A few days ago we talked about colours you must be careful to use on your website, today it is time to talk about fonts that you must put aside for your graphic and web projects.
We are not a kamikaze. Remember that fonts are ocean fishes. There are thousands upon which to choose, of all shapes and colours and of all tastes, so it’s okay to NOT pick one of this list. The number of fonts you should not catch is negligible in relation to the number of fonts you can…. Open your mind! There are many fishes in the sea and there are just a few that are poisonous and cannot be used. 🙂
Either way to start we should say that, although sometimes it seems that designers go nuts for a font type, this is not like that. We have said many times that when a misuse of fonts is made, it is normal for this to devalue and lose its aesthetic.
Normally each typeface is designed with a specific function. Many times we have shared more creative fonts for typographic prints where legibility was relegated to the background plates. At other times we talked about the Google Font, combinations that are perfect for paragraph text…
As much as we like a typeface we must know the use it has and look beyond what it represents at this time.
As we say, there are many “fishes in the sea,” and the best thing is that most are free so we have no reason to choose a typeface and squeeze ad nauseum, but we must use it sparingly. Otherwise all we can get is that within a few years, we will be talking in this section about typefaces that are trend right now.
And there is a big difference: It is not the same as fonts go out of fashion or they become something inappropriate to use. If they are old-fashioned, we do not know if at another time they will come back (like leggings or elbow pads…) But if they have been overexploited be sure that they will never be trend again…
So let’s see five fonts you should never use for your project.
Times New Roman
Okay, maybe it is not the most hated font and clearly I do not think you hurt your eyes when you look at it, but do you really need to use it? Think about how much Google Font Serif we have: Lora, Noto Serif… The range of possibilities is so wide that I am sure you do not need to use it only because it comes installed on your computer.
Bank Gothic
It is a font that everybody liked in 2006 but of course, 10 years later and after the appearance of the Google Font, is not so modern. While it is true that its use has been restricted over the years, there are still some holdouts (as we saw in Spanish) who refuse to leave it behind. It is widely used on billboards film, regardless of subject, year and address. Maybe they get something extra when they use it… 😉
In any case we have at least the Oswald to compensate, so really, there is no need to use it.
Arial
If we spoke before of the Times New Rome, now it’s the turn of Arial. It is not that awful, nothing happens if it continues to be used … But is it really the best choice with a huge number of sans serif fonts?
We have Raleway, Lato, Work Sans … Every day a new sans serif font that we can combine and that will be perfect for our web and graphics projects comes out. The arial is getting a little old … it is still present, but the time has come to change it… They are sneakers that were very comfortable, but whose sole is beginning to break…
Lobster Two
It hurts to put this font in this list, but it is a mistake to use it. In addition, unlike in the case of the above where they gradually lost their strength, with this one there is no possibility of use. It was the top of fonts for a few years, all the designers used it, all customers wanted to have it … And that was the problem. Their indiscriminate use made us to find it (and still do) in all areas of life.
Now the font is not creative and original. If you are looking for something unique and professional, believe me, this is not your font.
Comic Sans
Sorry, but we could not complete this list without naming the Comic Sans. Yes, I may repeat myself, but we are in 2016 and it has been outdated for 10 years and there are people who still use it… If the font had stayed in children’s posters and had not have invaded all areas of our life, perhaps at some point it would have had a second youth. But the inappropriate use has made it the WORST font that you can use in your designs…
