A clear starry night, for when you don’t have one

The sight of it is somehow both enticing and repulsive: an umbrella sewn throughout with an orderly twinkling of glowing stars.

Our picture here is from a print catalog, which casts it in earnest tones–”The world’s most spectacular umbrella, thanks to sophisticated fiber-optic technology”–but it is the example below, from a less measured source ($29.98!), that brings out its true class.

1. [kawayama]

   my mother used to have an umbrella with a star map printed on the inside. there was a very small flashlight attached to the stem (stem?), so that you could check the map on a starry night (the battery didn’t last long).

   i’m not sure if this is a better or worse idea.

2. [SamSam]

   I’d be willing to bet that they took this idea from an instructible, or some otherwise DIY/MAKE online tutorial.

   There’s one here, but I’m pretty sure there was an earlier version.

3. [Anonymous]

   This would be cool for walking home from the train at night. Visibility and coverage.

4. [toxonix]

   Yes, there are people who haven’t seen Blade Runner yet. Where’s my Blade Runner umbrella?

5. [CubeB]

   The Blade Runner Umbrella.
   …I personally prefer the Blade Runner one over this sparkly one, but that’s just my opinion.

6. [Lexica]

   Is it goofy and somewhat tacky? Yes. Would it increase my visibility when walking around in the rain? Yes. Hmm…