Four free, sweet and friendly sans-serifs.
There’s this little accidental family of free sans-serifs with big counters, geometric construction and a relatively small x-height that you should know about.
When I say accidental family, I mean both of the following things:
They were never intended as a family, as they were designed by completely different people at different times (as far as I know, anyway).
It doesn’t mean that you should combine them. In fact, I’d actively discourage you from doing so.
The fonts
#1 Quicksand
#2 Varela Round
#3 Montserrat
#4 Raleway
Commentary
These are fonts that I personally love the look of, but I almost never use. In my opinion, setting body text with them is not advisable due to their less-than-optimal x-height and slightly expanded appearance. The problem is that their width also doesn’t make them ideal candidates for setting headings, headlines etc.
“Then what are they good for?” I hear you say.
Well, this may sound like a very specific scenario but I believe that all of these fonts are great for setting small amounts of body text, like a leading paragraph or a few lines of marketing copy. Alternatively, you could use them for logotypes, although their ubiquity means that they may not be as disctinctive as you’d like them to be, without customizing them in some way.
Have something to say? Share it with us in the comments. Please be respectful, motherfucker.
