We all want to be smiling when we go but if you’re “going” at one of Okinawa, Japan’s cute and creative public restrooms, grinning comes with the territory.

Flickr member Okinawa Soba (Rob) has a thing for public restrooms – not that there’s anything wrong with that – and he also has a camera. The combination is unexpectedly serendipitous, though the photographer deserves full credit for employing the latter with great discretion when exploring the former.

Based in Okinawa, a southern Japanese island prefecture rich in culture, history and tragedy, the photographer snapped most of his posted public restroom shots over the past decade. Take the so-called “Tangerine Toilet”, photographed in late 2015 and located in the mountain village of Izumi. Some say the restroom is modeled after a pumpkin but unlike our familiar Halloween jack o’lantern squash, Japanese “kabocha” pumpkins are only orange on the inside.

Angler of the Dangler

That’s NOT water under the bridge – it just sounds like it. This decidedly fishy public toilet is located in Nago, a city of just over 60,000 in northern Okinawa. Like many of the island’s mimetic public restrooms, this koi-shaped toilet appears rather sun-faded and soot-streaked, indicating appreciable age. Like most of Japan’s public restrooms in general, however, it’s well-maintained and surprisingly clean on the inside.

The Write Stuff

Situated near a small park in Okinawa City, this pencil-stub-shaped public restroom reflects some of the cultural norms of the island in that the urinal is doorless while the toilet (an old-fashioned “squat” model) lies behind a stout metal door. Photographer Okinawa Soba (Rob) snapped the literary loo in April of 2015.

Smells Finny

This gorgeous public restroom located in Okinawa’s Awase district is THE place to pee, er, be if you’re in the neighborhood and hear nature’s call. Heck, we’d visit it whether nature’s calling or not! Designed with color-coded entrance ways for each gender, this bright and beautiful public toilet features both traditional and modern commodes to suit any preference.

Next Page - Click Below to Read More:
Going In Style Cute Creative Public Restrooms Of Okinawa

Plastic safety cones have become so ubiquitous along Japan‘s roadways, unusual measures have been taken to ensure they stand out amongst the crowd.

“Safety in numbers”… a self-defeating term if there ever was when it comes to Japan’s countless cohorts of conical warning signs. They’re everywhere it seems: parking lots, construction zones, anywhere the ground is disturbed and could possibly pose a hazard to drivers and/or pedestrians.

If these cones were all standard Safety Orange, our senses would tune them out as visual background noise. What to do? If you’re Japan, you deviate from the norm in oft-unexpected, cute and quirky ways… like these endearing Mount Fuji cones captured by Asagiri Web, Setsugekka, One Sometimes Futari, Daily Model Railroad Room, and Illumination Designer.

Smile When You Safety That

Is it somewhat incongruous for warning markers to sport goofy grins? Yes, yes it is, but this is Japan so all bets are off. Flickr user Martin Bryant (MartinSFP) and blogger Cat (Overtake) Chan spotted these smiling sunflower cones making light of a serious situation.

Flower Power

At the Sakuragi shrine in Chiba prefecture (east of Tokyo) it’s all cherry blossoms, all the time. The theme extends even to the temple’s parking lot where cherry blossom-wrapped safety cones add a note of scenic harmony. Kudos to blogger “Drawer of his Head” for noticing the cute cone in October of 2015 and proving one does not have to blend in, in order to stand out.

Size Matters

Go big or go home, and that goes for safety cones, to the chagrin of local police forces. Kudos to Flickr user Kat n Kim and blogger Minkara for the images above.

Next Page - Click Below to Read More:
Talking Points 12 Odd Japanese Safety Traffic Cones

Whether you want to call it a new art form or a simply a hipster hobby, an artist France is pushing street-side string art in amusing new directions.

Not quite your grandmother-in-rocking-chair approach, Urban X-Stitch creates colorfully cross-stitched pieces along the lines of yarn bombing and knitted graffiti.

So far, these subjects are mostly tame – bright logos and cute animals mixed in with only a few things that look more like spray-painted tags, but the potential is there for something more.

Another neat possible direction in which to take this: pattern sharing between artists and places, the same way cross-stitching in its traditional setting can follow guides and designs.

For those who can accept a bit of ironic kitsch in the mix, here is a cute (and functional) solution for city dwellers sick of their only scenery being a brick wall across the alleyway, to the soundtrack of a loud window-unit air conditioner.

Babilawn, currently crowdfunding on Kickstarter, goes beyond visual aesthetics, helping to dim the din of noisy air conditioning and potentially keep birds off your window unit as well (or encouraging them, depending on what you add to your custom scene).

Accessories include everything from grass and flowers to miniature white picket fences and tiny garden gnomes, but also pint-sized graffiti walls for a bit of urban color. The magnetic grass mat slots onto the top of your air conditioner, covering up the ugly top and letting you set up something a bit more visually appealing from both inside and outside your home.

It uses super-strong, rare-earth magnets to remain attached in extreme weather conditions. The composite units are also modular so they can fit various sizes of air conditioners. Its creators are still testing the theory, too, that it might make air conditioners more efficient by providing shade for the units as well.

So how far are they into the design and distribution process? The process so far, quoted from their fundraising page: “It all started with a simple sketch which led to creating and testing the initial concept. From this proof of concept we were able to design and develop an Alpha prototype using 3D CAD and SLS 3D printing. We tested the alpha prototype and noted some areas for improvement.

“We made the adjustments to the cad model and now, as it was featured in the video above, we have a fully functioning production-ready beta prototype that is patent pending. We conducted preliminary market analysis which includes evaluating demand, retail pricing, and competitive research. We sourced domestic and international manufacturing and fulfillment companies.” Check out their campaign on Kickstarter.

Intended for low-cost mass production but displaying a wide variety of clever conceptual designs, these 12 Chinese desk fans may blow but they sure don’t suck.

Funny and Playful USB Airplane Clip Fan

(images via: PCK)

That’s exactly what the box reads, “Funny and Playful USB Airplane Clip Fan”, though whether this fan is actually funny and/or playful depends on both the sensibilities of the purchaser and how they’re going to use the fan. Most regular folks will simply clip it on their monitor screens and flip the ON switch mounted on the bottom… it may not get you hot but funny, playful or not it will definitely keep you cool.

(image via: PCK)

The Funny and Playful USB Airplane Clip Fan comes in any one of three pastel tints: mint green, pale pink or ivory white. Just plug the USB cable into the plane’s faux exhaust pipe – nice touch there – and you’re good to go on one more chilling mission!

eDON USB “Bi-Cycle” Fan

(images via: Creative Coaching)

Wee paws for stationary cool-ification! The eDON USB “Bi-Cycle” fan is a delight for dog-lovers or simply those sweltering through the dog days of summer. Just press the leftmost toe pad to get the breeze flowing, and never mind the fact that the wind caressing your face emanates from a foot just a foot away. Available in golden brown, pastel pink, lime green or sky blue, the design of this USB-powered fan demands applause… though unfortunately the “with applause” copy at the seller’s website promises the same in vain.

NBC Microphone-Shaped USB Desktop Fan

(images via: Phone People)

That’s W ENNN B C!… less the W. The NBC Microphone-Shaped USB Desktop Fan is one of a series of four similar fans bearing the (owner applied) decal logos of NBC, China’s CCTV, Hello Kitty, and Doraemon. Are these popular logos officially licensed by the copyright holders? We’re guessing they aren’t but you won’t catch us, er, broadcasting our suspicions.

(image via: Nine Cylinder Housing)

Legal niceties aside, the fan’s design is rather ingenious: users hold the fan’s body as if it were a microphone, then remove the protective fan blade cap and flip the switch to ON. Lest any late night talk show host wannabees feel the need to bend it like Fallon, be advised you’re just spittin’ in the wind.

Next Page - Click Below to Read More:
Cute Kitschy Cool 12 Clever Chinese Desk Fan Designs