If you like to blend in when it comes to fashion, then this is the skirt for you.

A Japanese designer has unveiled a garment that doubles as a disguise, unfolding to look like the front of a vending machine.

It may look decidedly silly, but Aya Tsukioka's idea has a serious aim.
Miss Tsukioka, 31, says she hopes it will help ease women's fear of crime and discourage would-be attackers.

With vending machines lined up on many of Japan's city streets, there are plenty of opportunities for camouflage.

Showing off the design yesterday, Miss Tsukioka lifted a flap on the skirt to expose a large sheet of cloth printed with the familiar bright red Coca-Cola logo.

She showed how a woman walking alone could hide behind it to outfox a potential attacker.

The experimental clothes designer has already sold 20 of the £400 hand-sewn vending machine skirts and is hoping to market the design worldwide.
She says the idea was inspired by a trick used by Japanese ninja assassins, who cloaked themselves-in black blankets so they couldn't be seen at night.