Busy hands | Disquiet mind

LilyPad and Protoboard Wrist Mounted Controller

Sun, 03 Jan 2021 16:46:21 GMT

I find myself wanting to use the same hardware controls in different projects again and again. But in various configurations. Can I make something modular, that I can reuse as needed?

Let's take the Colour Stealing circuit, actually let's take the version with a microphone.

( Details )

Here's the whole system; wrist controller connected to power regulation and signal level shifter board and NeoPixel matrix. For the longer runs of wire I'm using thicker silicone wire that I have loosely plaited.

Overall it has the same problem as watches, in that the heavier section has a habit of shifting around, but if it annoys too much I suppose I could always stick it in place. The nice thing is that it all disassembles cleanly, making everything (not soldered to the protoboard) reusable.

Wrist Controller in the middle of it all
Photo by chebe

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Colour Stealing+ Cyberpunk Headpiece

Sun, 02 Sep 2018 15:28:29 GMT

Somehow, while making my Colour Stealing Skirt, I got the idea that I would like a headpiece to go with it. I mean, it's for EMFcamp, so go big or stay home, right? (Not at all, but I wanted to so I made excuses.) I wandered down a path of cybergoth falls for a little, but wanted something a bit more cyberpunk, and what is more punk than outrageous mohawks? But I don't have a 3D printer, or laser cutter, or CNC. How was I going to get something strong enough to stand upright, but translucent enough to light up nicely? I had an idea in my head of circles, inspired by CDs and hair rollers, but nothing else. So I took myself on a tour of hardware shops and wandered aimlessly. Eventually I found these. They come in different diameters and different heights, but these seemed just right for me.

Plastic furniture leg/wheel coasters, or floor protectors
Photo by chebe

Next step; how do I affix these plastic circles to my head? I wandered around youtube until I found people who use garden wire (for trailing vines and such) to make frames for costume headpieces. The idea is to shape a double-sided U-shape (one for each side of the head) out of the wire. You make the join with duct tape. I added extra supports to the top, by bending the ends to sit along existing wires, and duct tape them together.

Wire frame base
Photo by chebe

Then I continued in the same way down the back of my head. Aiming for a secure fit. I also wrapped the wire with ribbon (secured with super glue), not just to make it nicer, but because the duct tape glue was coming undone and the ribbon keeps pressure on all the joins.

( Many details )

Wear
Photo by Jeffrey_Roe

Parts;
Galvanised Coated Garden Wire, 2mm / 12 Gauge / 5/64"
Ribbon
62mm plastic furniture leg/wheel coasters (floor protectors)
Organza scraps
Wide crinoline tubing

Potentiometer
Adafruit Flora
Adafruit Neopixel strand
3-pin JST SM Plug + Receptacle Cable Set
Adafruit Colour Sensor
LilyPad Button Board
SparkFun Microphone

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Colour Stealing Underskirt

Sun, 02 Sep 2018 15:24:31 GMT

I've had an idea for an elaborate electronic skirt for, literally, years now. And no matter how long I waited progress just wasn't being made. At one point I realised that EMFcamp was fast approaching and I needed something for it. So I scaled back my ambitions, found a white tulle/net skirt on sale, and got to work.

I had a few Neopixel strands laying about the house, and found to my surprise that each 20 pixel (2" pitch) strand was almost exactly the width of my skirt. Two strands would completely encircle it. Rather convenient. And I wanted to be able to set the colour of the Neopixels from things around me, so I needed a colour sensor. I also wanted a potentiometer so I could adjust the brightness depending on ambient light, and would need a button to change between modes. Oh, and a microcontroller to make it all work. Which gave me this circuit.

( Details )

But white is very much not my aesthetic. Which is a large part of why I made this an underskirt. You can use this one underskirt with a variety of overskirts to achieve different effects. Here I've used a black crushed velvet skirt with uneven hem so that some of the glowing tulle/net still peeks out. In dark enough environments, there is a side benefit of seeming to exist in a puddle of light on the ground. (Which can be handy when trying to navigate a campsite.) Overall this skirt is fun, but not the most practical. Though I do foresee it coming in handy from time to time.

Skirt
Photo by chebe

Parts;
Fabric scraps
Petticoat
Skirt

Potentiometer
Adafruit Flora
Adafruit Neopixel strands
3-pin JST SM Plug + Receptacle Cable Set
Adafruit Colour Sensor
LilyPad Button Board

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