VISUAL OS 028 — Overtime Mascots

{
"style_name": "Overtime Mascots",
"style_slug": "rubber-hose-appliance-mascot-poster",
"canvas": "9:16 tall poster, aged cream paper #F4E9CF, soft print grain, light ink misregistration",
"color": {
"inks": ["cream #F4E9CF", "red-orange #E05A2B", "mustard #E8B33A", "mid blue #3E6FB0", "ink black #1C1814"],
"rule": "five-ink retro print with halftone dots in the shadows; one extra hue allowed ONLY when the character itself is that color (cactus green)"
},
"character": {
"base": "one everyday object brought to life in 1930s rubber-hose style — skinny black limbs, white or yellow gloves, oversized sneakers or boots",
"face_rule": "the face is drawn ON the object's own surface — the washer's front panel, the paper in the typewriter's carriage; round eyes, big open smile, one character family across the whole set",
"performance": "the mascot performs its own function as a sport or a show — jogging a spin cycle, vacuuming a comet trail, hammering its own keys",
"costume": "exactly one performer accessory: sweatband + wristbands / bandana + white boots + flower crown / glass bubble helmet / work gloves",
"debris": "the job's output orbits the character — flying socks and suds, music notes, smiling stars and bolts, punctuation and keycaps"
},
"typography": {
"title": "two words in fat bulbous rounded caps, cream fill, red-orange outline with a hard bevel shadow, letters bouncing on an arc; placed top OR bottom",
"pun_rule": "the title must read two ways — the machine's function and an attitude",
"bursts": "exactly two per poster, opposite corners: a yellow starburst holding the boast, a spiky blue or red burst holding the shout",
"border": "red-orange checkered strips along two edges, breaking for the art; four-point sparkles, crescent moons and dust puffs in the gaps"
},
"design_rules": [
"one character per poster, mid-motion, feet barely touching the ground",
"the object must stay recognizable at thumbnail size — face and costume never hide the silhouette",
"boast and shout never share a corner",
"no gradients; depth comes from bevel shadows and halftone only"
],
"swap_variables": {
"object": "washing machine / potted cactus / vacuum cleaner / typewriter",
"pun_title": "SPIN OUT / PRICKLY BEAT / SPACE SUCKS / TYPE WILD",
"boast": "SO FRESH / STAY SHARP / CLEAN ORBIT / MAKE NOISE",
"shout": "FULL SPEED / ALL NIGHT / GO GO GO / HIT IT",
"debris": "laundry + suds / notes + sparks / stars + bolts / punctuation + keycaps",
"costume": "sweatband set / bandana + boots / bubble helmet / yellow gloves"
}
}