This is my first Instructable! I've recently been reading a lot about LEDs and about simple LED Altoids flashlights and I got inspired one day (after cooking a deelish fritata) to incorporate eggs into the whole LED-Altoid-lovefest. I wanted to make something that looks simple yet could pass for something "classy."

What I came up with was this Eggcellent Night Light. It's minimalistic. It looks modern. It also shares some creepy Pagan relic "lunar" qualities.

MATERIALS:
(1) large white egg
(1) mint tin box - just the bottom half
(1) double AA battery pack
(1) white LED 3+volts
(2) AA batteries
(1) slide or push switch with two leads
(1) black paint or black spray paint

TOOLS:
-glue gun
-awl/screwdriver
-soldering iron
-metal punch or drill
-chopstick

Step 1: Let the Hollowing Commence!

There are oodles of way to empy an egg. I'm used to the poke-a-hole-on-top-and-on-bottom-and-blow-through-one-hole-to-force-the-yolk-out method. Call me old-fashioned. But it's really crucial for the egg to have only one hole and it has to be at the bottom.

(optional step)
If you are not confident with yourself in guesstimating where the bottom of the egg is, take a small piece of paper, color it with colored chalk, and place the egg upright on the paper. The chalk should mark where the utmost bottom is.
(/optional step)

Use an awl or small screwdriver to tap/carve a hole at the bottom of the egg. Once a tiny hole is made, start tapping along the circumfrence of the hole to make it larger until the hole reaches 1/4in in diameter.

Due to pressure and surface tension, the yolk and white of the egg doesn't just come gushing out. I found out that the most efficient way is to stick a chopstick in the whole and just move it in and out to let the innards leak out fairly quickly.

Rinse the inside with water and let dry.

Step 2: Prepping the Tin Base

Take apart the mint tin box by prying the hinges loose. The bottom, deeper part will be your base. Make two holes (using drill or metal punch); one hole at the very center of the tin, one near a corner for the switch. The hole in the center should measure 1/4in in diameter, and the size of the hole for the switch will be dependant on which switch you use.

(optional step)
I decided to sand and file the holes so that they're flatter. I also sanded the outer surface of the tin for a more matte texture. It also helps for the paint to stick.
(/optional step)

Paint the outer surface black. I used some leftover Warhammer 40k "Chaos Black" paint. Let dry.

Step 3: Meet My Soldering Iron of Justice

This project requires a simple circuit with one LED.

Remember, the positive lead of the LED should be the longer one. The positive lead also has a smaller head *in* the build.

Do not solder yet. Make sure everything fits first. The battery pack door for batteries should sit in the tin on the exposed side.

Solder the switch into the circuit first and leave the LED bulb last. String the wires through the center hole of the base from the bottom, and fit the switch in the switch hole.

Use a glue gun or clear glue cement to glue the battery pack to the in the base.

Step 4: Finishing Touches

After the base is pretty much all done with the battery pack all snug, it's time to solder the LED light to the wires. The lenth of the wires + LED coming out from the pase should be 1/2in to 1in long. The closer the LED light is to the base, the more even the light would be in the egg.

Now for the last thing...*drum roll*....

Place a few beads of hot glue in the center hole to secure the light and wire. Sit the egg on top of the tin with the LED light and wires placed in the egg. Hold the egg down for a few minutes to stabilize while the glue dries.

..and voila! Your own totally eggcellent pagan-esque night light! Or give it to a friend as a wanky artsy fartsy housewarming present!

PS. The photographs don't show the eerie bluish glow of the egg caused by the natural lining of the egg. It's quite exquisite. Nature's cool!

PPS. If the egg breaks or has an unsightly crack, don't fear, just break it off and glue another hollowed egg.