I picked up a new electronics hobby lately – lamp making! This was a natural progression from my 12V LED projects. I ran out of bulky adapters and started cannibalizing lamps from various places to make new ones.
I’ve done some junior woodworking as well on some of these – nothing really complex. A lot of the tools I have I’ve had for over 20 years. My dad got me a great set of tools when I was a teenager, and it took many years for me to truly appreciate it. At the time I thanked him out of simple obligation (like you would thank an aunt for a gaudy sweater), but now I use my tools nearly every day, and it’s very satisfying to have the right tool for the job.
Lamp made of a small drawer covered in felt. This one has a remote switch which is now attached to Alice’s wall by her bed.My kitchen LED project. This was my first foray into AC – the PSU above was scary to hook up, and I blew one up before I got it right. The box on the left hooks up a PIR motion sensor to a couple of power MOSFETs with heat sinks, which handle enough current to light up all the LED strips under the cabinets. The sensor is right above the sink and turns off after five minutes.Same idea as above, but this one is in the bathroom, like a night light. Activates when you walk in. The PIR module was a couple dollars, and quite adjustable.I found this mirror at the local dump and attached LED strips to the back, a nice halo effect.Made of scrap wood from the dump. My joinery is nothing great yet, just glue and finishing nails. A chandelier gave its life for the shades. The switch controls both lights. Sits nicely on top of my speaker cab!Made from a cedar box. It’s hard to tell but the switch lights up blue when it’s on, I love that.A tiny bedside table lamp for Jill, built into a tiny wooden box.Just an old box with some holes drilled in it and green LED strips stuffed in with a switch on the side. Can be closed or open. I gave this to my nephew who liked it.Built from dump scrap wood and my tiny circular saw. My cuts were a bit off, but the final thing looks pretty good, only a bit asymmetric. It was kinda hard to stuff all the connections for the switch in there, yay wire nuts and electrical tape!I made this yesterday from wood cut by tree workers near our condo. It took a lot of drilling and sawing. This one uses an “Edison” bulb. It’s only about as bright as a candle, but very cute and doesn’t need a shade.
Comments
What fun, Ben! Your family is so crafty!
Love the projects. Just made a ‘frankenlamp’ myself 🙂
What fun, Ben! Your family is so crafty!
Love the projects. Just made a ‘frankenlamp’ myself 🙂