Some ideas were never meant to leave the drawing board. Let's hope this is one of them.

Whether we like it or not, the car has become the place for an increasing number of non-driving related activities. As people elect to live farther and farther from their workplaces and as more and more cars are added to our roads every year, the daily commute is stretching into an increasingly large part of our schedule.

With this new reality has come a whole host of inventions designed to help us make better use of that time stuck behind the wheel. Cup holders, hands-free speakers and GPS units are all becoming standard equipment on new vehicles. While we can certainly debate whether drinking, talking and map-reading should or should not be done while driving, if people are determined to do these things, we can now make those activities a little safer.

It was apparently in this spirit of helping out busy drivers, that a Richmond Hill aesthetician decided to tackle another of the driving world's biggest challenges: How to safely apply makeup while getting from A to B.

Her solution? The Makeup Tentacle.

It's a flexible rod that attaches to your car's dashboard at one end, and is equipped with a holder of sorts at the other end into which you presumably insert the lipstick of your choice. Note: duct tape is optional.

If the image above (click to enlarge) isn't enough to make you question why anyone would use the Tentacle, consider the following:

• The device requires that you attach your preferred makeup to one end. Is this supposed to be done while driving too, or is this part of the pre-driving prep?
• It looks as though the Tentacle is positioned through the steering wheel. I guess drivers who like to make turns had better get used to a Heath Ledger-esque makeup job.
• Where exactly would the Tentacle go in the event of an airbag deployment? Ouch.

If, on the other hand, you can overlook these glaring problems (the Tentacle is just a prototype), then allow me to humbly suggest some improvements:

• Offer a variety of holder options. A device this useful shouldn't be limited to makeup. A hamburger holder perhaps. Napkin clip. Kleenex clamp?
• Since the Tentacle was originally inspired by the character Doc Ock from Spider-Man 2 (I swear I'm not making this up), why not be true to the concept and offer eight Tentacles instead of just one. Just sayin.
• Create a Makeup Tentacle Pro which comes equipped with a video camera. The image could be projected heads-up-display-style onto the windscreen thus overcoming the problem that you can't actually see yourself applying the lipstick otherwise. Bonus: you could capture the look of sheer terror on your face when you realize (a moment too late) that your husband accidentally left his razor attached to the Tentacle.

Better yet, tell us your ideas for how the Makeup Tentacle could be improved. Get creative! I understand that inventor/aesthetician Sharona Kesnig is interested in getting any and all feedback on her invention.