tanyatypesJan 24, 2025
Nick Sherman

10 years ago today I published my article “Variable Fonts for Responsive Design” at A List Apart:
https://alistapart.com/blog/post/variable-fonts-for-responsive-design/

I was very happy when, a year and a half later, the OpenType specification was updated to support variable fonts.

Since then, I’ve spent a lot of time making and working with variable fonts, including building up the https://v-fonts.com directory (now sadly out of date).

There have been bumps in the road, but it’s been satisfying to see the technology spread over time.

Variable Fonts for Responsive Design

Today’s web fonts are not living up to their potential. What if the stylistic parameters of a typeface were fluidly variable? What if the design of a typeface could be as flexible and responsive as…

A List Apart
Jan 23, 2025 at 5:55pmWeb
Show threadNick ShermanJan 23, 2025

… My “Variable Fonts for Responsive Design” article from 10 years ago followed an even older article I published almost 12 years ago now, titled “Font Hinting and the Future of Responsive Design”, also at A List Apart:
https://alistapart.com/column/font-hinting-and-the-future-of-responsive-typography/

The ideas from that article are a bit more optimistic and still haven’t been totally realized. The closest thing we have to it now is automatic optical size adjustments with variable web fonts, but even that situation is still quite messy.

Font Hinting and the Future of Responsive Typography

Font hinting has been the source of countless headaches for type designers and users. In the meantime, some of the most fundamental and important elements of typography still can’t be addressed wit…

A List Apart
Show threadLuke Dorny Jan 23, 2025
@nicksherman thanks for sharing this. I need to do some research on this.
Show threadHilary PalménJan 25, 2025
@nicksherman i love v-fonts, its such a fabulous spuce for inspiration, and learning. Thankyou so much for building it!