Tinkering

“projects, passion, peers, and play. In short, we believe the best way to cultivate creativity is to support people working on projects based on their passions, in collaboration with peers and in a playful spirit.” - Mitchel Resnick

Source: Urban Dictionary

My free time is filled with different types of tinkering and making activities- both for fun and to prepare for or reflect on teaching.

Below are some of the projects and experiments I've engaged with:

Mixed Media

Life is much less siloed than the way many of us teach and learn in schools. That's why I like projects- because they force you to think across disciplines- to apply your knowledge in one area, connect it to another, and bring this cumulative knowledge together to create something that's better than either of them on their own.

I love how it awakens my creative juices and forces me to learn new and valuable skills along the way.

7-Segment Digital Clock-

Laser cutting + Painting + Circuitry/Electronics + Vibe coding + AI

This project took a long time to make, and is actually still in the final stages (finding a good material to diffuse the light in each segment). I would not have been able to complete this without the recent developments in AI. The Python coding part (connecting the micro-controller to the wifi and to an existing online clock library; coding each LED in the string to show accurately; programming the push buttons to dim and change colors; and finally, adding an alarm clock function. I was so proud of myself to get this completed!

Cardboard

Cardboard is by far my favorite material to construct with- it's readily available, cheap, and easily moldable. So most of what you see here contains cardboard. Some have been upgraded to include technology in different ways.

Bob O'clock

My favorite home (school?!)-made animated character (BoB) as a wall clock. I recycled last year's Hannukristmas tree truck as the base and some clock dials I found somewhere as the belly button. Gotta love the simplicity!

Hannukristmas Tree

Lighting up the night is a Christmas / Hannuka tree combo...

Tree: cardboard, PVC pipe, Tanzanian fabric, Velcro, and some sewing. Covered with an LED strip and lasercut ornaments.

Hannukiya: Recycled MDF, LED strip, hot glue gun sticks, and an ESP-8266 microcontroller- Lights controlled by an app.

Backgammon/Checkers Board

I think I spent about 25-30 hours of work on this one. Growing up in Israel, I spent many hours and days playing this game. Living in Ethiopia, I felt like my life is incomplete without my own board!

Mobile: The Joker
Mobiles are a wonderfully delicate way to create balance. Inspired by Calder's ingenious creations and Picasso's perspective portraits, I made this one to marry the two together.

Game: Cribbage
While "stuck" on Zanzibar island for COVID, an acquaintance had a small Cribbage board. With lots of time on my hands, I went to work...

Game: Connect 5
A friend came over with a super fun new game. And left with it... So I made my own.

App Design

Poetry App:

Although I built some apps during my MA studies back in 2015, I finally found a good reason to explore new and exciting platforms and create some more meaningful ones.

I made this family poetry anthology for my partner's family. Some day it might include one of my own poems too... 😉

Makey Makey

Marble Maze: A cardboard construction connected to the Makey Makey. When the conductive marble hits particular contact points, the player earns or loses points.

Musical Instruments: Playing around with cardboard, here are a couple of musical instruments connected to the Makey Makey, and programmed using Scratch to play particular notes and sounds when contact points are pressed. Still looking to collaborate with other willing to create a Cardboard Makey Makey band!

Laser Cutting

Maps, Maps, Maps

When I first saw and bought a hand-cut map map of my hometown I knew it wasn't the last time these maps and I will interact...

Engraving on Painted Wood and Canvas

The process of spray painting several layers and then engraving a prepared image is tougher than I initially thought. It took a while to get some better results and I'm still working on improving my skills and designs.

The evolution of Hanuman

Invert an image
Engrave
Clean carefully
Apply gloss spray

Halloween Earrings

Some fun holiday earrings from 3mm MDF and black acrylic, then painted with acrylic paint.

Inspirational and Thoughtful Quotes

Engraved on aluminum business cards

Baby Mobile

A little gift for friends' welcoming of their newborn son. MDF, laser cutting/engraving, string and a dash of paint in a box.

Baobab Engraving

A gift for my partner, I drew this Baobab tree using Adobe Sketch and then I laser etched it on wood. There's a baobab poem I wrote written on the back.

Tanzania Nightscape
Leaving the incredible country of Tanzania was not easy. I made this departing gift for a colleague (and another one for myself...)

Game: Quoridor

I initially built this game out of cardboard, but with all the loose tiny little square pieces I needed a new plan. With a laser cutter, wood glue and some paint, I achieved my goal!

Mandala Earrings

This project was extremely satisfying not only because of the final product but mostly because it was so much fun to design these intricate geometric patterns.

Electronics and Circuitry

My father's primary job was an electrician. Growing up, I did not have much interest in his work. Becoming a design teacher, I regret every moment I spent away from him. So now I'm on my own creation-with-electricity journey. Still in its infancy, I plan to combine lots of materials, circuits, and programming into my projects.

Interactive Art:

Added some LEDs and a switch to this collage. Next step- add a motion sensor. When it senses movement, the lights go on and a voice calls the viewer to come closer. Some day soon this will be completed...

LED Peace Lamp

Playing around with different LEDs and acrylic engraving, this little lamp came to life...

LED Night Light
When you discover laser engraving on acrylic, there's nothing you can do about wanting one to stare at. This night light has a laser-cut box with carefully placed LEDs and a switch to lighten up the mandala (and other images)

LED Baobab

Living, working and traveling in Africa means you're going to be amazed by the majestic beauty of the baobab tree. With an LED randomizers and lots of rope over a discarded coffee can, I made one to soothe our evenings.