I wanted a unobtrusive light that could be run all the time to provide some illumination in my room even with the shade closed. I have been putting it off for a while but when I saw the Lamps and Lighting contest I knew I had to enter!

I am also entering in the Green design contest.

Every part of this light was recycled and I used LED lighting so I could run it all the time, so it draws very little power, it also uses a switch mode power supply which is very efficient.

Lets get started.

Step 1: Materials

You will need:

A piece of thin plywood or luan.

A PVC pipe

LED light strips (mine came from a friend and were saved from the dumpster, I don't know what they are exactly)

A Switch mode type transformer (mine came from a old printer and is 24v, that is the voltage of my LEDs)

Also

Epoxy

Hot Glue

Soldering Equipment

Step 2: Cut the Wood

I wanted the edges rounded so I marked it using the cap to my screw jar then cut it out on my scroll saw, (another tool I saved from the dumpster)

Sand the edges and surfaces smooth.

Step 3: Cut and Attach the Pipe

Sand any words off the PVC then cut two slices to however high you want the light to stand off the wall. I would not recommend my cutting method as it is hard to get straight. Sand any burrs off the pipe pieces.

Now mark the center of the board and Epoxy the pipes to the board.

Step 4: Paint

Paint both sides, paint the back white to help disperse light, paint the front to match your wall, or not, you can paint it another color, that might look cool.

Wait for the paint to dry. And don't forget to paint the edges.

Step 5: Wire It Up

Wiring will vary depending on your LEDs and power supply, so I will just show what I did for mine.

I cut the connector off as this light is going to be permanent and I don't need the power supply for anything else.

The little glass jar is stuffed with steel wool and makes a great soldering iron tip cleaner!

Step 6: Glue Lights Down

I glued the lights down with hot glue, then I finished soldering the second LED strip.

Step 7: Hang It Up!

Put a nail in the wall and hang the light by the top PVC pipe.

It looks great and provides just enough background light for my room. In the future I may do something about the wire.

I had an idea of making a wall fixture that looked much like this but had some sort of mirror/lens arrangement and had a base unit that sat on the floor and shone a laser into the fixture, the effect being that there is no visible wires and the light seems to come from the "light" itself. I may try this later.