Valentype 2013 | The Winners

Before we reveal the winners, allow me to remind everyone that strictly speaking Valentype is not so much a pure design contest. We asked for love declarations, and this was of primary concern for the five jury members. To be honest, personally I consider a simple "I love you because you're beautiful" a cop-out. So I asked the jury to favour wit and inventiveness. A well-designed image was a bonus, but whoever managed to cleverly use the typeface name, its concept or design, the general perception of the type style etc. received a good score. Also creatively playing with the general idea of a Valentine's note or love declaration was a clear plus.

Unlike two years ago I decide to shake up the jury a little. Because I didn't want it to be a boys-only club anymore, I invited two winners of the last edition. Designer Tiffany Wardle de Sousa a.k.a. Typegirl and Swiss graphic and type designer Nina Stössinger joined FontFont marketing director Ivo Gabrowitsch, FontShop USA type expert David Sudweeks, and myself. This means I was joined by two men and two women, two FontShop people and two non-FontShop, two Americans and two Europeans. Each one of us compiled a Top 10, and the added scores resulted in five clear winners – although numbers 6 and 7 were very close this time. Here they are, in no particular order (chronologically):

Those that say first love is blind

at best, must be

insipid tim'rous fools.

One glance upon your well proportion'd lines,

my heart was drawn

by your magnetic pull.

You fill my mind, no matter where I go

your face appears,

Oh Dax I love you so!

And yet I fear…

~

Days pass by, months stretch to years,

I wait alone

for smallest love returned.

Am I the fool to shed my ready tears,

about a love

so likely to be spurned?

My heart is fixed. In faithful tender tone,

I will be blind

to Serif and Didone.

Oh Dax, be mine?

~

Life would be a different place

with you, my love,

to aid in each design.

Your worthy form could lay a page with grace,

your words, I know

would better any line.

Twas meant to be – my heart is sure of this,

for Cupid's bow

has spoken not amiss…

… Dax, Romeo.

9 |Samalah Gray(Marlborough, New Zealand) loves FF Dax

25 |Ruben David Marques(Leiria, Portugal) loves FF Quadraat

36 |Eva-Lotta Lamm(London, UK) loves Fakir

50 |Laura Yates(Paris, France) loves Fedra Serif B

52 |Florian Fecher(Würzburg, Germany) loves Vinter

Honorable mentions go to Ruben David Marques' beautifully handwritten love letter to Skolar and Cristo Aleister's dark and strikingly designed love declaration with a twist for Priori Acute. The undisputed winner with double the score of the next in the list is Eva-Lotta Lamm's animated GIF which we found witty, cute and really nicely drawn.

Congratulations to the five winners; send us an e-mail detailing what four weights of the typeface you wish to receive, and we'll get back to you with instructions.

Thanks to everyone for participating. We've had a few entries less than in 2011, but I removed the ones that couldn't contend due to various technical reasons, and personally I think the overall quality improved. I am pretty sure we'll have another Valentype contest next year. Until then, keep on loving type.