The Story of the 'Almost Water' Sticker
The very first spark was a burst of laughter in front of a T-shirt.
“Water” under a beer mug. — The 'Almost Water' T-shirt.
Whether at a hospital kiosk or a hot spring lobby, someone always smiles at the register.
“The contents are water” — with those words, strangers feel just a little bit closer.
One day, a grandmother waiting to pay said to me,
“I want to get one for my grandchild, but the sizing is tricky. If it were a sticker, I could hand them out to everyone.”
On another day, amidst the sunrise at Izunuma, a fisherman laughed while tapping his cooler box.
“It would be perfect if I could stick an 'Almost Water' label here. I could say, 'The box is just soft drinks today'.”
— “A form that lets you carry laughter with you.”
That thought lit a small flame somewhere in my heart.
The first prototype went astray starting with the size selection.
At 7 centimeters, it was cute but hard to read. At 10 centimeters, it felt a bit too pushy.
While holding up paper templates next to the register, I followed the 'first glance' of the customers passing by.
45mm × 59mm. The corners are rounded, and the mug's outline is neither too thick nor too thin.
I finally arrived at a shape where the 'punchline' lands in the 'five seconds before checkout'.
Next was the durability worthy of 'Almost Water'.
The humidity in a hot spring changing room, the water droplets on a bottle after a sauna,
The dawn at Izunuma, the coldness of a frost-covered handrail.
We repeatedly wetted, wiped, and reapplied the prototypes over and over.
The surface is water-resistant laminate, and the color is a 'white that is easy to read' even from a distance.
I adjusted the outline of the mug by 0.1mm at a time, deciding on a thickness that wouldn't break down whether viewed from near or far.
There was also a small debate over whether to finish it with a matte or gloss texture.
“Gloss makes photos pop,” vs. “No, matte blends into everyday life better.”
In the end, we simply chose the look that made 'Almost Water' stand out the best.
That the context wouldn't be lost even when light hits it. That you could 'smirk' when you picked it up.
That was the yardstick for our judgment all along.
The day before the launch, I lined up the sticker samples on the table.
Smartphones, personal bottles, PCs, cooler boxes, tackle boxes.
On any of them, 'The contents are water' properly becomes a joke.
I felt as if the conversation that had been happening with the T-shirt had now appeared in pocket size.
And then, the first day arrived.
At the hospital kiosk, that grandmother came by again.
“One for my grandchild, and one for the doctor while I'm at it.”
On the embankment at Izunuma, a regular customer stuck one on his bottle, took a photo, and said,
“It's 'Almost Water' today since I'm driving,” and left with a laugh.
I felt that a small handle for conversation had been attached to the edge of someone's daily life.
— The 'Almost Water' Sticker.
A small banner born to take the laughter of the T-shirt anywhere.
Every time you stick it on, the same question comes flying.
“Is it really water?”
Each time, the world softens by half a step.
This is how the second version was made.
So that laughter knows no bounds. So that connections can reach far and wide.
Today, somewhere, a new 'The contents are water' is beginning.
I will always remember that small burst of laughter born in front of the T-shirt that day.
“The size doesn't fit, but if it's a sticker, I can hand them out” — the grandmother's words.
“Let's go with 'Almost Water' on driving days” — that smile at the fishing spot.
Those small voices gathered together and became the 'Almost Water' Sticker.
Every time you stick it on, you can get a little closer to someone you've just met.
Even on busy days, it creates a half-step where the heart can soften.
May this small banner be part of your day today, too.
Thank you for the connection. I will continue to nurture it with care.