Cards VF delivers 96 typographic styles in a single variable font file

When Karol Mularczyk set out to design Cards VF for The Designers Foundry, he had Swiss modernism on his mind – but with a twist. Rather than creating another clinical grotesque, the multi-disciplinary designer wanted to explore what would happen when the functional backbone of Swiss type design met contemporary geometric sensibilities. The result is a neo-grotesque that maintains modernist discipline whilst injecting personality through carefully considered details. Cards VF spans an impressive 96 styles across six widths and eight weights, each with matching italics, all housed within a single variable font file. This comprehensive range gives designers unprecedented flexibility, allowing them to ‘deal out’ exactly what they need for any project – a concept that directly inspired the typeface’s name. “The name comes from the idea of versatility and modularity, much like a deck of cards, where each card is distinct yet works seamlessly as part of a set,” Mularczyk explains. The typeface’s most distinctive feature lies in its precisely engineered ink traps, which serve dual purposes across different applications. “The ink traps were carefully calibrated during the drawing process rather than added at the end,” notes Mularczyk. “At small sizes, they counteract ink gain or pixel blur, keeping the shapes crisp; at larger sizes, they become graphic features that catch the eye and give the font its distinctive rhythm.” This technical consideration transforms functional necessity into aesthetic opportunity, creating visual interest that scales appropriately with size.