Inspired by the look and feel of Rubbabu toys, design of the Water World themed play mat for kids featured a minimalistic illustration of a (personal) ocean with a beach.
Background and Purpose
International toy brand Rubbabu creates a wide range of safe, intuitive, eco-friendly and pleasantly different toys for kids. Made from natural rubber foam, the toys are characterised by their curvy shapes, bright colours and soft, tactile feel. (Also see Rubbabu logo design).
The company had created a lovely set of toys on Water World theme, consisting of a boat, crocodile, dolphin, frog, sea snake, shark and a tortoise. The toys were to be bundled with a play mat to constitute a Water World play set. Meant for kids two years and above, the play set aimed to not only encourage a fun, playing experience, but to also help kids develop motor and cognition skills.
The Challenge
Design of the Water World play mat was commissioned by the company in 2009. The main challenge or constraint for the designer was to create an appealing and interesting layout using seven flat colours, of which five colours (Magenta, Green, Orange, Sky Blue and Black) were already defined by the Rubbabu logo. So, only two additional colours could be used owing to limitations of screen printing and cost factors.
Inspiration and Design Rationale
Inspiration for the playmat design treatment came from the toys themselves. Curvy shapes and soft feel of Rubbabu toys were translated by the designer into a minimalistic and playful vector illustration. It looked like a mini, personal ocean with a beach and featured colourful shapes of some of the toys from the play set. The 36 x 36 inch play mat layout had ample space for a kid to sit on and it was hoped that the graphic elements on it would help to fuel kids’ imagination.
Apart from the five given (brand or logo) colours, the two other colours added to the palette were a ‘beach’ pale yellow and a ‘tree trunk’ brown.
Look and Feel
The final illustration appeared vibrant, pleasant, soft and friendly. It also subtly reinforced Rubbabu’s identity.
Technical Notes
Upon approval of the layout, artwork was submitted to the client by the designer in vector format. It was screen printed in seven colours on thick pieces of cloth, using safe, non-toxic inks.
Photo Credits
Photographs of toys courtesy Rubbabu.
