For this little test, I scavenged some optic fiber from a hair glowby and a light weight scarf. First I threaded the fiber into the fabric, which was surprisingly easy. Then I made a makeshift connector with a little tape, which held one end of the fiber close to and led light. And voila!
I'll have to find some more flexible fiber, if I'm going to continue with this. To survive a wearable garment, the fiber needs to be more durable.
Saturday, March 13, 2010
my prototype from soft circuit workshop
Ooh! Grace posted a photo of my protoype on her flickr feed.
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Stitching Together a Neoprene Laptop Sleeve

making myself a new laptop sleeve

stitched together with embroidery thread

chain-stitching on the neoprene surface.
Sewing through two layers of neoprene, by hand, was a little tough. But it wasn't too bad. A nice sharp needle came in very handy. Embroidering a chain stitch on the surface of the neoprene was much easier.
I'm fairly happy with the results, but will probably make another one with thicker neoprene for more padding and protection.
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Upcoming Soft Circuit Workshops at GAFFTA!
Woohoo! The first soft circuit workshop was such a success that they're doing it again! Grace Kim is a rock star! So much information. If you're in San Francisco, and you're interested in soft circuits, this is a great workshop to get you started. I understand that there are also more advanced workshops in the works.
Check out the time lapse video they did of the last workshop. Can you spot me? Hint, I'm wearing black and I'm not always sitting in the same spot. Ha!
Check out the time lapse video they did of the last workshop. Can you spot me? Hint, I'm wearing black and I'm not always sitting in the same spot. Ha!
Soft Circuit Workshop Timelapse from GAFFTA on Vimeo.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
making a neoprene holder for coin cell battery

"threading" conductive fabric through the neoprene

making contact with coin cell battery

testing with an LED

hooking up contact points

holding the halves together while testing
I found diagrams online, which were very helpful.
The trickiest part was figuring out how to make the gap I was seeing in diagrams. I cut two slots in the neoprene and "threaded" the conductive fabric through them. Thinking about the circuit helped me understand the structure. The battery needs to touch one part of the fabric and yet be isolated from the other end of it.
Testing with direct contact of an LED worked great. At each step, I stopped and checked the circuit. I also tested with jumper cables.
I can't help but think that if my physics labs had been this much fun, I'd have done a lot better in my physics classes.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
San Francisco Soft Circuits Club?
Wondering if there's anyone local (San Francisco) who's interested in meeting up every now and then for a modern quilting bee, where we all bring our own soft circuit projects and hang out?
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Cell Kits on Makers Market
Woohoo! We were accepted into the curated Makers Market!
There's the cell project, right there on the front page of the market!
The Makers Market is still in beta, so I don't really know what to expect. But I'm very excited! alpharabbit.makersmarket.com
There's the cell project, right there on the front page of the market!
The Makers Market is still in beta, so I don't really know what to expect. But I'm very excited! alpharabbit.makersmarket.com
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