New Guide: Frozen-Inspired Temperature-Sensing Pendant

Elsa with her Gizmo

The latest tutorial from Erin St. Blaine will teach you how to make a Frozen II inspired pendant for your young maker friend (or for you and your own sweet style) featuring elemental images that change based on the temperature of the air. The TFT Gizmo inside the pendant will display a snowflake when it’s cold, a spinning leaf image when it’s warm, and a lovely purple flame when it’s hot. From the guide:

Discover your inner Snow Queen with this temperature sensing pendant. Invoke the elements of snow, air, and fire using your breath or body heat (or your Ice Queen Superpowers). The pendant will display a snowflake, a spinning leaf, or a lovely purple flame animation depending on the warmth of the air.

Inspired by the elemental spirits in Disney’s Frozen II movie, this pendant will be sure to inspire and excite any Queen Elsa fans, and add an element of magic to your cosplay or halloween costume.

This project uses Adafruit’s TFT Gizmo, a Circuit Playground Bluefruit, and a 3d printed case. There’s no soldering or coding involved — just a few screws to tighten, and a couple files to upload — so it’s a wonderful beginner project if you’re just starting out in the world of electronic cosplay, or if you have a young helper who’s getting interested in making stuff.

Check out the full tutorial on the Adafruit Learning System here: Frozen-Inspired Animated Temperature Sensing Pendant Guide

New Guide: 3d Printed Glowing Scale Armor

3d printed mesh armor

Check out the latest tutorial from Erin St. Blaine: design and create 3d printed mesh “armor” and make it glow! From the guide:

Design and create glowing scales in your favorite shape and add NeoPixel strand lights inside for a stunning display of animated lights.

These are so easy to add to any costume or design. This guide shows you how to create your design in TinkerCad, a free online 3D design program. You can print your armor at home or use an online printing service. Hot-glue a strand of NeoPixels inside and control your project with a Gemma M0 or microcontroller of your choice.

The guide includes sample designs using a heart shape, as well as a mermaid scale shape, and instructions on how to create your own design in the shape of your choice. It also includes a 3d printable enclosure design for your Gemma M0 and battery.

See the full build tutorial here: https://learn.adafruit.com/glowing-scale-armor/overview

New Guide: Paper Craft Crystal Gems Tutorial #cosplay #stevenuniverse

New tutorial from Erin St. Blaine: create amazing cosplay glowing crystal gems!  From the guide:

Crystal Gems will always save the day!

Create a stunning paper craft crystal from laminated cellophane wrap. Add NeoPixels and watch it sparkle!

We’ve included two different build sizes in this tutorial — one crystal large enough to house a Circuit Playground Express, and one with a single NeoPixel illuminating the crystal. This project can be run from a battery for cosplay applications (the crystal on Gandalf’s staff perhaps?) or plugged in to the wall via USB for a more permanent installation.

We’ve also included a Steven Universe Warp-Pad 3D printable base, so your Crystal Gems can be displayed in style. The possibilities are endless!

We love these gems. They’re easy to make with a few easily found tools. The main ingredient is cellophane gift wrap that’s been run through a laminating machine, which creates a perfect material for paper crafting — stiff enough to hold up but easy to cut with scissors or a utility knife. You can also get fancy and use a vinyl cutting machine to create perfect gems in multiple sizes. 3d print a base, or use the gem in a hanging lamp, or place it on top of your staff for a Gandalf-style cosplay. Such a cool project!

Full tutorial: https://learn.adafruit.com/paper-craft-crystal-gem-lantern