Apple Snail (Pomacea diffusa) Tote Bag Design
Back in fall of 2020, I finished a personal project where I created a custom design for a few canvas tote bags. This came about when I was trying to look for a new bag at the time and the creative freedom to be able to put together a design based on something I am passionate about inspired this project.
My goal was to come up with a design that appealed to my personal interests and since my family also tends to use reusable bags on a regular basis, I definitely wanted to print out additional ones to be able to give to them as gifts.
Disciplines: Illustration, Surface Design
Tools: Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Lightroom Classic
Printing Service:
Concepting
Prior to sketching, I did a bit of free writing to get as many ideas down on paper as possible. Something I knew right at the start was that I wanted to incorporate snails into the design.
Snails are my favorite animal and it has always been difficult for me to find them printed or designed on things like clothing, accessories, stationery, etc. After brainstorming, that was the main subject I decided to focus on and move forward with. For the type of snail, I went with the freshwater species, Pomacea diffusa a.k.a. the mystery snail or what I primarily called them at the time, the apple snail.
Editing & Sketching
Based on my free write, I created a list of 4 different ideas and chose 3 to make thumbnail sketches off of.
Initially for the illustration, I wanted the line work for the snails to be done in a monoline style. However, it was recommended to me that thicker lines would work better so I decided to go for both and vary the line width by making them thick to thin. It also helped in further emphasizing the snail’s physical features.Idea 1 was imagined as a combination mark of image and type with the snail’s common and scientific names included as a part of the design. Because I would call them “apple snails” more so than “mystery snails”, the former was used for the sketches and refined comps. There was also some initial confusion on what was the correct scientific name. In some sketches I switched between using Pomacea bridgesii and diffusa but upon doing additional research, I found that the specific species I was basing these designs off of were indeed Pomacea diffusa.
As for the others, idea 2 would be more of an abstract approach with contour line sketches and loosely drawn colored shapes. I played around with adding other elements such as fruits and vegetables snails enjoy eating as well as monstera leaves to create a more naturalistic and contemporary look. Finally for idea 3, it was meant to be a sequence of illustrations trying to create a sense of rhythm and movement in how and where the snails were placed.
Color & Type
With each refined comp, I kept the palettes to 2-3 colors as I felt I could find a way to work within those limitations to my advantage while keeping to a budget. In exploring potential palettes, I created alternate color options for the first 3 comps. Based on feedback I received, I was encouraged to try and stick to warmer color schemes, with the addition of cold colors like green. But for comp 3, cooler shades of blue and purple were also incorporated.
Comp 1 was the only one with text as a part of its design. Bebas Neue by Ryoichi Tsunekawa of Dharma Type was picked for the text for how well it lent itself in both large headings and smaller subheadings along with its eye-catching, clean and geometric appearance.
Final Design
For the final design, I chose comp 1. As much as I loved how the other concepts developed, I really enjoyed the more straightforward simplicity of this design. I’m very open when it comes to my love for snails, especially this species and this idea felt right in line in displaying the sense of fanaticism I have towards them, with how both the common and scientific names are stated and presented in large text and the placement of the snail front and center showing off its unique physical features.
One thing I would consider changing is the common name as “mystery snail” is the more generally used and preferred name when referring to Pomacea diffusa, as “apple snail” is usually reserved for the larger sized members of the same family. While not necessarily incorrect to call Pomacea diffusa “apple snails” as well, calling them “mystery snails” helps in making that distinction much clearer. If I were to reprint these bags, I may replace the common name to better reflect the species more accurately.
For the choice in bag type, I picked canvas tote bags due to their strength and durability.
In the future, I would love to revisit the unused comps and possibly have those designs printed on bags as well.
