Carefully considered letters written long-hand, sealed in an envelope and sent across continents were once the only connection for distant friends and lovers. Dear Sarah is a type that evokes the emotion of those handwritten messages. Using alternates, ligatures and a complex system for randomization and natural connected characters, Dear Sarah seeks to push the boundaries of digital type. More…

The guiding question that drove the design of Dear Sarah was whether it was possible to create a natural looking script that worked well in running text. Hand-written types often work for two or three words, but as soon you you look at them in a paragraph, their unnatural textures make them feel contrived. As one of the first serious types to explore OpenType for a connected script, Dear Sarah uses a unique system to create natural connections. Often script types rely on one connecting point to make sure that all their characters fit together properly. Characters that naturally connect much higher, such as the ‘o’ or ‘v’ are distorted to connect at the same point as an ‘a’ or a ‘c’. Dear Sarah uses multiple sets of lower-case characters to connect at multiple points, creating a much more natural looking script. OpenType is also used to create variety, by using randomization techniques to insert disconnected characters as well as alternates, ligatures, swashes and ink blots to create a natural rhythm across multiple lines.