Craftzine.com blog: Technology Archives

Archive: Technology

July 1, 2008

Fashioning Technology by Syuzi Pakhchyan - CRAFT Video Podcast

Download the MP4 Video or HD Version | Subscribe to CRAFT in iTunes

We are excited to announce a new book from CRAFT -- Fashioning Technology: A DIY Intro into Smart Crafting by Syuzi Pakhchyan, is available starting today. Learn how to take your craft projects to the next level with "smart" materials where you can create accessories, housewares, and toys that light up, make sounds, or do even more. Fashioning Technology offers jargon-free primers and lots of how-to projects that will have you making -- and even wearing -- functional works of art. Watch this special CRAFT Video Podcast and get a preview with Syuzi herself as she takes you through some of the fun projects!

Fashioningtechnologycover

Buy Fashioning Technology by Syuzi Pakhchyan in the Maker Shed today!

This book demonstrates how to blend sewing and assembly techniques with traditional electronics to assemble simple circuits using conductive thread, solder joints for snaps, and switches for buttons. With the sewing machine as a viable substitute for the soldering iron, you can craft a new generation of objects that are interactive, quirky, and fashion-conscious.

Look for Fashioning Technology Kits soon this Summer in the Maker Shed! For now, check out the rest of our CRAFT Kits.

June 24, 2008

HOW TO - Make a Turn Signal Bike Jacket

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Leah Buechley has a tutorial up on Instructables on how to make her turn signal bike jacket with Lilypad Arduino.

June 23, 2008

Mousepad Couch

Jonah @ MAKE writes:

This couch was built from hundreds of old mouse pads that were on their way to the garbage bin since newer optical mice don't need the pads for traction anymore. Rather than toss them, this maker decided to turn them into a spongy sofa that is perfect for the tech obsessed office.

Posted by Becky Stern | Jun 23, 2008 04:00 PM
Recycle, Technology | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email Entry

June 22, 2008

Laser Cut Text Scarves

Check out these scarves laser cut into letters and numbers. They're cut from strips of ultrasuede and are available in uppercase, lowercase, and numbers. Via Core77.

Posted by Becky Stern | Jun 22, 2008 12:00 PM
Fashion, Technology | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email Entry

June 17, 2008

Dig Dug Pillows

Found in the CRAFT Flickr Pool: These pillows use fabric pixel magic to recreate the characters from Dig Dug, one of my favorite old video games. I'm glad more people are starting to understand the connection between low-res and high-craft.

Posted by Becky Stern | Jun 17, 2008 04:00 PM
Quilting, Sewing, Technology | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email Entry

June 16, 2008

10 Minute Light-up Bracelet

Here's a quickie conductive thread project for those of you looking to get into electronic crafts. Take a sewable mimeolight and incorporate it into a bracelet. In your eleventh minute, figure out a better closure than a binder clip.

Posted by Becky Stern | Jun 16, 2008 04:00 PM
Fashion Tech, Technology | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email Entry

June 15, 2008

Plush Angry Router

I have a soft spot for plush technology, including this soft "Evil Router" by Flickr user craftytails. Via the CRAFT Flickr Pool.

Related:

Posted by Becky Stern | Jun 15, 2008 09:00 PM
Amigurumi and Toys, Technology | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email Entry

June 13, 2008

Knitting 2.0 Workshop at Thingamajigger in Seattle Tonight

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CRAFT friend Beth Goza will be doing a knitting + technology workshop tonight at Thingamajigger called "Knitting 2.0: How 'Hi-tech meets hand-spun' is changing the face of this traditional craft". Her workshop starts at 9:30pm but come early for all the fun beforehand. (Pictured above is a knit jellyfish Beth made from Hansigurumi's kit.)
Beth writes:

[ It ] focuses on how the rise of the social web has influenced the knitting community and opened the craft to an amazing number of new possiblities. whether it's etsy, ravelry, craft or the umpteen knitting blogs- there are an endless amount of resources to blow your mind with regards to what people are doing with fiber these days. if you are interested in stopping by and hanging out, i invite you to bring a laptop, some needles & yarn, and tons of ideas for how you can kick start your own creative adventures.

Thingamajigger is a party celebrating the innovative Pacific Northwest tech community presented by Waggle Labs and O'Reilly Media. Brady at O'Reilly Radar also reports there will be a silk screening demo happening too!

Friday June 13th, 7:30pm - 1am
911 Media Arts Center
402 9th Avenue N
in South Lake Union
$10 presale, 15$ at door, 21+ only

Polyvore for Crafters

Like many kids, I loved playing with paper dolls--and over the last week or so I've been indulging in a similar sort of fun with the site Polyvore. What's Polyvore, you ask?

Polyvore is a unique, easy-to-use web-based application for mixing and matching products from any online store. Items are pulled together into a visual set of products that can be shared with anyone. Each product within the set is then linked back to the online store where it is available for purchase.

Crafters have been getting in on the fun by using Polyvore's "Clip to Polyvore" tool to upload their own items users can then play with (see the Monica Burnett Hats and Naughty Secretary Club groups, for example), and I love the idea of handmade goods by independent designers being included in the over 1 million products featured on Polyvore. It's an interesting from a marketing standpoint, sure, but playing with Polyvore is also just plain fun.

Here's a set I made called "Crafternoon", which features some personal faves like Mohop Shoes (featured in our latest issue, which also appears in the set), a boygirlparty notepad, and some pins by Happy Owl Glassworks. To see the full list of set credits, click here.

June 6, 2008

Electronic Embroidery - CRAFT Video Podcast

Download the MP4 Video or HD Version | Subscribe to CRAFT in iTunes

In this video I'll show you how to enhance your embroidery projects with illumination. I use conductive thread, a watch battery, and two light-emitting diodes (LEDs) to create a scene of a frog catching fireflies.

You can download the PDF pattern with traceable frog & firefly design, wiring diagram, and embroidery color separation. Check out the photo tutorial on my website, too (with parts list and links to supplies).

If you saw my demo at Maker Faire, this is a chance to get up close and personal with the project. Look for an Electronic Embroidery Kit soon in the Maker Shed Store!

Posted by Becky Stern | Jun 6, 2008 11:00 AM
101, Arts, CRAFT Podcast, Needlearts, Technology, Video | Permalink | Comments (1) | Email Entry

June 5, 2008

HOW TO - Crafty Baby Mobile

This baby mobile is a more complex than it appears at first glance. It has light-up stars and paper cranes. The best part is that insctructibles user kazaam shows you how to make your own.

Posted by Becky Stern | Jun 5, 2008 02:00 PM
Babies, Kids, Paper Crafts, Recycle, Technology | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email Entry

June 2, 2008

HOW TO - Pixels to Painting

Will at Wubbahed writes:

Every year on vacation I like to do a big arts/crafts project. This year, I came up with a system that lets me turn digital photos into plans to make a painting of that photo.

This fantastic tutorial guides you through the image manipulation and painting process. I love it when artists use digital tools to make traditional work.

Posted by Becky Stern | Jun 2, 2008 02:00 PM
Arts, Digital Design and Photography, Technology | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email Entry

May 29, 2008

Game Boy Plushie

Lauren makes these felt game boy softies. I can't wait to see this as a wireless NES controller! (Thanks, Collin!)

Related:

Nintendo Gameboy Car Mirror Ornaments

Posted by Becky Stern | May 29, 2008 11:00 AM
Amigurumi and Toys, Technology | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email Entry

May 19, 2008

Electronic Taxidermy Exhibit

Shannon O'Neill has made a natural history exhibit with moving and light-up creatures for a more life-like experience. Called The How + the Why, Shannon describes the project:

I was inspired by vintage How + Why Wonder books to create a fictional natural history museum display with animated creatures. Each creature is a combination of real taxidermy, hand-sculpture, and electronics. For example, the deep-sea fish is a taxidermy piranha thats jaw was broken off and repositioned at a lower angle with sculpted teeth (among other changes). The butterflies flap their wings, the fish becomes illuminated, and the turtle reveals its second head from within its shell. They are all controlled by hidden Arduino boards.

This piece is part of the undergraduate Design & Technology thesis exhibition for Parsons the New School for Design, and can be seen at the Chelsea Art Museum until the 24th of May. I sure would be more likely to go to the natural history museum if the creatures moved! Looks like Shannon has a bright future in exhibit design innovation.

Parsons BFA Communication Design & Technology Thesis Exhibition

Chelsea Art Museum

Tues-Sat 11-6

556 W 22nd St (corner of 11th Ave)

New York, NY

Posted by Becky Stern | May 19, 2008 04:00 PM
Arts, Events, Technology | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email Entry

May 10, 2008

ITP Spring Show

Don't miss the ITP Spring Show 2008, where there's sure to be projects galore with wearable electronics and other crafty smarts!

Monday, May 12 and Tuesday, May 13

from 5 to 9pm at ITP

A two-day festival of interactive sight, sound and technology from the student artists and innovators at ITP.

An oversized Greenwich Village loft houses the computer labs, rotating exhibitions, and production workshops that are ITP -- the Interactive Telecommunications Program. Founded in 1979 as the first graduate education program in alternative media, ITP has grown into a living community of technologists, theorists, engineers, designers, and artists uniquely dedicated to pushing the boundaries of interactivity in the real and digital worlds. A hands-on approach to experimentation, production and risk-taking make this hi-tech fun house a creative home not only to its 230 students, but also to an extended network of the technology industry's most daring and prolific practitioners.

Interactive Telecommunications Program

Kanbar Institute of Film and Television

Tisch School of the Arts

New York University

721 Broadway, 4th Floor, South Elevators

New York NY 10003

Take the left elevators to the 4th Floor

This event is free and open to the public

No need to RSVP

Posted by Becky Stern | May 10, 2008 11:00 AM
Arts, Events, Fashion Tech, Technology | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email Entry

May 9, 2008

Emma Jane Hogbin on Women in Open Source

Emma Jane Hogbin talks about why and how to get women involved in the free and open source software movement, which is typically dominated by men. Interesting even if you don't write code, as she's an avid crafter, too. She even designed and knitted Drupal socks. (Thanks, Patti!)

Posted by Becky Stern | May 9, 2008 04:00 PM
General, Knitting, Technology | Permalink | Comments (1) | Email Entry

May 6, 2008

Computer Cord Cozy

Etsy seller pingo makes these cord cozies for your laptop power supply. Custom orders for color and length are accepted. I've been making these cover the cables for my video installations for years so that they fit in with the aesthetic of the piece.Via Core77.

Posted by Becky Stern | May 6, 2008 04:00 PM
Fashion Tech, Knitting, Tech Accessories, Technology | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email Entry

Phone Coil Sheep

Check out this herd of sheep sculptures made of phones, phone parts, and phone coils. They seem to be wired up to the wall, so I wonder if they ring! (Thanks, Frank!)

Posted by Becky Stern | May 6, 2008 02:00 PM
Arts, Technology | Permalink | Comments (1) | Email Entry

May 5, 2008

LED Cape

Andrew "Bruce" Lau made this amazing LED cape and wore it around Maker Faire all weekend. I caught up with him to chat about it, and he said that Leah Buechley's LED tank top was a huge inspiration. He used her suggested technique of soldering metal beads to surface mount LEDs and stitching them in a grid using conductive thread. Controlled by a PIC microcontroller, the cape scrolls letters saying "MAKE" and "DIY as well as traveling patterns.

From the pages of CRAFT:

CRAFT: 01 - "The Electric Tank Top," by Leah Buechley pgs 54 - 67. Digital Subscribers can read the article here.

Posted by Becky Stern | May 5, 2008 02:00 PM
Fashion Tech, Maker Faire, Technology | Permalink | Comments (2) | Email Entry

April 30, 2008

Soft Circuit Embroidery Demo at Maker Faire

I'll be running a demo at 11am on Saturday at Maker Faire on how to sew/embroider a simple circuit using conductive thread, an LED, and a watch battery. This is a beginner's level demo, so don't worry if you've never embroidered or never touched electronics. I look forward to seeing you there!

Maker Faire is a two-day, family-friendly event that celebrates the Do-It-Yourself (DIY) mindset May 3rd and 4th at the San Mateo Fairgrounds, CA (Upcoming.org). It's for creative, resourceful people of all ages and backgrounds who like to tinker and love to make things.

If you're in the Bay Area, or plan to attend Maker Faire add "makerfaire" to your Twitter, we'll be giving away tickets and will have updates before and during Maker Faire!

Posted by Becky Stern | Apr 30, 2008 04:00 PM
Arts, Events, Fashion Tech, Maker Faire, Needlearts, Technology | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email Entry

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Current Podcast

Fashioning Technology by Syuzi Pakhchyan - CRAFT Video Podcast Download the MP4 Video or HD Version | Subscribe to CRAFT in iTunes We are excited to announce a new book from CRAFT -- Fashioning Technology: A DIY Intro into Smart Crafting by Syuzi Pakhchyan, is available starting today.... More...