DIY Life

Attention, DIY-ers! You have one more day to win Etsy seller Ideaka's brilliant take out light! Visit this post, leave a comment explaining your favorite take-out-inspired project, and cross your fingers!

We'll choose our lucky winner tomorrow by 5PM, so get to it!

You're bound to collect a handful of glow-sticks this summer. They get passed out at firework shows, holiday barbecues, and just about any other outdoor summer evening event. So what do you do after the festivities are over? Well, at our house, we typically find them hiding in the sandbox, lost behind the toy-box, or tossed away in the trash.

Kish, over at Instructables, re-purposed his into this funky glow-stick lamp. You'll need 15 glow-sticks and a plastic bottle; one commenter suggests using a glass bottle instead. If you chose one with an interesting pattern you could get a really cool effect.

This would make a fun accessory for any dorm room, kids room, basement or kitchen (sure, why not!). Check out the video for full instructions.

[via: Daily DIY]

As a man, getting up and going to the bathroom in the dark is much better than turning on blazing lights to do the same thing. Of course, there is the problem of missing the bowl. That's where this little built night light for the toilet by Robbtoberfest (me) at Instructables comes in handy.

Lift the seat and it shines a dim red light into the bowl, just enough for aiming, but not so bright that it ruins night vision. Drop the seat and it automatically turns off. A good gift for Father's day -- or any "man day" occasion.

You'll find the instructions after the break!

We love solar powered stuff here at DIY Life. Hacking things together ourselves in the interest of reducing our environmental footprint really gets us going. This DIY solar lantern is just the thing to keep the spirit of Earth Day even after it's come and gone.

Noel from unplugged living gives us a full detailed tutorial on making the solar lantern. Covering each step thoroughly, and providing loads of helpful pictures, diagrams and part lists, this is one project that will be easily recreated on your own.

This project is split into a three part tutorial. In the first part, Noel explains the basic theory of operation, then goes on to explain how to calculate the value of the resistor. In the second section, you'll learn about the charging module and solar cell. The assembly instructions are clear and detailed. Finally, in the third part, you'll see close-up pictures of each piece and how they should look together.

Staying green isn't always easy, but it sure is important. Noel brings us inspiration by combining our desire to go green with the love for great DIY projects. Gear up for your next camping trip with a solar powered lantern.

Recently, here at DIY Life, Ian Lesnet has written some tutorial posts dealing with microcontrollers: devices that essentially act as the "brain" of a small electronics project.

Now Annie Scott, of our sister site, Styledash, has written about a microcontroller called the Lilypad Arduino. On the Arduino site, the 2" wide flower-shaped board is described as "a microcontroller board designed for wearables and e-textiles. It can be sewn to fabric and similarly mounted power supplies, sensors and actuators with conductive thread."

This is all very technical, but in practical terms, what does it mean? Among other things, it's a (relatively) simple way to make hand-washable t-shirts that light up or sing when you go into a dark room, or when you move. Read more about the Lilypad Arduino, including where to purchase it and how to use it, after the break.

Disposable flashlights are a great thing to have on hand: they are a useful size, and extremely tough. The downside is that they can get pricey when you toss them after a couple of uses. Unfortunately, they can't be recycled, so every time you dispose of one, it ends up in a landfill.

Just because they are sold as single-use doesn't mean they have to stay that way. Next time you buy one of these $2 disposables, use it up and replace the batteries. They aren't manufactured for this, so it will take a bit of work to get it open. This Instructable has everything you need to replace the standard AA cells and extend your flashlight's life.

When you're closing it up, duct tape will do the trick and be easy to disassemble next time. If you want a polished look, you can easily weld it back together, then sand it down smooth.

The tutorial is done with an Eveready brand disposable ZAP flashlight. If you know how to change the batteries in any other brands, please share your tips with us!

There are many places in the home that could use a little extra light. These areas include anywhere work is done; think about the places where you prepare food, do all that extra work that the boss shamed you into bringing home, or your workshop bench. A great solution for these situations is to install under-cabinet lighting. They also come in handy for the dark corners in the bathroom vanity under the sink. For these areas, it's more practical to use the battery operated ones.

These lights are inexpensive and easy to install with just a few common tools. Energy efficiency? They score very highly in this area, especially if you go with the latest LED lights.

Read this article on under-cabinet light installation. Then do a walk-through of the house to identify the spots that could use a bit more illumination. A shopping trip, a bit of DIY fun, and your work spaces will be glowing in short order!

Everybody needs a little color in their life! This color changer mixes light from high-power LEDs to create more than 16 million colors. A smooth auto-fader cycles the colors, or you can hook it up to a USB port and control it from your computer.

A great toy for architectural lighting, parties, and holidays. Since the circuit will run from 12 volts, it can even be installed in a car.



Learn how to build your own, after the fold.

How energy efficient is your home? If your heating bills are out of control and your environmental impact is worsening then it's time to do a self check on your energy usage. This DIY home energy audit is a detailed, 9 step approach to evaluating and improving upon your energy consumption.

Getting to know your energy bills is the first step. You can't notice patterns and set goals if you don't know what you're spending and why. Once you know your bills you can start to work to bring them down. The full instructions explain how to examine your heating and cooling equipment along with your appliances. Looking for and repairing air leaks and energy sucks will make a big difference. You'll also want to replace your bulbs, and be mindful of light usage. Lastly, gauge your results. How have the changes impacted your energy bills? What changes can you continue to make? If you want added information or a more in-depth energy audit, this web based audit tool will be perfect.

Review the 9 step audit process and make changes around the house. You'll notice a savings on your energy bills and you'll lessen your environmental impact.

DIY lighting seems to be all over the blogosphere these days. Today, Apartment Therapy features a tutorial for making a socket chandelier. Their tutorial is inspired by David Allen's Atomic Chandelier, which retails for $200. For far less money, you can create your own version using socket extenders (also known as "y" or twin socket adapters), low wattage bulbs and electrical cord (if you don't already have a chandelier fixture). The result is both fun and modern.

Don't have a chandelier setup and don't want to deal with electrical cord? Never fear, you can create your own fixture by screwing right into your ceiling or wall socket - you just can't do the ball shape the AT writers did.

If you can, check out the September/October issue of Blueprint magazine. They did a feature on the home and studio of designer Lotta Anderson (better known as Lotta Jansdotter). The spread included a full-page shot of her in her studio (scroll down a little) with a "coral-like" chandelier, made of socket extenders, and almost definitely screwed into her ceiling.

If you're missing the bright days of summer you might be finding some rooms in your house too dark. A dark room can affect your work, change the impression of your decor and impact your mood. Learning how to brighten up a dark room can change your space so drastically. Here are the 11 suggested ways:

1. Turn on a lamp
2. Install a light fixture
3. Add task lighting
4. Replace bulbs with higher wattage
5. Open curtains or blinds
6. Install a skylight
7. Use diffused lighting
8. Mimic the sunrise
9. Use mirrors
10. Paint and decorate the room
11. Clear the clutter

After the jump I'll share the details of my favorite tips.

Dan over at Instructables has a nifty tutorial for making your own custom lighting fixture from - among other things - plastic milk jugs. He provides a template that looks sort of like a parallelogram with notches in each corner. You use the template to create as many identical pieces as you like - he even offers suggestions for different methods of cutting.

The pieces are then joined together by the notches - no glue or screws needed. Last thing you need is a basic lamp fixture and a bulb that won't melt whatever material you choose for your fixture. Sheer genius.

My son has a pair of light-up sandals. Everywhere you go, there are kids sporting these shoes with light flickering on every step. How often have you wished they made such cool things for adults? Why wait until they come around? Hack together your own pair of light up shoes.

What you'll need

1. Craft knife
2. Heavy-duty scissors
   
3. Pliers
   
4. Soldering iron
5. Electric drill
6. Glue
7. Old kid's shoes with lights (can get cheap worn out ones at the thrift store)
8. Your shoes of choice - Are you going to spice up your work shoes or add some light power to your favorite clubbing shoes?

DIY adult light shoes are a great way to add a little originality to your step and stand out in the dark. The full instructions and pictures along the way will walk you through the whole transplant process. I wonder if your kids will still think these shoes are cool when Mom and Dad are sporting the same ones?

Wouldn't it be cool if you could make a pumpkin jump out every time people came to the door on Halloween night? Well, you can, with a basic stamp microcontroller, a park zone stoplight, and a hacked Epson printer. It sounds like an odd combination of materials, but Michael Seppanen teaches us how. Check out his instruction on how to make your pumpkin appear automatically by sensor.

Personally, it seems like a lot of work for a result that I'm sure could be easily achieved another way. Still, if you want a good Halloween prank, and live for the thrill of hacking things together, this is probably something you'll enjoy.

Vote for your favorite DIY lighting project or just take inspiration from them and make your own. We've brought you the silverwear chandelier, and the wine glass chandelier, and we're back with more. These inventive lighting projects use everything from latex gloves to measuring tape to the infamous Slinky.

My vote goes to the globe lamp (pictured here). I think this would look great in a home office. Picture this one over a child's desk. I'd like to try it out with an antiqued globe for a bit of a different effect. The current leader is the latex glove lamp. It looks great too. You'll have some trouble keeping them inflated, but if you have an event in mind they would make great decorations.

There are 19 projects in total, go vote for the one that you like best.