10 Retro Fonts, Illustrations and Websites
I’ve always been fascinated by how artists create that authentic retro look and although its not quite the fad it once was it still has its place for certain brands. However designing a retro theme for a website is harder than it looks and its very easy to end up with a complete mish-mash of styles if you’re not careful. Luckily there is plenty of resources on the web to help you get started so I’ve compiled the following list of fonts, illustrations and website examples to help you get on the road to retro stardom.
Retro Fonts

DaFont - Superb website which has many retro fonts available for free download on MAC and PC. I’ve lost track of how many great fonts I’ve downloaded from this site.

Font Diner - Plenty of great fonts for free download here and the site is also a great example of that retro look.
Retro Clipart and Illustrations

Havana Street - Features some great retro illustrations and also has a free download so you can check out the quality of the artwork available.

Retro Art Ad - Large digital collection of authentic advertising artwork from the 30’s, 40’s and 50’s. Includes over 1800 images for purchase.
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Pixel Decor - Ok its more 60’s and 70’s but its still a great range of retro icons, desktops and patterns.
Retro Colours

Art Deco Colours Combinations - A guide to Art Deco era color palettes.
Retro Websites

Altoids - A wonderfully atmospheric website that really gets the retro look just right.

Rejected Robot - Highly creative design with a sense of humour. This is one website that stands out from the crowd. The designer also has some great work in the portfolio.

WebDesigner.ro - I love the look of this one. Hints of communist propaganda, some great fifties fonts all presented in a clean and effective design.

Legendary Aircraft - This one just had to have a retro design didn’t it? Being a bit of a warbird fan I just couldn’t resist adding this one.
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March 5th, 2008 at 2:35 pm
It seems to me that I’ve been noticing retro-looking fonts on TV lately, like the one for the title on the series “Knights of Prosperity” and I think also on the Toyota Yaris commercial.
Have you noticed a trend in this?
March 5th, 2008 at 4:47 pm
The “Art Deco Colours Combinations” is pointing to a dafont.com url. I’m guessing this isn’t correct?
Otherwise, nice collection. Thanks…
March 5th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
[...] A great collection of resources for creating that authentic retro look. [...]
March 10th, 2008 at 11:47 pm
Thanks for spotting that bad url Shad. I’ve corrected it now.
April 1st, 2008 at 4:45 pm
Oh snap! Rejected Robot looks effing awesome!
Thanks for the post.