- Blog - Clarks & Hewett's Alphabets & Lettering for Signwriters

I am currently freelancing, and am carrying out a project for a local Blacksmith. To help with research, he provided me with a book that was given to him by a fellow Blacksmith. It is called Clarks & Hewett's Alphabets & Lettering for Signwriters. It's a first edition from 1921 and I am honoured to be able to look after it for a bit. It contains traditional style typography as well as images which might be useful for anyone in the signwriting trade.

It has a variation of stock throughout and some pages are in full colour. It has slight damage and discolouration to the pages, but what I find the most interesting are the phrases throughout which aim to encourage the use of multiple typefaces and styles. One page reads, "Ideas for the treatment and manipulation of letters in various colours and shadings". Another "A patchwork page of colour effects and different styles". Much of the advice contained in the book is a modern graphic designers worst nightmare, however I was interested to see that some of the 'rules' still ring true.

"A good sign when it reads well"

"Surrounding space gives Prominence"

I think this book is a great example of fashions and trends within typography and whilst times change the hard and fast rules prevail.