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DIY
Photo Geekery
02 years ago
This is amazing! Now I am totally regretting not taking all of the DVD players my friends have tried to give me over the years!I totally wish I could take credit for this, but it comes to you from me from our friends at DIY Photography
Super Macro Your Cellphone Camera With A DVD Lens
1. Lensectomy Your old DVD Player
First thing is to get a lens for your camera phone. Make sure your old DVD player is not connected to power. Then take the screws off. This is a great way to void your warranty. It is also dangerous and you should really never do this.
Anyhow, if you went against my advice, you’ll find the lens under the place where the disk goes. Take it out.
2. Prepare A Lens Mount
Ok, I’m only kidding on this one. You don’t really need a lens mount, you can use duct tape if you wanna go really ghetto or mount it on some cardboard.
If you opt for the cardboard option, just make a round hole in the cardboard.
3. Mount Your Lens
Just use some duct tape (as indicated before) to mount your lens directly, use or blue Tack to hold the card mount.
4. Macro Away
WOW. This is some powerful macro. Enjoy.
If you try this out, let us know how it worked for you!
~kim
Kink In Motion
DIY… Sunday? Pretty Flowers!
12 years ago
by Jackie Bagwell
in DIY
Sorry for the delayed post this weekend; busy jackie is busy.
But so anyway.. here I am, about to go to some awesome shindig, and don’t know what to do with this mess of hair of mine… BUT.. i have this awesomely shiny red fabric.. so let’s make something -
Here, I shall grasp the beloved plastic cup, lay the fabric flat (shiny-side down), and trace some circles on the back of the fabric with a pen. Then cut these out. Important things to know: the fabric needs to be something synthetic that will melt, not burn (seriously). Additionally, I cut four circles, two larger ones, two smaller ones. Then, proceeded to cut four slits in each circle toward the center, but not all the way to the center:
click to enlarge this or any of the following photos
click to enlarge this or any of the following photos
Here comes the fun part.. We’re going to take a votive candle, and literally burn the edges of each circles, down the seam of the slits, so that they wilt into a flower petal pattern. It’s important to NOT SET YOUR FABRIC ON FIRE. ..just hold it within close proximity of the flame, not IN the flame, and carefully wilt the edges:
Now, we’re going to stack those four petal rings on top of each other, and using a double-threaded needle, just sew these together in the center. I used black thread, so that it looks sort of like a shiny poppy. Then, very simply, just take a plain black bobby pin, and slide the top of the bobby pin underneath the thread on the bottom of the flower:
and VOILA!!
Now I’m ready to go to the par– …okay, you caught me. I’ll be sitting here writing html code all night.. but there’s no reason I can’t be cute in the process. And seriously.. my dog has already seen my happy octopus bow*
ENJOY! And as always.. if you have comments, questions, or requests about DIY Saturdays, leave a note! If you do one of these little crafts yourself, we absolutely want to see pictures!
DIY Saturday: Double Dose
32 years ago
by Jackie Bagwell
in DIY
So, let’s start with a story. Don’t worry.. it’s a short one. About a week or so ago, a friend of mine posted a link to this REALLY cool-looking Rising Sun belt buckle:
Pretty, right? I know. We were both lusting after it. Turns out, the damn thing is about $40 with shipping. You know what? Screw that. Time to brush off the creativity. I went ahead and got two blank belt buckles off of eBay for less than $5 each. The rest of the tools, I had laying around. These came just the other day:
So I busted out the spray paint:
Laid the buckles out over an old magazine [totally a ThinkGeek magazine], and first sprayed them black.. this is spray paint that specifically bonds with metal:
Once those dried, I took out the painter’s tape.. covered them completely, then cut out the shape of the red in the Rising Sun with an X-Acto knife to make a stencil. You can use a ruler and such and mark it out if you want, but I went ahead and did it free-hand. Like a boss. -
Laid those out again, and sprayed on two coats of red:
After that dried, I carefully peeled off the stencil, touched up any lines with red/black paint pens, then took a sheet of sandpaper to it. To get that weathered look similar to the original, I softly sanded down the edges of the buckle, and across the face of the buckle [very gently]. Then, to set the design, coated it with a spray-on gloss/sealant. What do you guys think:
click to enlarge
First, follow those same steps with the liquid latex and the stretched-out cotton, but form the cotton into an oval shape, and with a wide, flat-tipped object (I used a small screwdriver), poke the shape of tooth marks into the cotton while it’s still wet. Then dust this with baby powder to set, and cover with foundation make-up to match the color to your own skin tone:
click to enlarge
You’ll notice how that third image has color on it. Using a paintbrush and red and blue cream make-up (in very small amounts), I dabbed the blue first within the teeth marks, and in a circular pattern within the bite, and along the outside. Then went over the blue with red.. creating a bruising look. Honestly.. that’s really all there is to it.
After this, I added a little bit of fake blood to make it look particularly gruesome:
That’s all I’ve got for you guys today. Have any follow-up questions or requests for DIY Saturdays? Post them here! Enjoy your weekend.
♥ Jackie
DIY Saturday: Luke Skywalker Pinata
12 years ago
by Jackie Bagwell
in DIY
Happy Saturday!
Now, I have a project coming to you guys, but seeing this, I simply cannot resist relaying it for today’s DIY project:
That’s right. A Luke Skywalker pinata, complete with lightsaber, severed hand, and gore.
See the full tutorial here. And if you make your very own little Star Wars party.. for the love of all things nerdy, we will NEED to see pictures.
As always, if you have any requests for DIY: Saturday posts, feel free to leave a comment, or even contact me directly at Jackie@ashtoberfest.com.
DIY Saturday: FLESHWOUNDS!!
62 years ago
Hush, it’s still Saturday.
Ever wonder how to make a realistic-looking fleshwound with stage make-up? With Halloween coming up and Cons all over the place, I’m here to help you out. Let’s make a bullet hole! Click on any of these images to see them bigger. Here’s what you’ll need:
baby powder, dark pink/red powder make-up, blue cream make-up, fake blood, liquid latex, cotton swabs, make-up that matches your skin tone, tissues, aspirin pills, and applicators.
Step One -
With the liquid latex, spread a thin layer over the area of skin you will build the actual “hole” on. Then, using either pulled-apart cotton swabs/balls or tissue, dip small shreds into the liquid latex, and press into a the shape of a circle around the specified area:
With the liquid latex, spread a thin layer over the area of skin you will build the actual “hole” on. Then, using either pulled-apart cotton swabs/balls or tissue, dip small shreds into the liquid latex, and press into a the shape of a circle around the specified area:
Step Two -
With a blush brush, dust the area with baby powder to set and dry the latex. Next, sponge on foundation make-up to match the color of the latex with your skin tone.
With a blush brush, dust the area with baby powder to set and dry the latex. Next, sponge on foundation make-up to match the color of the latex with your skin tone.
Step Three -
Using the blue cream paint, sponge and blend a tiny bit of blue around the sides of the edges of the ring:
the reason for this being that when your skin breaks, so do the blood vessels around that break, causing bruising. same with the next step
Using the blue cream paint, sponge and blend a tiny bit of blue around the sides of the edges of the ring:
the reason for this being that when your skin breaks, so do the blood vessels around that break, causing bruising. same with the next step
Step Four -
Repeat the same thing with the dark pink/red powder:
Repeat the same thing with the dark pink/red powder:
Step Five -
Next, we’re going to coat this entire area in fake blood. Now, the fake blood is VERY important. A lot of brands stay sticky and wet, and also have either an orange or pink tint. This is BAD. If there’s one thing I’ve learned in years of organizing zombie events, it’s where to find the best fake blood. Bloody Mary’s “Vampire Blood” not only stays in the deep red range, it coagulates and dries like real blood (I’m totally realizing how creepy this truly is right now). For this, grab a cotton swab, drown it in fake blood, and spread it within the circular area:
Next, we’re going to coat this entire area in fake blood. Now, the fake blood is VERY important. A lot of brands stay sticky and wet, and also have either an orange or pink tint. This is BAD. If there’s one thing I’ve learned in years of organizing zombie events, it’s where to find the best fake blood. Bloody Mary’s “Vampire Blood” not only stays in the deep red range, it coagulates and dries like real blood (I’m totally realizing how creepy this truly is right now). For this, grab a cotton swab, drown it in fake blood, and spread it within the circular area:
Step Six -
Here’s the fun part. Remember that hammer we used in the banana making post? Let’s bust that out again. Those random aspirin pills in our list of ingredients.. we’re going to put those in a ziploc bag, and crush those up with the hammer. These will be used to push into the inside walls of the fake wound to look like bone fragments. This will stick right to the blood and latex:
Here’s the fun part. Remember that hammer we used in the banana making post? Let’s bust that out again. Those random aspirin pills in our list of ingredients.. we’re going to put those in a ziploc bag, and crush those up with the hammer. These will be used to push into the inside walls of the fake wound to look like bone fragments. This will stick right to the blood and latex:
LAST Step -
With the fake blood, water it down just a bit to make it nice and drippy, bust out the cotton swabs one more time, and dab the sodden cotton swab inside the wound until it drips down. Let this drip as much or little as you’d like:
With the fake blood, water it down just a bit to make it nice and drippy, bust out the cotton swabs one more time, and dab the sodden cotton swab inside the wound until it drips down. Let this drip as much or little as you’d like:
AND THERE YOU HAVE IT. A realistic-looking fake wound to freak out whomever you’d like.
Have any suggestions or requests for DIY Saturdays? Leave them in the comments, and we’ll put them on the list! And here’s a link to that little video blurb for this post. Go scare your co-workers!
♥ Jackie
Nerd Nom’ing
32 years ago
Have you ever seen Arrested Development? Well.. I was watching it the other day, and naturally.. got a hankering for a Bluth Frozen Banana.. Unfortunately for me, there is no banana stand at the corner of my street.. Soooo… Macgyvering it was the next best option.
Here’s how to make yourself a tasty, frozen summer snack.. with what you probably have laying around the kitchen. The night before, I took three bananas, unpeeled them, wrapped them like cigars in wax paper, and stuck them in the freezer.
Here’s what you’ll need: your frozen bananas, chocolate chips, something microwaveable to melt the chocolate in, peanuts, and a plate/tray for your peanuts.
Now… with those chocolate chips, we’re going to melt those the quick and easy way.. so put those in the microwave on MEDIUM heat for 2 minutes.. you’ll just barely see the chips start to get glossy. Then, mix these up with a fork- they will melt as you stir them. If you need to melt these more [or need to reheat them at anytime during your banana shenanigans], put them back in the microwave [still at 50% heat] for no more than 20 second increments at a time.
As for the peanuts.. suuuure, you can get crushed peanuts. And suuuure, even if you have whole peanuts, you can crush them with a culinary mullet or whatever.. but screw that. I felt like using a REAL hammer.. so while the chocolate is melting, crush your peanuts the badass way: put them in a ziploc bag, and BEAT them with a hammer. Have fun. Then pour them into your peanut tray/plate.
LOOKS LIKE YOU’RE ALL READY TO GO…
Here comes the messy part.
One banana at a time… first dip it in the chocolate:
Once it’s coated.. move it on over to the peanuts:
That really is all there is to it.. Now you have your very own Bluth Frozen Banana (or in my case, Bagwell Frozen Banana) to sink your teeth into!
DAAAAAMMMMNNN TASTY.
Happy Banana’ing!
♥Jackie
