Introduction: LED Wall Sign

About: just fun stuff ;)

Simple and Fun Project to make in your free time!

Step 1: Materials

3 Picture Frames(8x10) I got mine from the dollar store

Solder w/ Iron

Wire(pretty thin)

Scissors and wire cutter

Tape measure or ruler

Leds(any color)

Resistors

3 9V batteries

Tape(electrical, clear, and copper conductive)

Super Glue(I'm using Gorilla glue and E6000)

Spray Paint(any color is fine)

Paper

Pencil

Thin cutting blade

Step 2: Basic Run Over of Project

There are 3 major steps in this project

1. The LED circuit set up

2. The print and paint of the glass

3. The glueing of the frames

The last step of course is putting everything together

Step 3: Step 1 (LED Set Up of Circuit)

  1. First pick out 3 LED colors (you can also use the same color)

-I chose to do 6-7 LEDs per strip but that's totally up to how many you want to do and how bright you want the sign to be

2. Line up the LEDs with the sides positive all on one side and negative on the other

-Before this step if you'd like you may trim the sides to about 1 cm

-Also when lining up LEDs the negative side is the one with a flat indication on the side

-Line 3 strips up, one for each frame

-Make sure the LEDs have space, I gave mine about 2 cm between eachother

3. Next line up 2 wires on each side of the LEDs and solder the LED ends to the wire

-You may need to sand down the wire if it has a protective coat or melt it off

4. Once you finish soldering the wires to the LEDs test the circuit by placing the negative side of the wire to the negative side of the battery, and positive with the positive side of the wire strip.

-If the LEDs light up you've successfully finished part 1!

Step 4: Step 2 (Paint and Design on Glass)

Ok so this step can be as creative and witty as you want it to be so feel free to custom your sign better than I did!

1. First we're going to open the back of each frame and take the glass out

-set this aside for a few minutes while we figure out what stencils to use for the design

2. Draw or print off a design to tape on the glass then cut it out

-I drew mine on paper and then used a thin blade to cut them out

3. Take out the glass and organize the stencils on it

-Once you figure out how you want your design tape it with clear or masking tape

4. Spray paint the design on the glass!

-Shake paint for 1-2 minutes before spraying

-Stand back about 2-3 feet from the glass and have fun spray painting the design on!

-I used black but feel free to use any color/s to make it look exciting

5. Let dry

-Meanwhile you can move on to the next step and pick up the designed glass once dry for the last step

Step 5: Step 3 (Glueing the Frames Together)

1. Place the frames in order

-This step is totally up to however you'd like it shaped

-Mark the corners and flip the frames over

2. Glue the sides of the frames together

-Glue in between the frames and on top for a stronger hold

-Wait until dry

3. Tape the LED strips on top of the frames

-Use conductive tape to tape one side of the wire on the back sides of the 3 frames

-Make sure everything is sturdy and stuck together before taking this to the last step and flipping it over and up

Step 6: Step 4 (putting Everything Together)

1. Go outside and peel off all the tape and stencils off of painted glass

2. Put glass back in the frame and close the frame pegs

-Optional step: add a neon paper behind glass to make the design stick out more and look cooler

-Before closing the frame make sure the LEDs are tight and secure as well as in tact and in a working circuit

3. Hook up the batteries and hang up

-Use the positive and negative wires to flow through the negative and positive sides of a battery to light up the circuit.

-Hang up with nails or thumb pins on a wall and enjoy!

PS. I didn't want to make holes in my wall so I taped it up (I know it looks bad and ratchet but I wanted to just demonstrate the final result and how it lights up and looks cool)