Wait, that typeface is a corporate identity??

I was driving home from work earlier this week and while in traffic noticed this van in the lane next to me. I normally check out the logos and type on commercial vehicles here because it's Orlando. Our companies that have cars, trucks and vans tend to use some funky design and text, Lynx bus lines tend to do full vehicle wraps that just amaze me. 

Back to our van from earlier this week, there was no real logo. I thought "OK, so that company is using the name and type for their identity" and really took a look at it. Papyrus. The whole company identity, including the website, phone numbers, everything was in Papyrus. Now don't get me wrong it's a nice typeface. I have used it myself. But there are times and places for it. It seems that this company just didn't understand that septic tanks and Papyrus just don't seem to go together in most minds.

I might have gone with something that wasn't as delicate looking myself. Maybe used something that showed strength like Bodoni, or maybe flexibility like Bauhaus. Just not a flowery script that looks like it's fading away. That I would have saved for something not having to do with waste water and sewage.

When do we use those fun fonts?! Imagine you are doing a black tie dinner and you want to use Taco... I think that might be a bit much but we can work with it. Use it for one piece... like maybe the headline. but don't use it for every word, number and symbol on the page. Though I wouldn't use Taco for something like that unless it was for a taco stand.

This brings to mind an article that was written on the use of Comic Sans. The title was "Typeface Inspired by Comic Books Has Become a Font of Ill Will" and it was in the Wall Street Journal. The article talks about how a font created for fun in comics is now being used everywhere. People fall in love with it and put it on fine jewelry stores, important documents and even a theater in Spain. Now why would I be going on about a typeface and what is the point of this? See there are times for everything. You wouldn't go to a wedding wearing your pajamas would you? Well if you are designing a legal document you wouldn't use a font that make people think of the Sunday funnies!

I guess I am just silly that this irritates me. Not to the point where I am going to lash out and yell. No, I will shake my head, take a picture and put that snapshot in my "Do Not Do!!" file.

Hope you (my oh so many readers, ah sarcasm as I write this with no followers right now) enjoyed that little bit of fun.