Another “influence” is the love of zippers and timelines filled with extraneous tidbits. As mentioned earlier, Vitals had a kind of timeline device for page numbers that was fun and over-the-top informative—a kind of “you are here now” directory. Cookie uses that kind of formula in its TOC. It looks terrific and is plenty useful as well, and there is a similar sensibility at work here.

Some of the more distinctive bits about Cookie are the wonderful logo and custom fonts that design director Kirby Rodriguez developed with typographer Joshua Darden. Darden worked on the original logo that Rodriguez had inherited from a previous designer to make it more legible. As a result, the multicolored letters are fun and loose but they read well. The sans serif font is called Freight. It’s a visual cousin of Gill Sans but has more personality and quirks drawn into it.

Another distinctive typographic touch is the font Biscuit, that Darden developed for the folios. They jog from page to page and add to the playfulness of the pacing. I wonder, however, why these gorgeous page numbers are used on the opening of department pages and not on the continuing pages, and I get a little confused with the slugging system in the front of book of Cookie. I’m curious about the thinking behind the big O rubric at work on opening pages of departments; the continuing pages drop the O and add a new tweak for good measure. These kinds of shifts are “inside” designer stuff but can be difficult for readers’ navigation.

I love lots of elements in Cookie, but mostly I love the photography. People feel real and warm and modern and beautiful. It reminds me of Jann Wenner’s early photography for Family Life, art directed by Don Morris and Laura Eisman. The photos portray young families that look chic and real. Rodriquez, coming from a fashion background at W, likes to shoot with people who don’t ordinarily shoot kids. He’s getting a fresh approach from fashion photographers like Tierney Gearon or portrait photographers like Mary Ellen Marks. Exuberant photography coupled with a “held back” typographic style make for a winning combination here.

NO PLAIN JANE HERE
So where is this unsung hero, Paul Ritter, now? He’s over at Jane magazine, doing some interesting stuff. Not always successful, in my book, but interesting.

At Jane, Ritter is not shy about his typographic choices. His very distinctive ’70s-inspired serif font, Belucian, works sometimes, but not always. Ritter says, “My whole thing with Jane is to make it very brash, direct, in your face and simple but with some subtle twists, like the constant mix of serif and sans, or the mix of Belucian (sex) and Mrs Eaves (puritan)—things nobody will ever notice but that I think make up the overall feel of the magazine.”

The good news: Belucian is a brander. It’s very Jane now. The bad news: Its ascenders are tall, and as a result, department opening pages are often obscured by photography. Ritter tucks the type behind photos. Cool, I guess, but it’s difficult to read. Also, leading in the magazine can be very uneven—even on covers. Some unsightly details go by.

But Ritter swings for a bigger picture. I like the concept of all features subscribing to the same very simple, very forthright layout. Does it always work? No. But it’s an interesting idea. And it’s anything but precious—the absolute opposite of Blueprint. He’s getting some credit in design circles for his “big face” idea on the cover. The originality of this conceit is questionable. Has no one been paying attention to Allure, which has been using the big face idea forever? Or Seventeen under Altoosa? What folks should be talking about more is the new photographic approach.

It’s fresh and very special. It’s the photography at Jane under Ritter’s regime that has taken the biggest turn. The old Jane had a very uneven approach to its fashion portfolio. I would feel like I was reading one book all through the departments and feature well, and an entirely different book when I’d get to the fashion pages—full of the usual leaping femmy females, hair and filmy dresses aflutter, and shot in uninteresting ways.

Not now. Now, it’s all the same Jane reader—a sassy 20-something, irreverent, nature-loving woman who is very much in touch with her style. She just wants to see fun, interesting fashion. It’s sexy and direct. As it turns out, he’s using the same photographers he used at Vitals. Ritter has brought his personal connections to the magazine—people like Michael Thompson and Carter Smith. This shift has been Ritter’s biggest success.

But I have other quibbles: The cartoon style callouts used throughout the FOB are relentless—the “energy” of all those colored butting boxes over collaged photos make me exhausted by the time I reach the well but, I remind myself, I am not this reader. My type nerd side would love to see Ritter work out the details of his typography and take the whole design effort the extra mile. But Jane looks like fun. It looks like the team over there is having a party. They’re creating something unique in the market.

Ritter says, “I really feel we can do something entirely original in the American market here.” I hope they succeed. I’d hate to see this latest effort of Ritter’s left as fodder for the rest of us to feed on in coming years.