Toilet shame – it’s a not-so-silent killer of confidence for Japanese women. The common way of coping with natural yet "private" noises has been to repeatedly flush; effective perhaps but extremely wasteful.
Last year I wrote about the Otohime or "Sound Princess", a wall-mounted device that played a recorded toilet flush for about half a minute and thus negated the need to actually flush before a flush was actually required.
It was a neat idea that saved millions of gallons of water annually. The only problem? Not every bathroom in Japan is fitted out with an otohime – not yet, anyway.
Portable Bathroom Noisemaker Soothes The Shy, Saves The Earth
In the meantime, a girl’s still gotta do what a girl’s gotta do, and it can now be done anywhere shame-free thanks to the Eco-Otome. Basically a smaller version of the Otohime, the Eco-Otome swings on a ball chain attached to your cell phone, purse or backpack. Push the magic button and let the symphony of sound begin… the Eco-Otome’s, not yours.
The Eco-Otome is scheduled for release August 29 but a similar device, the Eco-Hime, is available now.
The Eco-Hime looks like one of those rose-shaped bathroom soaps your mother admonished you never to touch because they were for the use of "guests". Didn’t you just hate that?
Here’s a video featuring an anonymous modest miss who demonstrates the Eco-Hime… behind closed doors, of course:
The Eco-Hime comes in your choice of Pearl White, Vivid Pink, Pearl Pink and Black. The Eco-Otome comes in three appealing designs: Baby Blue with a pink bow, Magenta with a pink "love" graphic and my personal fave, Pearl White with Dark Green "Save The Earth" graphics. Sounds great!!
EDITOR’S NOTE: The Eco-Otome is now available in the U.S. You can find the Eco-Otome here on Amazon.
