pharetra condimentum
    diam quis eleifend. Nunc fringilla quam magna, sit amet gravida elit
    malesuada varius. Aenean justo neque, lobortis at nisi id, cursus
    dapibus odio. Nunc sed fermentum elit, nec pharetra sapien.
    Praesent fermentum diam a purus rutrum tristique.
    Fusce posuere sodales pellentesque. Praesent nec tempus sem.
    Aenean eleifend arcu vitae varius pretium. Proin ac tempor purus.
    Vestibulum sed tortor eu velit sollicitudin tincidunt. Vestibulum
    ante ipsum primis in faucibus orci luctus et ultrices posuere cubilia
    Curae; Vivamus pharetra facilisis congue. Etiam sit amet felis
    placerat, vehicula nibh ut, blandit eros. Phasellus malesuada
    elementum diam et commodo.
    Line height is too close
    

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38. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. In in
    tempus metus, sit amet aliquam nunc. Ut pharetra condimentum
    diam quis eleifend. Nunc fringilla quam magna, sit amet gravida elit
    malesuada varius. Aenean justo neque, lobortis at nisi id, cursus
    dapibus odio. Nunc sed fermentum elit, nec pharetra sapien.
    Praesent fermentum diam a purus rutrum tristique.
    Fusce posuere sodales pellentesque. Praesent nec tempus sem.
    Aenean eleifend arcu vitae varius pretium. Proin ac tempor purus.
    Vestibulum sed tortor eu velit sollicitudin tincidunt. Vestibulum
    ante ipsum primis in faucibus orci luctus et ultrices posuere cubilia
    Curae; Vivamus pharetra facilisis congue. Etiam sit amet felis
    placerat, vehicula nibh ut, blandit eros. Phasellus malesuada
    elementum diam et commodo.
    

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39. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. In in
    tempus metus, sit amet aliquam nunc. Ut pharetra condimentum
    diam quis eleifend. Nunc fringilla quam magna, sit amet gravida elit
    malesuada varius. Aenean justo neque, lobortis at nisi id, cursus
    dapibus odio. Nunc sed fermentum elit, nec pharetra sapien.
    Praesent fermentum diam a purus rutrum tristique.
    Fusce posuere sodales pellentesque. Praesent nec tempus sem.
    Aenean eleifend arcu vitae varius pretium. Proin ac tempor purus.
    Vestibulum sed tortor eu velit sollicitudin tincidunt. Vestibulum
    ante ipsum primis in faucibus orci luctus et ultrices posuere cubilia
    Curae; Vivamus pharetra facilisis congue. Etiam sit amet felis
    placerat, vehicula nibh ut, blandit eros. Phasellus malesuada
    elementum diam et commodo.
    Aligned Center - Too Hard To Read
    

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40. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. In in
    tempus metus, sit amet aliquam nunc. Ut pharetra condimentum
    diam quis eleifend. Nunc fringilla quam magna, sit amet gravida elit
    malesuada varius. Aenean justo neque, lobortis at nisi id, cursus
    dapibus odio. Nunc sed fermentum elit, nec pharetra sapien.
    Praesent fermentum diam a purus rutrum tristique.
    Fusce posuere sodales pellentesque. Praesent nec tempus sem.
    Aenean eleifend arcu vitae varius pretium. Proin ac tempor purus.
    Vestibulum sed tortor eu velit sollicitudin tincidunt. Vestibulum
    ante ipsum primis in faucibus orci luctus et ultrices posuere cubilia
    Curae; Vivamus pharetra facilisis congue. Etiam sit amet felis
    placerat, vehicula nibh ut, blandit eros. Phasellus malesuada
    elementum diam et commodo.
    Never Justify!
    

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41. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. In in
    tempus metus, sit amet aliquam nunc. Ut pharetra condimentum
    diam quis eleifend. Nunc fringilla quam magna, sit amet gravida elit
    malesuada varius. Aenean justo neque, lobortis at nisi id, cursus
    dapibus odio. Nunc sed fermentum elit, nec pharetra sapien.
    Praesent fermentum diam a purus rutrum tristique.
    Fusce posuere sodales pellentesque. Praesent nec tempus sem.
    Aenean eleifend arcu vitae varius pretium. Proin ac tempor purus.
    Vestibulum sed tortor eu velit sollicitudin tincidunt. Vestibulum
    ante ipsum primis in faucibus orci luctus et ultrices posuere cubilia
    Curae; Vivamus pharetra facilisis congue. Etiam sit amet felis
    placerat, vehicula nibh ut, blandit eros. Phasellus malesuada
    elementum diam et commodo.
    Never Indent!
    

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42. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. In in
    tempus metus, sit amet aliquam nunc. Ut pharetra condimentum
    diam quis eleifend. Nunc fringilla quam magna, sit amet gravida elit
    malesuada varius. Aenean justo neque, lobortis at nisi id, cursus
    dapibus odio. Nunc sed fermentum elit, nec pharetra sapien.
    Praesent fermentum diam a purus rutrum tristique.
    Fusce posuere sodales pellentesque. Praesent nec tempus sem.
    Aenean eleifend arcu vitae varius pretium. Proin ac tempor purus.
    Vestibulum sed tortor eu velit sollicitudin tincidunt. Vestibulum
    ante ipsum primis in faucibus orci luctus et ultrices posuere cubilia
    Curae; Vivamus pharetra facilisis congue. Etiam sit amet felis
    placerat, vehicula nibh ut, blandit eros. Phasellus malesuada
    elementum diam et commodo.
    Hello World
    

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43. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. In in
    tempus metus, sit amet aliquam nunc. Ut pharetra condimentum
    diam quis eleifend.
    • Nunc fringilla quam magna, sit amet malesuada varius.
    • Aenean justo neque, lobortis at nisi id, cursus dapibus odio.
    Fusce posuere sodales pellentesque. Praesent nec tempus sem.
    Aenean eleifend arcu vitae varius pretium. Proin ac tempor purus.
    Vestibulum sed tortor eu velit sollicitudin tincidunt.
    Vestibulum ante ipsum primis in faucibus orci luctus et ultrices
    posuere cubilia Curae; Vivamus pharetra facilisis congue. Etiam sit
    amet felis placerat, vehicula nibh ut, blandit eros. Phasellus
    malesuada elementum diam et commodo.
    Hello World
    

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44. View Slide

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47. Where to Get Fonts
    2
    

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48. Hosted
    vs.
    Self-Hosted
    

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49. Hosted
    With a hosted license, you reference a CSS resource link
    in the body of your HTML (or CSS) and the font provider
    serve the fonts to your site from their content-delivery
    network.
    

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50. Self-Hosted
    With a self-hosted license, you download the web font
    files from the font provider and host them on your
    servers.
    

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51. Hosted (Subscriptions)
    Google Fonts (free)
    Adobe Typekit (free & paid)
    Fonts.com (free & paid)
    Cloud.typography (paid)
    Type Network (paid)
    

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52. Self-Hosted
    Google Fonts (free)
    Type Network (paid)
    MyFonts (free & paid)
    Linotype (paid)
    FontShop (free & paid)
    

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53. Loading Fonts
    3
    

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54. Font File Types
    .eot (only for Internet Explorer)
    .svg (deprecated; no longer in use)
    .ttf (TrueType Font)
    .woff (2nd best option)
    .woff2 (1st best option)
    

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55. Loading Fonts
    Loading fonts from your server in CSS (self-hosted)
    @font-face {

    font-family: Elena, serif;

    src: url(elena-regular.woff2) format(“woff2”),

    url(elena-regular.woff) format(“woff”),

    url(elena-regular.otf) format(“opentype”);

    font-weight: normal;

    }
    

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56. Loading Fonts
    Another example:
    @font-face {

    font-family: ‘Fanwood Text’, serif;

    src: url(fanwood_text.woff2) format(“woff2”),

    url(fanwood_text.woff) format(“woff”),

    url(fanwood_text.otf) format(“opentype”);

    font-weight: normal;

    }
    

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57. Loading Fonts
    Italic font:
    @font-face {

    font-family: ‘Fanwood Text’, serif;

    src: url(fanwood_text_italic.woff2) format(“woff2”),

    url(fanwood_text_italic.woff) format(“woff”),

    url(fanwood_text_italic.otf) format(“opentype”);

    font-weight: normal;

    font-style: italic;

    }
    

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58. Loading Fonts
    Bold font:
    @font-face {

    font-family: ‘Open Sans’, serif;

    src: url(open_sans_bold.woff2) format(“woff2”),

    url(open_sans_bold.woff) format(“woff”),

    url(open_sans_bold.otf) format(“opentype”);

    font-weight: bold; /* Or use 700 */

    }
    

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59. Loading Fonts
    Conditional Loading (selecting characters):
    @font-face {

    font-family: Spumante;

    src: url(spumante.woff) format(“woff”)

    unicode-range: U+26; /* Only loads the ampersand ‘&’ */

    }
    U+26, U+23 (loads ‘&’ and ‘#’ characters)

    U+30-39 (all latin digits)

    U+2? (wildcard: selects the range U+20-2F)
    Other Unicode Examples:
    

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60. Google Fonts
    

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64. Adobe Fonts (formerly Typekit)
    

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69. Adobe Fonts (formerly Typekit)
    Plugin: Custom Adobe Fonts (Typekit)
    

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70. Using Fonts in CSS
    4
    

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71. CSS Font Properties
    font-family: Choosing a font (Helvetica, Open Sans)

    generic-family: serif, sans-serif, cursive, fantasy, monospace
    font-family: "Open Sans", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica,
    Arial, sans-serif;
    body { font-size: 18px; }
    p { font-size: 1em; }
    h1 { font-size: 2.75em; }
    font-size: The size of the font (px, em, rem)
    

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72. CSS Font Properties
    font-style: normal, italic, or oblique
    font-weight: The weight of the font 

    (e.g. normal, bold, 100-900)
    text-align: Aligning the text (left, center, right, justified)
    text-transform: Changing the case of your text
    (lowercase, uppercase, capitalize)
    

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73. CSS Font Properties
    text-shadow: Adding a shadow to your text
    .shadow { text-shadow: 2px 2px 6px rgba(50, 50, 80, 0.5); }
    

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74. CSS Font Properties
    line-height: The spacing between the lines of text (leading)
    p { line-height: 1.4em; }
    h1 { letter-spacing: 0.08em; }
    letter-spacing: The spacing between the letters 

    (kerning, tracking)
    

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75. 1 Typography Basics
    Where to Get Fonts
    Loading Fonts
    Using Fonts in CSS
    2
    3
    4
    

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76. Resources
    Better Web Typography (free email course)

    betterwebtype.com
    Webfont Handbook by Bram Stein

    abookapart.com/products/webfont-handbook
    HTML Arrows (Codes for special characters)

    htmlarrows.com
    

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77. Resources
    Typewolf

    typewolf.com
    Type Scale (Calculator for sizing headings)

    type-scale.com
    WhatFont (Chrome extension for identifying fonts)

    ambr.in/3ORKkk
    

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78. Thank you!
    

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79. Amber Hewitt
    amberhewitt.com
    @amberrhewitt
    

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