Ploni and Ploni Yad – Twin Fonts

Ploni and Ploni-Yad are twin fonts that complement each other. They were designed and developed simultaneously, and function as independent fonts, but when used together they are a perfect match

Ploni is a basic geometric, neutral sans font with full support in 146 Latin languages. Ploni Yad is a cheery and flashy Hebrew font created through the combination of cursive and print. They both share similar anatomical elements that make them "twin fonts": first, both are based on the same shape – circular and basic sans serif letters. Second, both have 8 weights identical in size and thickness.

Since they are "twins", letters, words, and sentences can be used interchangeably to create infinite combinations (examples below). Each of the fonts has a slightly different character: Ploni is a "neutral" font, while Ploni Yad is an "active" font. One is quiet and respectful while the other is flashy and loud. Ploni will not take over a design you create with it, while Ploni Yad will add a lot of joy and fun to your designs.

When designing the Ploni font, my goal was to create a basic curvy sans font. During the six years of development, I designed countless sketches – some with solid and neutral letters and others with odd, strange, and flashy letters. Since Ploni is meant to be a neutral font, the odd letters were discarded. But, it was hard for me to say goodbye to them. Some treaded the thin line between print letters and cursive letters. When I realized that the odd letters – which were left out of Ploni – form a new font that wants to break out, I began to use it as the basis for creating a new font: Ploni Yad. Thus, two fonts were born from the same workflow. Twin Fonts.

Weights:
Ploni and Ploni Yad have the same weights and can be used together perfectly in a wide range of settings and combinations:

 

Short Paragraphs
Although Ploni Yad is not intended for writing running texts, its weights Regular to Bold can be used for short, graceful paragraphs – in size 12 or higher. Ploni, on the other hand, serves as a running text font even in very small sizes. Here you can see them functioning side by side in short blocks of text. For optimal viewing – see the examples (links to the PDF files at the bottom).

 

Incorporating words as part of a text section
Ploni Yad can attract attention when used to emphasize a few words within a text block written in Ploni. Note that this combination is less suitable for highlighting single words, because the letter variations may not be sufficiently distinct unless you alter the weight or color to pronounce the change.

 

Word Combinations
The weights of Ploni and Ploni Yad have the same thickness, so you can use them interchangeably in the same sentence to create refreshing combinations. Ploni Yad adds some spice and looks "fun" while Ploni offers calm and balance.

Rearranging Letters
Want to replace a Ploni “ח” with a Ploni Yad “ח”? No problem. You can switch individual letters and create an infinite amount of surprising combinations. Here are two examples:

Combining letters and words from Ploni English and Ploni Yad Hebrew
Ploni Yad is a Hebrew font, while Ploni is a bilingual font that has full support in Hebrew, English, and 140 Latin languages. Since they match each other – you can actually combine Ploni Yad characters with all Ploni English characters – numbers, symbols, punctuation marks, etc.

 

 

Links

Ploni
font page
specimen

Ploni Yad
font page
specimen