7 Layout Tips
Carl Shank • January 15, 2021
7 Layout Tips for Your Next Piece
How do I produce a newsletter that is inviting, eye-catching and easy to read? What are the time-honored rules of layout and design that will help me? This is a vast topic, to be sure, but here are seven (7) basic rules to give attention to for you to "look good" in print and digital media.
- Know where you are going. Have a good understanding of the goals and purpose of your piece. What do you want to accomplish through this piece? Here, "form" follows "function." Roger Parker in his Looking Good In Print notes: "There should be a logical reason for the way you employ every graphic tool. That tool should relate to the idea it expresses as well as the environment in which the final product will appear." (p. 4)
- Place the right fonts and graphics well. There are time-honored rules for mixing and using different fonts, or typefaces, in a piece. Most print pieces use a serif (with "feet") font for the main text and a sans-serif (without "feet") font for headlines. This rule has been used successfully for ages, but digital use has relaxed the rules somewhat. The issue here is readability. What should stand out, stands out, and what should be read for information is clear. Clarity, organization and simplicity should rule.
- Guide the reader through your piece. "The design of that map [a reading roadmap] should follow the readers' natural tendency to read an advertisement or publication from upper left to lower right." (p. 6)
- Use plenty of what is called "white space." Don't try to crowd into a piece all that can or even should be said. Separate headings from text, points from one another, and use sufficient white space to separate graphics from textual elements. If it looks "crowded" it probably is crowded.
- Don't try to "show off" in your piece. This is not "art for art's sake" or to show your ability to mix colors and fonts and graphics or to display your talents. This is to get the point across in the most direct and pleasing way possible.
- Pay attention to spelling and grammar. Probably the most overlooked and underrated truth about many newsletters is that they ignore proper spelling and the right use of grammatical constructs. Buy a "style manual" and consult it for proper sentence, paragraph and topical styles, especially if you footnote something. By the way — be especially careful of plagiarizing. This is unfortunately a major "sin" in church and ministry communications. Give credit to where credit is due.
- Use spell checkers and layout helps. Microsoft and Adobe and many other publishers have publishing helps and advice which you should give attention to and use and adapt for your needs.
Hopefully, these introductory points will help your publications shine!
Successful Layout & Design
Mid-Century Modernism & Corporate Typography (1945–1980) Designers like Jan Tschichold were foundational to many of the Swiss design principles. This style evolved from Constructivist, De Stijl and Bauhaus design principles, particularly the ideas of grid systems, sans-serif type and minimalism. Emerging in Switzerland during the 1940s and 1950s, this typography, also known as the International Typographic Style, directly responded to the type chaos of Dada and the stylization of Art Deco. The International Typographic Style (or the Swiss Style) in the 1950s and 1960s focused on grid systems, objective communication and sans-serifs. Key figures were Josef Muller-Brockmann, Emil Ruder and Armin Hofmann. The Swiss style emphasized readability, visual harmony and universality. Clarity, objectivity and functionality were key components. Contributors included Max Miedinger, creator of the Helvetica typeface (1957 by Miedinger & Eduard Hoffmann), and Adrian Frutiger, creator of the Univers typeface in 1957, and Hermann Zapf, creator of Optima in 1958. Swiss style became the dominant graphic language of postwar corporate identity. Other Blogs I have written noted the development of Helvetica ( “Helvetica’s Journey” July 13, 2024 ). Adrian Frutiger (1928–2015) was a Swiss typeface designer whose career spanned hot metal, phototypesetting and digital typesetting eras. Frutiger’s most famous designs, Univers, Frutiger and Avenir, are landmark sans-serif families spanning the three main genres of sans-serif typefaces —neogrotesque, humanist and geometric. Univers is a clear, objective form suitable for typesetting of longer texts in the sans-serif style. Starting from old sketches from his student days at the School for the Applied Arts in Zurich, he created the Univers type family. Folded into the Linotype collection in the 1980s, Univers has been updated to Univers Next, available with 59 weights. This lasting legible font is suitable for almost any typographic need. It combines well with Old Style fonts like Janson, Meridien, and Sabon, Slab Serif fonts like Egyptienne F, Script and Brush fonts like Brush Script, Blackletter fonts like Duc De Berry, Grace, San Marco and even some fun fonts. Univers is not a “free” font and must be purchased from Linotype. Other faces by Frutiger are Frutiger and Avenir. These fonts were designed to be legible, versatile and anonymous, avoiding stylistic “noise” to focus on clear communication. Swiss type used a systematized approach to typography, enabling consistent spacing, alignment and hierarchy, crucial for multilingual and complex layouts. Typography was seen as part of a harmonious, modern composition. Generous white space facilitated clarity and focus.
Advances in Typography: Twentieth Century A Historical Sketch (Part 1 ) Early Twentieth Century: Form Follows Function Bauhaus Precursor The Deutscher Werkbund (German Work Foundation, est. 1907, Munich) was a pivotal German association of artists, architects, designers, and industrialists that advanced rational, industrial design and laid the foundation for modernist sans-serifs. The Werkbund emphasized functionalism, simplicity, honest use of materials, and alignment with industrial production, rejecting unnecessary ornamentation and anticipating the principle “form follows function.” Its purpose was to elevate German industrial products by integrating artistic excellence, technical innovation, and industrial manufacturing, summarized by the motto: “From work to form”—good design as a cultural and economic asset. Key founders included Hermann Muthesius, Peter Behrens, Fritz Schumacher, and Karl Schmidt. Their goals were to enhance everyday objects through quality design, foster a unified visual culture in Germany, partner artists with industrial manufacturers, promote standardization and modern production techniques, and compete internationally in design excellence. The Werkbund is recognized as a precursor to the Bauhaus and modern industrial design. Notable members included Walter Gropius, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, and Peter Behrens. The organization established principles of functional, simplified forms, standardized mass production, and the concept of design as a cultural force. They hosted influential exhibitions, notably the 1914 Cologne Exhibition, as well as publishing journals and defining standards for high-quality design. Futura & Geometric Modernism (1920s–1930s) As we saw in my last post, between 1500 and 1900 typography evolved from Renaissance humanist forms to industrial mass production and artistic revival. Old style typefaces (like Garamond) moved to Transitional faces (like Baskerville) to Modern/Didone faces (like Didot and Bodoni) to Industrial display types (fat faces, slab serifs, sans serifs) to the Arts & Crafts revivals. Art Nouveau was a reaction against the academicism, eclecticism and historicism of nineteenth century architecture and decorative art. The new art movement had its roots in Britain, in the floral designs of William Morris, and in the Arts and Crafts movement founded by the pupils of Morris.
