Tilt

Swiss designers at SPRANQ creative communications recently introduced a new typeface called Ecofont. Like Swiss cheese, these letterforms have been designed with holes in them to reduce ink usage and in turn printing costs. According to Ecofont.eu, SPRANQ experimented with thick and thin weights as well as removing different shapes from the letters, before deciding upon circular shapes. But does this new typeface really deserve to be dubbed the Ecofont?

I am skeptical that this new font lives up to the standards that its name implies. It is viewed best at point sizes of 10-12, and is only really effective when printed using laser printers. Obviously, its characters should not be blown up much larger than 10-12 pt as the holes will become larger and more apparent, the bigger the point size becomes. This font may save ink, but the main reason we are in this environmental pickle in the first place is because we print and consume entirely too much. Though SPRANQ’s intentions are noble, I feel it is much more eco-logical to scrutinize how much we need to print as opposed to how “eco-friendly” we can be while still printing millions of unnecessary items.

From a designers’ standpoint, this font is designed with the large corporate office in mind rather than the graphic professional. Ecofont is meant to be printed at small point sizes, which, eliminates versatility. Typically office buildings print large quantities of un-designed e-mails and body copy at these point sizes. According to Ecofont.eu the letters are based off of the office font Verdana. Co-owner of SPRANQ, Alexander Kraaij claims that a company with 5000 workers could trim up to $125,000 a year from its printing costs. If large companies were to replace the common font Verdana with Ecofont, then one may begin to see the benefit. However, the probability and practicality of that happening seems very slim.

All in all, Ecofont is a positive idea, but when it comes down to it, we simply need to analyze what and how much we print/consume to truly create a more sustainable society.

Jes-M has recently teamed up with Ecosumo, an online green marketplace, where consumers choose to buy earth friendly products. Both Ecosumo and Jes-M believe in reducing waste, reusing what we can and informing others about their impact on the environment.

Ecosumo is still in the process of adding our products however you can go to the site and look around. Our Women’s Tee is available and can be found under Apparel and our Kid’s Tee is under Baby Clothing. Both are made from 100% organic cotton, so they are super soft, and the designs are one-of-a-kind. Ecosumo also has a variety of household items, health and beauty supplies, footwear, furniture, pet accessories, and the always popular water bottles. Soon they will also have Jes-M plantable cards, re-writeable cards and kid’s party pack ideas. Thanks Ecosumo!

Jes-M is stepping out in Hampden Hon! If you go down to the avenue anytime soon, check out our products in Red Tree. You’ll find Jes-M Blast cards, which are rewritable and reusable, plantable Space cards, recycled Wrap and Kid’s Tees you can custom color! Plus, there are plenty of other treasures and furnishings from local Baltimore artists and others around the globe.

If you like what you see but want to find out more, go to our website: www.jes-m.com. We’re still updating our shop but you can look around and get a feel for our other products, projects and more.

Look at the lovely lady and amazing products! With our products about to be launched on EcoSumo, we are looking forward to trying out a few new ways of marketing. We are currently in a big push for sales and want to help to develop the market around environmentally focused packaging and products.

Jes-M is an eco-friendly home and life goods line. Find out more online or contact sales@jes-m.com for more information on pricing.

CONTINUE READING