Author: Yennie Min

Yennie’s Final Project_BookNest (Bookrest📖+ Lamp💡)

Instructable

Project Overview

BookNest is a hybrid concept that combines a bookrest and a lamp.
When users pick up their book to read, the light automatically turns on.
When they place the book back on top, the light gently turns off.

It serves as a design object, bookrest, and lamp — a simple yet thoughtful companion for everyday reading.

Background

I started this project based on my personal experience. Whenever I had to pause reading, I often struggled to find a bookmark or ended up placing my book face down on the table — which was quite inconvenient. On top of that, I always had to manually turn off my reading lamp.

While thinking about a side table where I could easily rest my book, I envisioned a house shape — and that idea led me to combine it with a lamp.

Continue reading “Yennie’s Final Project_BookNest (Bookrest📖+ Lamp💡)”

Halloween Costume: Powerpuff Girls❤️💚💙

Powerpuff Girls with LED Light-Up Oversized Eye glasses👓✨


Hi! We’re the Powerpuff Girls!
Batu❤️(Blossom), Jisu💚(Buttercup), Yennie💙(Bubbles)

Batu❤️, Jisu💚, and Yennie💙

Descriptions:

Throughout the process, we faced several challenges, especially when soldering the two LED rings without causing errors.
We all participated in soldering, helping each other and working together to solve the issues. We also encountered coding errors during the setup.
In the final assembly, we faced a problem where the red light appeared green—possibly due to a soldering issue. We adjusted parts of the code to fix this color error.

Making Process

Yennie_Mainly focused on creating the glasses and coding.

Materials :

  • Hot glue
  • T-shirt
  • 16-bit RGB LED Rings
  • Gemma board
  • Colored paper
  • Colored glasses

Code

Left : Blue / Middle : Red / Right : green

Links

Key Takeaways🎃

Yennie : I’m really glad to have worked with Jisu and Batu, who are both spontaneous and very supportive. We never felt disappointed when our soldering failed, the lights didn’t turn on, or coding errors occurred — instead, we just laughed it off and kept trying to figure things out together.

Jisu : I was so happy to be one of the Powerpuff Girls with Yennie and Batu. We cheered each other up even when our soldering or coding didn’t work, and those moments turned into such fun and meaningful memories. It wasn’t just about finishing the project, we genuinely enjoyed the process, laughed a lot during our late-night problem-solving, and supported each other every step of the way.

Batu : I was really excited to collaborate with two creatives whose work I admire. It was so much fun working with Yennie and Jisu — printing shirts with Jisu and soldering and coding with Yennie were definitely the highlights. If we were to make a second version of this project, we’d probably focus more on improving the cabling and soldering, since the red glasses sometimes worked and sometimes glitched. We shared so many laughs in the studio — such a great experience overall.

Thanks for reading🌻

Yennie’s Neo-pixel Proactive & Halloween costume ideas

(1) Neo-pixel Proactive

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1_M4c-t5vR3dTZmuAR9-gIKNMrqpPBljq?usp=sharing

(1) Powerpuff Beam Sunglasses (Team Project)😎

This is a team project with Batu❤️, Jisu💚, and me🩵.
We were inspired by The Powerpuff Girls and their iconic superpowers — especially the laser beams that shoot from their eyes. Our idea is to design sunglasses that project LED light beams from the eyes, representing each character’s unique energy and symbol.

(2) Raining in NYC🌧️

A wearable Halloween headpiece inspired by the rainy mood of New York City.
I plan to create a head accessory made of soft cotton, designed to look like clouds. Shimmering LEDs and crystal chains will hang down to mimic falling raindrops. Instead of a dark or gloomy tone, I want to evoke a dreamy and fantasy-like atmosphere.

Walking Sunflower🌻

For this costume, I will transform an umbrella into a glowing sunflower.
Warm-colored LEDs will illuminate the inside of the umbrella, while yellow fabric on the outside will represent sunflower petals. I’ll wear an outfit inspired by sunflower seeds to complete the look, making it feel bright, cheerful, and lively.

Thanks🌻

Yennie’s Sea otter🦦 shell🐚 Night light


Inspired by the way sea otters give cherished shells or stones to those they care about, this plush otter holds a softly glowing shell. When squeezed, the shell light gently turns off, offering a stress-relieving tactile experience. After 30 minutes, the light turns on again—almost as if the otter is lovingly giving the shell back.

Continue reading “Yennie’s Sea otter🦦 shell🐚 Night light”

Yennie’s Plush Night Light Proposal

Prototypes

1. Mushroom

Pattern

2. Red LED Circuit

Three Ideas

1. Sunflower Cushion Night Light

Story: Like a sunflower that blooms toward the sun, this cushion appears as a simple sunflower during the day. When sunlight is no longer detected, the embedded light turns on, providing gentle illumination that follows the rhythm of nature.

Target User: People seeking digital detox and healing moments aligned with natural cycles.

Material: Soft short-hair fabric, light-sensing plate (Arduino), LED light bulb.

2. Sea Otter Shell Night Light

Story: Inspired by the way sea otters give cherished shells or stones to those they care about, this plush otter holds a glowing shell. When the user squeezes the plush, the shell light turns off, offering a stress-relieving tactile experience. After 30 minutes, the light turns on again, as if the otter is giving the shell back.

Target User: People who want stress relief and relaxation during short breaks.

Material: Soft tufting and fluffy fabric for the otter, short-hair fabric for the shell.

3. Cloud Wrist Rest Health Alarm Night Light

Story: A fluffy, cloud-shaped wrist rest that feels light and comforting. When the user continuously uses a mouse for more than an hour, the light turns on as a soft reminder to pause, stretch, and care for wrist health.

Target User: People who use a computer mouse frequently and want to protect their wrist health.

Material: Soft fabric with safe, supportive filling that can comfortably support the wrist.

Thank you for reading🌻

Aven Mighty Scope Digital Handheld Microscope Teardown

By Yennie Min

Overview
Before starting the teardown process, I needed to familiarize myself with the product. This was my first time seeing the Mighty Scope microscope in person, so I carefully observed its components to understand how it was assembled.

When I removed the transparent cap at the front of the microscope, I struggled to disassemble the other parts. To separate some of the tightly attached components, I used a heat gun.

Tools & Techniques

  • Screw driver
  • Heat guns
  • Hands
  • Unscrewing, pulling

Teardown Process

  1. Detach the microscope from the stand.
  2. Loosen the clamp and nuts on the stand by turning them counterclockwise to separate the microscope.
  3. Unscrew and remove the transparent front cap of the microscope body.
  4. Use a screwdriver to remove the bolts and detach the camera lens and aperture.
  5. Unscrew and separate the additional LED panel.
  6. To fully disassemble the body parts, apply heat with a heat gun to detach the glued joints, then separate the clickable button and circuit board.
  7. Finally, disconnect the USB connector from the main circuit board inside the opened body parts.

Materials

Stand & Clamp Components

  • Knurled Thumb Screws: Steel threaded shaft with an ABS plastic head.
  • Steel Bolts: Steel bolts combined with external plastic parts.

Microscope Components

  • Lens: Glass or high-grade plastic.
  • Screws: Small steel screws, nickel-coated to prevent corrosion.
  • CMOS Sensor: Silicon-based semiconductor chip that captures light and converts it into digital signals.
  • LED Ring Light: LEDs with a plastic diffuser.
  • Main Circuit Board (PCB): Fiberglass (FR4) substrate with copper traces, housing the image processor, power management circuits, and USB interface.
  • Buttons, Dials, and Switches: Plastic caps with embedded metal contacts; side capture button for image recording and top dial for focus/magnification control.
  • Cable: USB cable with copper wiring for both power supply and data transmission, shielded with plastic insulation.
  • Housing/Clips: Outer body and internal mounts made of ABS.

Button Circuit

When you press the button, it connects ground to the signal line.

Interesting Design Parts

  • The integration of the camera’s digital zoom with the microscope’s optical magnification creates a distinctive and innovative design feature.
  • The light switch is designed to be highly intuitive and user-friendly, enabling even first-time users to operate the product with ease and efficiency.

Struggles / Takeaways

  • Except for the front cap, most of the body parts were bonded with strong adhesive, which made disassembly difficult.
  • The lubricant used to allow the parts to move smoothly made my hands and clothes dirty, but it helped me understand the mechanism behind how the components rotate smoothly.

Thanks for reading!

Hi, I’m Yennie🌻

Hi, I’m Yennie 🌻

I’m from South Korea and studied Graphic Design at SVA. Right now, I’m working as a product designer at a startup, mostly focusing on UX/UI and creative direction.

Outside of design, I love making things with my hands—especially baking—and I’m also a big sports fan. I enjoy playing golf and tennis, and I love watching baseball. I’m a little obsessed with green-colored food (matcha latte🍵, pistachio croissants🥐, dark chocolate🍫… all my favorites), and I’ve always loved sunflowers 🌻 for their positive vibes ✨.

I’m really excited to explore new ways of designing beyond just digital interfaces, and I’m also a bit nervous about stepping into something new.

Feel free to reach out on Instagram @name_the_design 🦦

I’d love to connect!💫