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  • No routine, no problem! Wait…

    I’ve got the minivan parked in the shade while my youngest kid takes an unexpected nap in the backseat. I’m blogging this from my phone. We are on our way to a “welcome” thing at his new school and his eyes might have actually closed before we left the driveway. Who knows? It’s the last … No routine, no problem! Wait…

  • My work is now on Adobe Fonts

    Well, some of it is, anyway. I always wondered what would happen when my open source ETC typefaces finally made it to Google Fonts. Aside from knowing that they are used on over 100,000 websites and getting served up millions of times each week through the API, it’s hard to tell, honestly. Those are numbers. … My work is now on Adobe Fonts

  • Digital Upcycling

    I’m not usually a fan of remakes. Or continuing a story/experience for the sake of easy money. Capitalism and entertainment are often at odds with creativity. How many movie sequels are on the way right now? 136, apparently. How many Fast and Furious movies are there? Too many. Another Toy Story? Who cares. Remember Cars … Digital Upcycling

  • Cyclicalshmyclical

    Sometimes I do the same things over and over, and it’s great. This is a healthy cycle, apparently. Routine, maybe. Or if it happens at the same time of year you could call it a “tradition.” But the personal, day in and day out habits that I find myself in can be good or bad … Cyclicalshmyclical

  • Oh, Hello Type Friends

    I was introduced to Elliot Jay Stocks over 15 years ago, not in person or through someone, but simply from his site being listed on all the design inspiration sites that were the rage pre-2010s. His site was fresh (it still is, check out the archive link). Think early Twitter days, when people were sharing … Oh, Hello Type Friends

  • New Faces Around Here

    After a year of making music instead of fonts, I’m excited to dive back into type design (and maybe chill out on the songs for a while). It felt right to tidy up some loose ends, so this post was actually a long time coming. I finally got not one but two typefaces finished that … New Faces Around Here

  • Fixing Up The Place

    Last year was my blue year. I mostly mean that in terms of color, but it definitely applied to my mood more than I care to admit. The old website was nice, it was fine. It gave me a grounded constraint to make things with, which explains my Instagram feed for all of 2023. I … Fixing Up The Place

  • Year, Meet Nutshell

    The past 12 months have been interesting, to put it mildly. While I haven’t written as much I usually do (or would like) I’m here on the last day of the year, with a cup of tea, and American football on TV (what?!) while one of my three kids naps. I’m done with paragraphs until … Year, Meet Nutshell

  • 20 Years from California

    I’ve only been to California once. Granted, it was for three months, but that was in 2003 and I haven’t been back since. I loved LA. San Diego, too. I know I would still love it there. I have a few good excuses for not being back (those were the before times, before kids, that … 20 Years from California

  • FKA Default Sans

    Choosing what to call a typeface is tricky. I’ve never had to rename one of mine until now. Technically I don’t have to change it, but I’m happy to avoid confusion between what I made and what someone else made (and for a very similar typeface, at that). I’m talking about Default Sans. I had … FKA Default Sans

  • A Song A Week, Again

    Back in the wild year of 2020 I recorded a song every week. I had never attempted a 52 week project, and I actually thought it would be a fun challenge. Never mind the fact that I had an 8 month old and was teaching a college course at night. Oh and that a pandemic … A Song A Week, Again

  • Dropping FBOMBS

    Two years ago I had an idea to bundle a few single styles of my various fonts into affordable packages and release them somewhat randomly. Well, the idea hasn’t changed much since then, but I finally got around to making it. Behold: FBOMBS. Why did I do this? Well, I don’t like selling individual fonts. … Dropping FBOMBS

  • Latest ≠ Greatest

    Until far too recently, I operated under the naivety that the most recent things I undertake should be the best they’ve ever been. I’m not sure if this falls under a classic “perfectionist” mindset, but it’s worth mentioning that I never strive for perfect. Hardly.

  • Subject Not Detected

    I took a little over 12000 photos this year. About 2000 of them are worth editing, saving, and backing up. I’ve said before it’s easy to take a good photo of a person, but without a subject in the frame I’m usually in for a challenge. As this year winds down I’ve had a chance … Subject Not Detected

  • 180s

    My favorite thing about this ever-growing list is that the format doesn’t tell you what my opinion is, only that it has changed. But nothing on this list has changed…twice. That’d be 360, right back where it started. Ridiculous! I shared this on Instagram but I like the images big on desktop 👍 Font in … 180s

  • Video vs Screens

    My favorite things to make usually have a physical and digital form. Take photos, for instance. I can print a lot of them, inexpensively, from my phone (wild). But the ease of texting a picture of my kids to their grandparents is also amazing. Easy. Fonts are wonderful things to create, because they often start … Video vs Screens

  • Relays

    It was only a matter of time before Allison and I started working together again, professionally speaking. Almost a year ago we tossed around the idea of starting a branding studio. At the time we were both doing our own separate things–I was making fonts and freelancing and she was taking photos and…also freelancing. But, … Relays

  • These Streaming Services Are Making Me Thirsty

    That title is a hacked appropriation of a well-known line from Seinfield which–unsurprisingly–you can stream in its entirety on Netflix (among other movies and shows). The stuff you want to watch or didn’t know existed? It’s everywhere. If you don’t mind paying. But if you actually have time to enjoy this stuff, it’s a wonderful … These Streaming Services Are Making Me Thirsty

  • What I’m Doing With Fonts Now

    This is new, all of it. The URL. The code. The–dare I say…strategy? Even this font I’m typing in. For a long time my website served as a portfolio, or as a blog, and at some point it was a shop. Now it’s all of those things at the same time, which seems ambitious but … What I’m Doing With Fonts Now

  • Doom As I Say Not As I Doom

    I released another new album as Adventureson. Unlike the January release of Ghost Bones, the latest is much darker, far more anxious. Maybe even more ambitious? The first and last track sound very different from the rest, but still fit within the same vibe. It might be a sign of the times, but it also … Doom As I Say Not As I Doom

  • Public Type Works Round 2

    At the end of 2019 I launched a web platform called Public Type Works. The goal was simple: get more open source fonts in the world, and pay type designers to do it. I kept it pretty simple, crowdfunding for what would be free fonts. Version 1 wasn’t successful for a few reasons, which is … Public Type Works Round 2

  • This Land We Live On

    It’s still strange to me that my wife and I own this house and land that we live on. Partly because the concept of “owning” land (stolen, at that) is weird, and partly because the housing market right now is completely insane. We’re just thawing out from our fourth winter at this old (mostly from … This Land We Live On

  • What Do I Do With All These Photos?

    I take a lot of pictures. Not too many, but probably more than the average person. Most of them come from a camera that isn’t attached to a phone. My current camera–a Fujifilm XF10–fits in my pocket. That’s pretty miraculous since it contains an APS-C sensor, which is considerably larger and more impressive than anything … What Do I Do With All These Photos?

  • Adventurson

    After releasing music under my own name for almost a decade, I’m giving myself a band name. There’s no reason for this other than I want to publish music under something that reads/feels like the sounds I’m creating. There are too many Tylers out there. There are always weird things that happen with my last … Adventurson

  • DaFont Food Court

    Once a month I’ll inevitably get an email from Paypal saying that “a nice dafont visitor” threw a couple bucks my way. Almost always $5. It’s awesome and absolutely unnecessary (because everything I have on dafont is 100% free or open source). It’s also inspiring. I ultimately end up visiting DaFont and get lost in … DaFont Food Court

  • Dog Love

    Don’t worry, everything is fine with our pup Yoshi, this isn’t a dog memorial note! In fact, I’m publishing this a week ahead of the third anniversary of our gotcha day. That’s right, our three and a half year old mutt has been with us for three years. Turns out, this puppy energy is perfect … Dog Love

  • Sono – Something New

    I’ve been working on revisions to seven ETC typefaces for almost eight months now. Before that, I had high hopes for a little project called Public Type Works (PTW – currently hibernating) which was an attempt to crowdfund open source fonts. It was a nice idea, and everything “worked” properly, but it failed. The numbers … Sono – Something New

  • Twenty Fifty-Two

    I haven’t mentioned this on my website but on January 1st I began a 52 week long project. The goal? Record one song every seven days. All year. It occurred to me that I should check in – with myself – at this halfway point. Right here. Unfortunately at week 18 my laptop died (brand … Twenty Fifty-Two

  • Vast

    What better way to start a quarantine/lockdown than with semi-ominous instrumental music, right? These six ambient tracks span three years of on-and-off composition and production. They were written after moving from a small city (of 30,000) to a tiny town (of 3000) with lots of space to roam, physically and mentally. Pairs best with isolation, … Vast

  • State Fair 2019

    It’s been five years since I took a bunch of photos from the New York State Fair, and you know what? We still hit the same spots and eat the same food. Fewer rides and games these days (and even more food). That’s it! See you next year, fair! Please don’t use/take these photos without … State Fair 2019

  • Open Source Sunday

    I’m writing this on a Monday, but the title comes from the fact that I spent many hours yesterday finalizing on improvements made to League Mono and League Spartan. The latter is something I’ve been updating on and off for the past year (since forking a version to make variable in 2018). League Mono has … Open Source Sunday

  • New Year, Old Cameras

    This blog post started as a silly note on my phone. Less than a note really, just a list of every digital camera I’ve owned and used and loved and hated since 2003. Very quickly: I’m not a pro photographer but have supplemented my freelance career with photo gigs (weddings and headshots, y’all). Most of … New Year, Old Cameras

  • Farewell to Flickr

    I just finished downloading all of my content from Flickr. It amounts to 21 ZIP files that Flickr prepared when I requested my archive, totaling almost 62.5 gigabytes from about 10,000 photos. I joined in 2007 when I was scanning old film and photographing with a $200 point and shoot. My account is now deleted. … Farewell to Flickr

  • Making a Variable Font in Glyphs

    This is a quick (relatively, it’s 18 minutes long) video tutorial on converting an existing single style font to a multiple master/variable compatible font in Glyphs. It’s not a perfect tutorial, but it should be enough for you to get started if you’re on a mac. As mentioned in the video, this is all possible … Making a Variable Font in Glyphs

  • Glyphs 2 Mini Tutorial

    I recently made a quick (15 minute) video tutorial on introductory letter making in Glyphs Mini 2. I think it is an improvement over my previous video.

  • 2017 Runfograph

    This is a follow up to last year’s running infographic. So I didn’t run a single race and my longest run was only 20 miles (which I realize is a very long run for some people). BUT I was more consistent than ever, didn’t get injured or miss a run because of running, increased my … 2017 Runfograph

  • Design Crawl Ithaca

    It has never been a better time to be a graphic designer in Ithaca. I write this as someone who has made a living here doing just that since 2006. We have an abundance of talent in this town and through our new inclusion with AIGA Upstate New York we also have some programming to … Design Crawl Ithaca

  • Profit, Loss, and Personal Satisfaction

    I’ve spent a lot of time over the years thinking about how I get by. Many of those years I was an employee with a salary. Some years were 100% freelance/product focused, and that’s what this post is about. Let’s take typefaces, for example. It’s rare but possible to make a good one in less … Profit, Loss, and Personal Satisfaction

  • Atlantic At Acadia

    I packed a microphone for my annual trip to Maine. You can see it in the photo above, very small, in almost the exact center of the frame. Aside from it’s relatively tiny size, it looks fragile and dark, almost imperceptible among the rocks and nearby water. This location is about halfway between Thunder Hole … Atlantic At Acadia

  • Fixed Width Friends

    I began work on League Mono at the end of 2016, and had the bulk of it in a usable form in March of this year. Why? I had been looking through the League catalog and realized that it was missing a monospace family. There’s no shortage of great, free monospace typefaces in the world (links … Fixed Width Friends

  • Create Upstate 2017

    Create Upstate is a great design event that has lived in Syracuse, NY for the past three years. It was wonderful there, but this year the organizers decided to take it on the road…to Ithaca! Upstate NY covers a lot of territory, so having people come from all over the state (and from beyond) to … Create Upstate 2017

  • My Nook, Still Nookin

    I’m not the first person to write something like this and given how much I love my Nook, I probably won’t be the last, either. So I’ll keep this short. What is a Nook? It’s Barnes And Noble’s ebook reader. I picked mine up on May 30th, 2012,  for $75 (new). The first book I purchased? Red … My Nook, Still Nookin

  • Hatcher at Wilburland

    My friend Josh returned home to record his third album at Wilburland. He invited me to the studio to document some of the process. I showed up with my video camera and captured about 90 minutes of his second night of recording. All sound in this video is picked up either by my camera or external … Hatcher at Wilburland

  • Type on Type

    I’m writing this on a bus to New York City. A last minute getaway with my wife. After admiring the winter scene that also distracts me when I’m behind the wheel, I realize that I can make something, right now. With my laptop actually on top of my lap, the options aren’t quite endless, but … Type on Type

  • Upstate NY Font

    I was late to join my local (Upstate NY) AIGA chapter, and even later to hop on the chapter’s Slack list. Deplorable, I know, but I tried to make up for it by proposing a collaboration: a group mashup typeface. Over 30 people contributed at least one letter, number, or symbol. I have never met … Upstate NY Font

  • Runfograph 2016

    I ran a lot over the past 12 months. More than ever, which was a surprise to me. I didn’t have a goal of running over 100 miles each month for a year straight, until I realized I had done so for 11 months. But more interesting than just the overall number were the details. Before I ran … Runfograph 2016

  • Laser Cut Birdfeeder

    In the fall of 2015 I created a birdfeeder using a single sheet of 24″ x 12″ birch plywood. I designed the three dimensional object in two dimensions using Illustrator, then laser cut the finished product at my local makerspace. I revised the design was about a dozen times, although every single feeder that I … Laser Cut Birdfeeder

  • Loomings

    A few years ago I had an idea to create ambient music from classic literature. The concept was simple: choose a piece of writing, remove every bit of punctuation, number, and letter other than A, B, C, D, E, F, and G, then play it. And that’s exactly what this is. I took a Loomings, … Loomings

  • Strength in Numbers

    If only everyone had paid 50¢ per download.It feels like not too long ago I wrote a similar blog post about hitting 1,000,000 free font downloads. A lot has happened since that was published in October of 2013. The number of documented downloads of my fonts (compiled from Font Squirrel, DaFont, and The League of … Strength in Numbers

  • Two Lists

    Things I’m Over Things I Could Use More Of I’ll probably change my mind about some of these, especially since this was all made using Google Chrome (but that doesn’t mean I like to use it). These lists are more for me than they are anyone else. Illustration from oldbookillustrations.com.

  • Seinfeld Nostalgia

    I got sucked into a bit of a 90s black hole when /r/typography shared a link to screenshots of every title shot from the show Seinfeld. Amazing.I’ve probably seen each episode two or three times as it was a household staple, and reruns were broadcast gratuitously. So my first few reactions today upon seeing this were pretty startling: The … Seinfeld Nostalgia

  • Adjacent

    When my friends at Adjacent asked me to take a few photos of their freshly updated space, I was happy to say “absolutely” and wise enough to bring another photographer with me. Allison, obviously. I have walked by the Adjacent studio a few times before, unknowingly, since it is in such a cool spot in … Adjacent

  • TRVOCM Remixes

    In 2012 I put out an instrumental album called The Return Voyage of Christopher Mackenzie (TRVOCM). The music is kind of wacky, but it is exactly what I wanted it to be: a bit of a concept album, a soundtrack for a movie that doesn’t exist, quiet. But I felt like totally making up new … TRVOCM Remixes

  • Grayscreens

    I used to love bright, busy, vibrant wallpaper/background on my phone. They were fun but made the locked view/home screen busy, especially at night, even with the brightness turned down. So for years I went with a solid black background and never changed it. Now I find myself drawn to subtle textures in dark shades … Grayscreens

  • Puerto Rico

    Vieques and El Yunque in the middle of winter. Sounds ideal. I need to make this a habit every January. The camera I brought with me? Olympus OM-D E-M5 with a 25mm (50 equivalent) lens. An iPhone for the panoramas. We ate all the mofongo we could and still wanted more. I gained freckles that … Puerto Rico

  • Jellyfish and Friends

    My son and I have been going to the Maritime Aquarium of Norwalk ever since my sister moved to that area over five years ago. My favorite room/exhibit has always been the jellyfish. This video is about three and a half minutes and I could easily watch these jellyfish for 30 or 40 minutes. It … Jellyfish and Friends

  • Ithaca Hackathon

    There was a lot going on in town yesterday, but I was able to stop by Singlebrook’s latest hackathon (hosted at their place, sponsored by many other local businesses). I didn’t have time to participate but I was able to take a bunch of photos, catch up with friends, and talk/listen to local innovative people. … Ithaca Hackathon

  • Laser Type

    A few days ago I saw this and got really excited: #twithaca this friday, come make paper creations on the laser cutter @IthacaGen http://t.co/O32IAEIe10 — Xanthe Matychak (@xanthm) December 1, 2014 Way earlier in the year I backed Ithaca Generator‘s IndieGogo project and have been following along with close interest ever since. My friend and … Laser Type

  • Mighty Macros!

    A lot of times I try to zoom out, or step back from something, to gain perspective. In this case I got in a close as I could. Closer than possible with my eyes. And as usual, the change in perspective was breathtaking. My yellow Pentax is approaching retirement. So in a panic I picked … Mighty Macros!

  • Southpaw Revisited

    I’ve used Southpaw quite a bit since Allison and I brought it to life earlier this year. Almost every day, at the Beer co. actually. In fact, it is already on two beer bottles, among many other things. Which is interesting. I have a tendency to only use one of my typefaces for a single … Southpaw Revisited

  • Pixel County Classics

    That’s right, I made these three pixel fonts in 2007. Flash was a big thing that I seemed to spend a bit of time with, and tiny text was huge (lol). Transparent PNGs were just beginning to hit the web, and if you didn’t want to use one of about 20 browser friendly fonts, you … Pixel County Classics

  • The Great White Hike

    In what could potentially become a regular thing, I took off to the mountains during the holidays. I was joined by one of my best dudes (who hiked this particular mountain in much nicer weather as part of his thru hike on the Appalachian trail). We left Maine early, in the snow, to arrive at … The Great White Hike

  • This is Giant

    I packed light, aside from the dog, and pitched a tent near the trail as the sun went down. Thunder and lightning kept me awake most of the night, but I suppose luck kept me dry since it never rained. By 5:30am I was up and too excited to lay around in a tent, so … This is Giant

  • Cloud Share

    When I manage to get off the ground I find myself amazed at the experience. Luckily I’ve been able to share the past few trips with my son (who I’m happy to say is equally impressed). It’s a shift in perspective that I cherish. The view is mesmerizing. The scale, humbling. And it’s, I hope, … Cloud Share

  • Zebes – Metroid Song

    Metroid has been on my mind lately. It started when my kiddo obtained Nintendo Land / WiiU and found the Metroid level, which begins with the gloriously beautiful theme from the original game. And yesterday I picked up a box of odds an ends that had been at a neighbor’s house for years which, to … Zebes – Metroid Song

  • Madison

    Day after Christmas and home for vacation along with my dudes? Let’s hike a mountain! Luckily, one of us (not me) basically lives at the trailhead in New Hampshire. And another one of us (again, not me) has hiked it before just passing through on his 2000 mile Appalachian trail completion . That said, it … Madison

  • Love for “A Book of Beards”

    Seriously. Justin James Muir takes a good photo. When he sent me a few sample portraits for his beard book, titled A Book of Beards, my (bearded) jaw dropped. He asked for my help in putting together a one page website. So I threw together a snappy experience in about seven days. Behold: bookofbeards.com The … Love for “A Book of Beards”

  • Up Mount Marcy

    “Also known by the Algonquin name Tahawus, meaning Cloud-Splitter.” That sounds like Mount Marcy. I’m not really hiking all 46 Adirondack high peaks and it seems like cheating a bit to do the tallest of them so early in my list. But here I am. Mount Marcy. The plan: hike 3 miles and drop gear … Up Mount Marcy

  • Ithaca Festival Parade

    Each year at the end of May all of Ithaca seems to come out for the Ithaca Festival parade! Sometimes it rains but this year we had beautiful weather. There’s no shortage of photos from this eccentric gathering though I’m happy to add mine to the pile. My kid makes a brief appearance below because … Ithaca Festival Parade

  • Centralia, PA

    I’m standing on what used to be Route 61, the now closed off southern path into Centralia, Pennsylvania. Underneath the road, and much of the old town, is a fire that started burning in the coal mines 50 years ago (May 1962). Temperatures in certain areas of the fire/mines exceed 1000 degrees, signs of which … Centralia, PA

  • The Return Voyage of Christopher Mackenzie

    I recently released an instrumental album that tells the story of a spaceman (whose ancestors originated on Earth) returning home. I, for better or for worse, created everything independently: I wrote and recorded the music, created the font used in the designs, took the photos, and made an album microsite site. And you know what? … The Return Voyage of Christopher Mackenzie