The Fox is Black

11 October, 2023

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Graphic Design

Gretel Gives 90s Outdoor Brand Mountain Hardwear a Tough New Visual Identity

Gretel may have pulled off one of the strongest brand identity redesigns of the year. They have managed to Mountain Hardwear, a mid-90’s granola-feeling outdoors brand, and made it feel like a cutting edge tech outerwear company, all without losing it’s primary identity. This is no small feat. Gretel worked closely with Mountain Hardwear to create an all-encompassing brand identity that captures the perfect balance between being wild and wise.

Let’s start with the logo and typeface they created. It’s incredible to me that they were able to keep the look and feel of the original logo, that sort of clunky yet charming 90s energy, without it feeling off or wrong. They then worked with SuperContinente to develop a typeface inspired by “hard outside with a soft interior, which was a reoccurring theme in wood type from the late 1800s.” Because of course! And thanks to an expanded color palette, the brand now feels bold, tough, and adventurous, like it could tackle anything, which is the point.

There’s a true sense that the team at Gretel had so much fun working on this project, and that the folks at Mountain Hardwear truly trusted them. The rebrand is totally comprehensive, from soup to nuts (get it?) and there doesn’t seem to be any detail that wasn’t considered.
15 August, 2023

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Typeface

Type Tuesday — Instrument Serif, Alfredino Semimono, Britney, and Baste

It has been about a month since I last shared some typefaces that caught my eye. There’s so many great typefaces these days, with lots of folks bringing new takes on classics, and in other cases, really going out there and doing some very interesting work. Today’s Typeface Tuesday is an eclectic mix, hopefully you’ll find something interesting for your next project.

Instrument Serif & Sans →

The folks over at Instrument, who in my opinion do some of the best work in the design industry, recently underwent a really immense, beautiful brand redesign. Along with the redesign, they created a couple of bespoke typefaces, Instrument Serif and Sans, both of which are now available on Google Fonts. These are great to download or use in your Slides presentations.

Alfredino Semimono →

A little but vintage, a little bit edgy, Alfredino Semimono by Supernulla Creative Foundry comes in three different flavors. The Semimono style is characterized by essential cleanliness and strong visual impact, while the Semirounded style is distinguished by its strong contrasts between defined edges and beveled seams, giving the letters an interesting and dynamic look. The Tuttocurvy style, on the other hand, is playful and informal, with rounded, flowing shapes, making it perfect for projects involving interactions with illustration.

Britney →

Wow. Described as a “super-mega-experimental-display-variable typeface” (very accurate) that are based on drawings and analogue animations made for the 36 Days of Type. The result is a typeface that is challenging, playful, and ultimately, an extremely dynamic experiment.

Baste →

The folks over at Lift Type have released one of my favorite typefaces of the year, Baste, inspired by the south of France. “Through its A and B versions, Baste explores the vernacular aesthetic and alternates between the softness of the seaside and the radicalness of an arid downtown.” I love the
27 June, 2023

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Typeface

Typefaces For Your Creative Projects — Tomato Grotesk, Bayard, Dark Paradise, and Goji

I’m always finding interesting typefaces in my day-to-day so it made sense to start sharing these gems regularly. Buying typefaces is a lot like hoarding except they don’t take up as much space, thank god, otherwise I’d be buried in fonts.

First up we have Tomato Grotesk from The Designers Foundry, a sans-serif with some lovely little details. Love the sharpness of the “m” and the “a” and “e” both seem happy, like they have their own little facial expressions. This a great typeface for that project that’s bit more straightforward yet needs a touch of personality.

Next, we have Bayard, designed by Tré Seals, which is a typeface inspired by signage from the 1963 March on Washington For Jobs and Freedom, and named after civil rights activist Bayard Rustin. I love what Tré has done here because of the fact that you get these differing type widths, which enables you to create and reduce emphasis where needed. And with the popularity of mixing type styles, this would fit nicely in a number of different projects.

Speaking of mixing type styles, Dark Paradise by Tropical Type is modern serif that features an ornate italic with lots of fun alternates. I’m very into these playful, basically display typefaces that have a lot of personality. Combining the edgy serif with the swashy italic offers up a lot of potential and possibilities for a project that needs a little pizzaz.

Finally, we go full personality with Goji by Typeverything, a typeface inspired by the iconic Art Nouveau style. It’s a whole lot of personality, with those super sharp curves, the adorable little baby counters, and how the weight of each letter sits toward the bottom of the letters. If you want your project to get noticed this is the perfect typeface for you.