Renovaré

Style Guide

How Renovaré looks, sounds, and shows up — kept short enough to actually use.

Voice & Tone

We write like a thoughtful friend.

Voice

Speak to the reader as "you." Speak about the community as "we" / "us." Invitations, not commands: "Join Email Community," not "Sign up now."

Tone

Unhurried, with weathered hope and serious joy. Avoid clichés and forced use of Bible verses. Use exclamation marks rarely.

Example

"Get Renovaré Weekly Each Friday — Curated Christian wisdom + Renovaré updates."

Writing Rules

Small mechanics that keep copy consistent.

Casing

Title Case headings, buttons, and nav. Sentence case for body copy.

RENOVARÉ

Always write Renovaré with the accent. (On Mac press option-e then e.)

Chicago Manual of Style

Renovaré uses the Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS) as its default writing style guide. If in doubt, ask Kim.

For the complete guide, visit renovare.org/stylemanual

Color Palette

Evergreen leads. Warm neutrals carry. Accents punctuate.

Click any swatch to copy its hex code.

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Typography

A serif that speaks, a sans that serves.

Kepler Display — headlines, pull quotes, big moments
A with‑God life.
Kepler — articles, prose, letters (designer's discretion)

For longform writing and formal correspondence, Kepler brings a literate, unhurried read — reach for it when the moment calls for something more considered than DM Sans.

DM Sans — everything else: UI, labels, captions (400–700)

Curated Christian wisdom and Renovaré updates, delivered with the same calm and literate restraint as everything else we make.

Regular Medium Semibold Bold
Imagery

Warm and human.

Two wells to draw from: classic artwork that feels alive rather than stuffy, and original photography with genuine warmth. Reach for stock rarely, and only when it feels completely natural.

Classic artwork example — Wild Geese Settling
Not stuffy

Paintings, illuminated manuscripts, and details from the tradition — chosen for the life in them, not their gravity. A cropped detail often reads warmer than the full frame.

Original photography example — Renovaré Institute gathering
With warmth

Real people, real light, unhurried moments — books, hands, tables, gatherings. Natural daylight and candlelight over studio flash.

Do
  • Favor warm, natural light and true-to-life color
  • Let images breathe with generous surrounding space
  • Choose classic art for its liveliness, not its solemnity
Don't
  • No cold, high-tech, or heavily filtered imagery
  • Avoid obvious stock — posed handshakes, staged "teams"
  • Don't crowd images or over-saturate them
The Brushstroke

Our signature quiet texture.

Hand-painted gray strokes layered behind headlines and across dark footers. Always mix-blend-multiply at low opacity (~5–50%) — a faint horizon, not a graphic element.

Behind a headline
On a dark footer
Do
  • Keep opacity low so it reads as texture, not shape
  • Use multiply on light grounds, screen on deep evergreen
  • Let it drift slowly on scroll for a gentle, organic feel
Don't
  • Don't use it at full opacity or as a bold graphic
  • Avoid recoloring; overlay it instead
  • Don't stack multiple strokes into a busy composition
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