Outcome: These are the early evolution stages of the multi layered “birthday love notes” for my nephew. Using red thread on white cotton fabric, I embroidered the messages for his first day on earth, and then for his year.
Me delirious and happy with my connections, after soldering for way longer than I’d like to admit.
Challenges: Originally I wanted type on velvet fabric, but because my velvet fabric has a stretchy nature to it, it absorbed the ink when printed on the UV printer, and it entangled the thread on the embroidered machine. See examples below (embroidery to the left, uv printing to the right)
Next Steps: Overall I’m not thrilled about the outcome, but I’m really happy about the process. During the process, I learned for the first time how to connect four led lights, how to sew on the sewing machine, embroidery, and uv printing.
I want to create a solution that will allow me to remove each layers meanwhile keeping the form, light, and all the other layers intact. I also wish to add seven layers and more lights.
Recently, I’ve gotten hooked on playing Mario Odyssey, which is really so much fun! I’ve run into a little problem though – I’m using a projector to play it, and I have to turn off the lights in the room to see the screen clearly. But after playing for a long time, the room was dark and I couldn’t see anything, which still felt a little inconvenient. I needed a little light source, but didn’t want to ruin the gaming experience.
So I had a thought: why not make a nightlight that provides a soft light, but also fits the theme of the game? Thus, Switchie was born! It’s not only meant to solve my nagging problem, but it also hopes to help other gaming enthusiasts, like me, have a cool and functional nightlight.
Making Switchie wasn’t too hard, but it was definitely a bit complicated and time-consuming. I often worked on it while chatting with my friends over the phone, and I got so carried away that I forgot to take many process pictures!
One of the challenges I faced during the process was working with felt—it’s a rather coarse and thick material, making it difficult to sew and tie knots. At one point, I even broke a needle! (Luckily, no one got hurt) Despite the challenges, this turned out to be a really great learning experience. It was my first time doing any sewing, and I found the whole process surprisingly enjoyable.
The materials I used include: various colors of felt, fiber cloth, black yarn, thread and needle, transparent plastic sheets, a dual LED circuit, and some stuffing.
All in all, I’m very happy with how Switchie turned out. Not only does it solve my lighting problem while gaming, but it also adds a unique touch to my room decor. I’m quite satisfied with this project.
My plush light is named Venus, after the famous painting “The Birth of Venus” by Botticelli.
Source: Wikipedia
The Venus plush light was designed as a decoration for the users favourite chair, bed, couch, etc. The cushion is two toned, beige on the back and ivory on the front. I hope that my design brings people excitement and happiness when they see it placed in their space.
The materials used to build the Venus plush light include satin fabric, stuffing, a battery pack, an LED light bulb and a ping pong ball to diffuse the light.
My design process began with creating my sewing pattern and watching lots of sewing tutorials on YouTube. I started with the pearl by cutting out 4 ovals and sewing those together with the sewing machine (pictured below). I then began working on the shell, I created the scalloped pattern and cut out the shape on two separate fabrics. Again with the sewing machine I sewed the two pieces together and then proceeded to stuff the pearl and the shell (but not fully stuff it, I will explain more in the next part).
(shoutout to Sophia for these amazing photos)
After I had the exterior shell shape I began by sewing down the shell to create the ridges. After wards I stuffed the rest of the shell and moved onto figuring out how I am going to attach my pearl, place my LED light and hide the wiring/battery pack.
As you can see in the pictures above I decided to make a small hole in the interior of the shell to feed the light through into the pearl.
Finally I used velcro to secure the pack in the bottom of the shell, which hides perfectly behind the pearl.
That’s it for this week! I had so much fun with this project and am looking forward to working more with the sewing machine in future projects.
P.S. this blog post does sound like everything went very smoothly but I did encounter some bumps along the way which I will discuss with you guys further tomorrow 🙂
Spooki is a plush jack-o-lantern night light that I created for this project. The target user is young kids of any gender ages 5-10 that like Halloween and stuffed animals (or if you are like me and still love stuffed animals it is for all ages hehe). Spooki is meant to sit on any surface and act as not only a fall decoration but a Halloween themed night light for kids. I hope that this night light makes kids feel safe in the dark but gives their room a cozy fall feeling.
To create this pumpkin plush I used a thick cotton orange fabric for the pumpkin body and a thinner light orange fabric for the cut outs of his jack-o-lantern face. The stem is a very thick brown denim material which I think makes it look much more realistic. Inside, of course, is the stuffing to make him soft and the circuit with three yellow bulbs covered in ping pong balls.
my circuit and corresponding diagram
I really enjoyed the process of sewing Spooki and I found that my sewing only improved as time went on. However, it was a very long process and there were many more pieces to it in the end than I expected going into this project.
sew sew sew sew sew sew sew sew sew sew sew sew sew sew sew…
started with 5 and decided I wanted more!
Spooki is made up of 9 leaf like shapes that are sewed together and then opened up almost like a beach ball. One thing that I tried that was new stitching on the small pieces of fabric that up make his face using small individual stiches that you can see. I wanted him to have a fall scarecrow vibe which I think I achieved.
comparing light under fabrics
My biggest challenge was apparently not making my knots big enough. I had a lot of stitches come out at the top and bottom so I ended up reinforcing it with a circle of fabric on both ends. It definitely helped with that issue and made the whole thing look much cleaner.
jack-o-lantern face coming together
If I had more time I would have loved to make him bigger and put more stuffing in it. I think he is the perfect size for a desk night light but he turned out much smaller than I pictured. But he is Spooki, and Spooki is perfect.
Meet Dhou Fu (Tofu), the silken-tofu-meets-silkie-chicken-inspired study-buddy night-light.
Dhou Fu was created for students who like to do deep work, and need quiet focus in order to tap into this part of their brains.
Dhou Fu lives on his owner’s desk and serves as a study-guardian. When his owner wants to do deep work and avoid interruptions, Dhou Fu turns blue, to let others in the shared workspace know that his owner is deep in thought, and to please not interrupt them.
Above: Dhou Fu in his natural habitat.
Dhou Fu is designed with magnetic toes and pipe-cleaners inside his feet, to help him attach to various objects, and ideally, hang from a desk lamp. He also has cute little eyes that gaze encouragingly toward his owner, seeming to say “you can do it!”, because who doesn’t need a little bit of extra support every now and then!
Top: Dhou Fu hanging out. Bottom: Dhou Fu guarding from the clouds.
Materials and parts used:
faux fur
cotton plaid fabric
blue plastic eyes
a 2-LED circuit
pipe cleaners
fridge magnets
embroidery thread
stuffing
The Journey
Creating Dhou Fu was not difficult but it took a lot of time and attention to detail. I had ever used faux fur fabric before in any creation, and it presented a few challenges, and there were a number of things I had to do to make him look his best:
1) cutting very close to the base of the fabric to avoid cutting any of his hair;
Above: Trimmed edges of early prototype compared to the final product after sewing.
2) folding the fur in and away from the edges as I sewed the seam of the body;
3) pulling out any hair that was sewn down, which was really tedious but ultimately incredibly worth it. His hair is glorious!
Above: Pulling out small sections of hairalong the seam.
I also made chicken feet for the first time, which had a lot of twists and turns and was an involved process. However, I’m really pleased with how they turned out, I think they add a lot of character.
Top Left: a foot in progress. Top Right: a finished foot. Middle: Dhou Fu with feet (left) versus the prototype (right). Bottom: Dhou Fu’s feet gripping my metal lamp base.
I think the most difficult part of this whole process was that at the end I decided to add buttons, like a crazy person. Here’s why:
After securing the LEDs and battery pack in place with stuffing, I began sewing in Dhou Fu’s legs. As I sewed them in place along the bottom line of the body, I became concerned that if I were to cut the seam open in the future to replace the batteries, I might compromise the seam holding his legs in place. I decided that having his bottom seam open instead with buttons would be a good way to keep everything in place but make the batter pack more accessible.
I did a test with a button and sewing a button hole on some scrap fabric, and once I felt confident that it would work, I made 3 button holes on one side of the opening, and added 3 buttons to the other side. I also “finished” the edges of the fabric openings with embroidery thread to give it a cleaner look.
The Future of Dhou Fu
With more time to work on Dhou Fu, I would replace the magnets in his right foot. They’re a little smaller than the magnets in his right foot, which I didn’t realize until I started working on the left foot, and the layers of fabric started interacting with them. In his left foot, I put stronger magnets, which fortunately are strong enough that he can hang from a metal object by just one foot if the right foot fails.
Above: Dhou Fu’s toe magnets in action.
Above 3 images: Dhou Fu’s toe magnets in action in various locations.
Dhou Fu’s Circuit:
Here’s a quick look at Dhou Fu’s circuit diagram, and the making process. On Becky’s advice, I used 2 blue LEDs to ensure that he was as bright from the back as he was from the front, as blue LEDs are fairly directional in the light that they emit, and I wanted to make sure his blue light was visible from all angles. Thanks Becky!
Dhou Fu Gallery: The Work in Progress
And lastly, here are some additional shots of the making process:
Above: Prototyping and testing feet shapes with stuffing and pipe cleaners.
Above: Preparing my work station.
Above Images: Cutting a larger pattern based on original prototype shape.
Above images: Finishing the feet and constructing the body.
Inspired by our solar system, the In-Orbit Night Light takes inspiration from the moon and the earths formation story. It is made for those who would like to feel connected to their loved ones, whether family, or platonic or romantic relationships. Each half is able to take this plush night light apart or bring it back together.
And for those interested, who might not have known about how the moon and earth orbit formed, this is how the story goes:
Before the moon and the earth, there was proto-Earth and the planet Theia. Around 4.5 Billion years ago these two planets collided and a chunk of the earth from the Pacific Ocean region flew off but luckily got caught in the earths orbital ring. While Theia practically melted away during this collision, the orbiting chunk, which we now call “Moon,” stayed in orbiting the Earth. Although the moon is orbiting away slowly from the earth, they still remain connected and pulled by each others forces. This story reminds us of our loved ones who might be distanced away from us but make us feel complete.
Overall building the circuit went well however, I wish I had better planned the wire lengths. By making them all the same they allowed little stretch when placing in my plush night light.
Making the Plush
Moon Stencil
Earth Stencil
I traced the moons void once I had made the plush with filling to get the most accurate earth stencil
Process
Laying out the Circuit and Magnet Pouches
Invisible Stitch
Testing Light
Earth Fabric Cut Out
Inside Magnet Pouches
Final
The outcome is one whole plush, or two plushes separately. If I were to do this again, I would try to make the earth chunk a little larger, and also maybe find a higher pile material. I was trying to create diffusion by placing the lights a little behind the earth to give a hair light effect. I did learn a lot about proportions during my first prototype so I am happy overall with the smoothness of the curves and also the colours and softness of the fabric.
Do you occasionally find yourself fumbling around in the middle of the night and still can’t find what you’re looking for?
This is a night light that can help you use at night and is convenient and portable.
You can bend it or hang it anywhere to help you use it.
Material Using
Different Fabrics
Metal Clasps Clip
Something Else
I should have used two LED bulbs!!
I should have used two LED bulbs!!
I should have used two LED bulbs!!
Circuit diagram
Process
Sew the body partPlace led bulbsSew the part that holds the battery box and switchblingblingCut the fabric to make the part that connects to the main bodySew them!Place metal connectionsThat’s it!!!
The mushroom plush nightlight is the perfect companion to brave the dark. Feel the warmth and magic glowing through this forest wonder. The mushroom plush can be placed on a bedside table or near the door to guide your way. While the red fabric is opaque, the white dots are made of a more translucent material to allow the nightlight to softly glow through the spots. They’re intentionally placed in clusters so that one side is brighter and the other, with fewer spots, is less bright. Rotate the mushroom depending on where you want the light directed.
For ages 5-99+!
Materials used: – Red & Beige Felt – Stuffing – Thread – 6 Yellow LEDs connected to a battery pack
Making the first prototype allowed me to experiment with designing a pattern and improving that pattern for the final product. I loved soldering the LEDs. I regret not using a lower resistor but I’m proud of my work. If I had more time, I would explore making the stem a detachable flashlight. I would also add more LEDs and spots.
