Introduction: Happiness in a Pill

By www.flickr.com/mattoons
About: "Almost Toast"

Forsooth Instructabrarians!

Here's a nostalgia trip for 90's fans.  Remember those dimestore Magic Grow animals and dinosaurs that you got when you would find in Safeway when you were a kid?  They came in blister packages and You would put them in water and then after a few seconds they would suddenly burst into a creative foam creature? And then sometimes you would laugh as someone mistook them for medicine and then swallowed them? Classic.

Well, as it turns out, somethings never get old.  After spending a few hours at the SAN FRANCISCO TECH SHOP, yes, I MADE IT AT TECH SHOP, I have successfully recreated this childhood past time, but with my own creative designs.  Thus we have my childhood Happiness In A Pill. For Emergencies Only!

Step 1: Inspiration

Magic Grow toys always fascinated me as a kid.  Not because I thought they were amazingly complicated or astounding, but by how simple they were.  Even as a child I knew they were basically just sponges haphazardly shoved inside a disposable capsule.  Nothing really groundbreaking here.

And yet, I still found them totally AWESOME.  So when I decided to make my own, I decided to create ones with some of my more adult interests now to continue my childhood fascination.



Step 2: Materials and Parts

Depending on the kind of tools you have at your disposal, this can either be a really easy instructable to a mildly challenging one.  

There's really only two things you need for this project:
  • Off the counter, non prescription medicine (ie Echinacea)
  • Industrial Packaging Foam (or some kind of material that can fit inside a small capsule)
The only real challenge comes to what object you want inside the capsule.  In order to get the precise shapes I wanted for my foam, i ended up laser cutting them out from a giant block using'TECH SHOP's laser cutter.  

However, if you want to make a much more simple instant grow pill, you can also write messages on plastic grocery bags and stuff them in instead.

Step 3: How It Works

The process for this instructable is simple.  
  1. Carefully open up your "placebo medicine" capsule, removing the material inside the capsule without breathing any of it in (it's horribly foul).  Do not cut pill open, do not use scissors.  It must be able to be closed afterwards.
  2. Using a small stick, or something similar, shove your foam object inside the capsule.  
  3. Close capsule carefully
  4. Get a bowl/ glass of hot water and place pill inside
  5. Watch the Magic Happen!

Step 4: Conclusion

I love this project.  It was exceptionally fun to make, and while the process wasn't particularly difficult this project never ceases to bring joy.  Horrible joy, the kind that screaming kids feed on continuously.  

Anyway, spread the love with this projects!  Go make a happy Mac Icon in a pill for your computer company excursion!  Make a plethora of instant Cthulu monsters for your literary club!  Or, even better, use this pill to propose to a friend.

SHIFT!