Geek Crafts!
| Published 10/08/04

 


Graphic by: Jenny Conner
Got some old or broken equipment laying around? Don't throw it away! Get creative! In this article, we'll discuss five different ways to get crafty, geek-style.

1. Hardware Key chains
Without a doubt, this is the simplest of the geeky craft projects. A favorite of many is to take an old stick of RAM and run a key ring through the hole in the corner. Others have tried different approaches, including old Pentiums on key rings (make sure to remove the pins first, or accidentally sitting on your keys could be a most unpleasant experience), the "play" button off a VCR, or anything you can think of, really.

2. Media Coasters
A corrupted floppy disk makes a great coaster by itself, but a little glue goes a long way. Break apart the plastic and discard the disk inside. Flip the two pieces inside out and glue them together so that both outsides face each other. For extra credit, use jewel-colored translucent floppies and colored glue. For a less creative approach, check your mail for another "30 hours free AOL!" CD. These too make great coasters. 3. Magnets and Poetry I recently managed to ruin a perfectly good USB Mac keyboard by getting "Wal-Mart All-Purpose Cleaning Spray" in it. The purple cleanser rendered the keyboard completely worthless as an input device, but its journey has not yet ended. Glue magnets to the backs of keyboard keys using a hot glue gun to create unusual letters and words for refrigerator magnetic poetry. No geek kitchen is complete without a fridge that says, "You cannot ESC, I CTRL you!"

4. Household Hard Drives
You can make a clock with a clock kit and an old Hard Drive (clock kits are available for purchase at stores like Lowes, or at Hobby Shops). Broken or "too small to bother" hard drives can also be used as bookends or paperweights. Additionally, Hard drive magnets are very powerful, and have a number of uses, such as finding studs behind drywall, or loose change in a couch.

5. After The Computer Moves Out...
Empty cases and CRT's can be used as new homes for pets. Cut a few large windows into an empty PC case (or use one with windows already in it), and it becomes a cage for a turtle or hamster. Put a hamster wheel inside and you're witty, name your hamster "Beowulf," and you're a riot. A similar and popular project is the "Mac-quarium," in which old all-in-one Mac̀s are turned into fully functioning aquariums. A collection of pictures (some with instructions) is located here.

 

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