Turning Stolen Joules Into Shining Jewels With Weekend Projects
Our latest Weekend Project is both fashionable and fun. Combine a solar battery with a “joule thief” and make a Solar Joule Bracelet!
fashion tech
Weekend Projects – Solar Joule Bracelet
Complete instructions for this Weekend Projects can be found at
http://makeprojects.com/Project/Solar-Joule-Bracelet/22/1
The Solar Joule Bracelet combines two separate projects, a solar battery and a “joule thief,” to build a wearable circuit that powers an LED. Solar energy flows through the photodiodes, building up a supercapacitor, which essentially acts like a battery. This energy is then delivered to the joule thief, where oscillations eventually exceed the LED’s forward voltage, making it light up. Once fully charged, these oscillations will occur so fast that the LED will appear continuously bright, visible even during daytime!
Best of all, this circuit’s design allows you to install it where and how you wish!
Beating Heart Headband
Build a pulse-sensing headband that flashes a heart-shaped LED display to the beating of your heart! Full instructions for this episode of Becky’s Workshop are available at Make: Projects: http://makeprojects.com/Project/Beating-Heart-Headband/1622/1
music by i am jen: http://iamjen.com/
DIY iPhone Gloves – Becky’s Workshop
Subscribe! http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=craftzine
Use a bit of conductive thread to make your gloves work with your touch screen phone in this episode of Becky’s Workshop. Find out more: http://makeprojects.com/Project/iPhone-Gloves/1633/1
LED Embroidery
This picture of a frog catching fireflies is embellished with lights that bring the bugs to life. Conductive thread is the magic ingredient, bridging the gap between rigid metal and soft floss. To make a stitched scene light up, combine traditional embroidery techniques with a few common electronics components. The possibilities are endless, and the result is an artful conversation piece.
http://makeprojects.com/Project/Electronic-Embroidery/44/1
http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2010/09/how-to_led_embroidery.html
Pen Nib Dress
I don’t know much about dresses…or pen nibs, but apparently together they create an impressive visual effect, as this Pen Nib Dress by John Nussey and Steven Tai illustrates. 795 pen nibs, mounted on tiny motors, are sewn into the dress. These rows of pen nibs are animated to created a hypnotic shimmer of movement […]
CRAFT Video: Craft Meets Tech at MIT
In this week’s CRAFT Video, come with me to the Media Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. There I met with e-textiles pioneer Leah Buechley and students from her research group called “High-Low Tech,” which Leah describes as “blends” of technology with traditional crafts to make new toolkits for creativity and learning. http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2010/01/craft_meets_tech_at_mit.html
