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When two typefaces are set in the same point size, one often looks bigger than the other. Bigger x-heights, introduced in the twentieth century, make a typeface appear larger. Differences in line weight and character width also affect the letters' apparent scale.

Mrs Eaves, designed by Zuzana Licko in 1996, rejects the modern appetite for supersized x-heights. The font, inspired by the eighteenth-century designs of John Baskerville, is named after Sarah Eaves, Baskerville's mistress, housekeeper, and collaborator. The couple lived together for sixteen years before marrying in 1764.