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Font Guide

Using ligatures to access swashes, ornaments, underline and alternate set

This is only for new fonts published from August 2023

Access all decorative glyphs using standard ligature feature, make sure to activate standard ligature feature in your design software (opentype tab).

 

1. Stylistic Alternate

Access stylistic alternate using standard ligature feature. Just type plus symbol ” + ” then follow by character that will be change into the alternate, for example type +A to get stylistic alternate glyph of the capital A, type +g to get alternate glyph of the letter g, type +g2 to get the second alternate glyph of the letter g. Some alternate glyphs can be used in the middle of words some other only be used at the end of word.

2. Underline swash

You can get underline swash glyphs by using “hyphen” ( – ) alternate glyphs. You can also use ligature features. Just type hyphen symbol ” – ” then follow by number, from one to thirty. Type -1 to -30 to get 30 different underline swash variations. The underline swash has zero width, so you can easily put them in the middle of the word, for example if you want underline swash under the word “America”, just type Amer-1ica or Ame-2rica or Ameri-30ca etc.

3. Beginning swash

You can get beginning swash glyphs by using “dollar” ( $ ) alternate glyphs. You can also use ligature features. Just type dollar symbol ” $ ” then follow by numbers, from one to nine. Type $1 to $9 to get 9 different beginning swash variations. For example if you want beginning swash in front of the word “david”, just type $1david, $2david, or $9david etc.

4. Ending / tail swash

You can get tail swash glyphs by using “percent” ( % ) alternate glyphs. You can also use ligature features. Just type percent symbol ” % ” then follow by number characters, from one to thirty. Type %1 to %30 to get 30 different tail swash variations. For example if you want tail swash in the back of the word “david”, just type david%1, david%13, david%8 or david%22 etc.

5. Ornaments

You can get various ornaments by using “at” ( @ ) alternate glyphs. You can also use ligature features. Just type at symbol ” @ ” then follow by number characters, from one to twenty six. Type @1 to @26 to get 26 different ornaments. For example if you want ornaments around the word “david”, just type @1david, david@2, david@20 or @6david@21@16 etc.  

How to install fonts on computer (Mac/PC)?

On a PC: Double click on the OTF or TTF file, then click “Install.”

On a Mac:

  • Double click on the OTF or TTF file, then click “Install Font.”
  • Alternately, you can manually install fonts to bypass Fontbook: Copy (CMD + C) the file(s) either OTF or TTF format, then Paste (CMD + V) the files into this folder: HD > Library > Fonts

Important: Restart the program where you intend to use the font, and the fonts will show up in your font list when you open the program again.

What software do I need to use this font?

When a font is installed on your computer, it can be used with any program that allows you to create text. Fonts will work in Microsoft Office applications, Adobe software, and almost any other program with a text editor.

Access Opentype Feature (ligatures, alternates, etc)

Using Opentype Feature in AI/PS:

For Adobe Illustrator, you can use the OpenType panel (Window > Type > OpenType) to specify how you want to apply alternate characters in OpenType fonts. For example, you can specify that you want to use standard ligatures in new or existing text.

 

A. Standard Ligatures B. Contextual Alternates C. Discretionary Ligatures D. Swash E. Stylistic Alternates F. Titling Alternates G. Ordinals H. Fractions I. Stylistic Sets J. Panel menu K. Figure type L. Character position

For Adobe Photoshop, you can use the Character Panel (Type>Panel>Character Panel).

Keep in mind that OpenType fonts vary greatly in the kinds of features they offer; not all options in the OpenType panel are available in every font. You can view the characters in a font using the Glyphs panel.

 

How to Access Alternates/ Special Character in AI/PS:

Typefaces include many characters in addition to the ones you see on your keyboard. Depending on the font, these characters can include ligatures, fractions, swashes, ornaments, ordinals, titling and stylistic alternates, superior and inferior characters, old‑style figures, and lining figures. A glyph is a specific form of a character. For example, in certain fonts, the capital letter A is available in several forms, such as swash and small cap.

There are three ways to insert alternate glyphs:

  • The Selection in-context menu lets you view and insert glyphs available for a selected character. When you’re working on a type object, you can select a character to quickly view alternate glyphs right next to it in the in-context menu. Simply click the alternate glyph to replace the character with it.

 

  • The Glyphs panel lets you view and insert glyphs from any typeface. You use the Glyphs panel (Window > Type > Glyphs) to view the glyphs in a font and insert specific glyphs in your document.

A. Show menu B. Font family C. Font style D. Zoom buttons

  • The OpenType panel lets you set up rules for using glyphs. For example, you can specify that you want to use ligatures, titling characters, and fractions in a given text block. Using the OpenType panel is easier than inserting glyphs one at a time and ensures a more consistent result. However, the panel works only with OpenType fonts.

 

PUA-encoded

Another way, you can access the special glyphs using character map program. All my fonts are PUA-encoded, which means that all of the extra characters will show up in the Private Use Area (PUA) of a character map, annotated with a unicode of “EXXX” where the Xs are numbers assigned to any individual glyph. Mac users can use FontBook for this, and PC users can use the standard Character Map that comes on your Windows machine.  You’ll simply need to scroll through the characters, locate the one you’d like to use, and then copy/paste it into the program you’re working in! In FontBook, you’ll need to ensure you have Repertoire View turned on — you can find that by going to View > Repertoire.