Here's the poo-emoji plunger you didn't ask for
The Poo-Plunger attempts to hitch a crowdfunding ride on the back of one of the emoji world's most expressive symbols.
The emoji symbol for poop is distinctive, but it can communicate all sorts of sentiments, ranging from "Aw, crap" to "I'm pooped." It's also a bit confusing, since it's a pile of poo with a big grin. It has inspired shirts and dresses and cookie recipes, and now it's also the key design feature of a plunger project on Kickstarter.
The Poo-Plunger is exactly what you think you'd get if you combined a typical clog-battling toilet plunger with the look of the poop emoji. It has a white handle, and the plunger part at the bottom is a smiling emoji in that classic shade of brown. It works just like a regular plunger.
The Poo-Plunger is hoping to attract $50,000 (about £38,000, AU$67,000) and is closing in on $6,000 in pledges with 20 days left to go. A single plunger will cost you a $25 (about £19, AU$34) pledge. International shipping costs will double that price that if you live in the UK or Australia.
Not surprisingly, the Poo-Plunger started as a joke among friends. The project's creators have a prototype of the plunger, but need to raise funds to put it into production. The marketing video takes the form of a slightly surreal first-person narrative coming from the plunger itself. There are a lot of flatulence noises, so you might not want to watch the video with the speakers on full blast at work.
The project is pretty far off from its goal. It if fails to fund, the world will be deprived of what could be one of the most unusual novelty plungers of all time. Once you've acknowledged the existence of the Poo-Plunger, it's hard to imagine a life without one sitting beside your loo, smiling up at you with adoring eyes.
If the project is successful, the creators hope to use the Poo-Plunger as way to draw attention and donations to charities focusing on sanitation and clean drinking water, including the World Toilet Organization. Keep in mind, as always, that not all crowdfunding projects deliver on time and as expected.