Introduction: Light of My Life 1

By

This is a simple mood lamp

i saw the bits and pieces lying around and the idea for this lamp formed in my mind

This is my first instructable so pardon the gaffes

i have a few other lamps which i will add in a short while

Step 1: Finding the Right Stuff

The bits and pieces that make the lamp:

LED's high bright 10mm white, as many as required, i chose 6

PCB for mounting the LED's general purpose cut to size (circle)

PVC pipes, 1 3/4" was sufficient for me, more LED-> Bigger pipe

Paper Cups

Tools:

Soldring iron, stand, solder wire, connecting wire

berg strip connectors, female to female header wires or any other type of connectors

Dremel

scale and marker

scissors

PVC solvent or general purpose adhesive

Adhesive Tape

Additional:

A 5V adapter to power the lamp

Step 2: The Heart of the Lamp

Step1:
using a PVC pipe mark a circle around the PCB

Cut out a circle

Step2:

Solder the LED's on the PCB in approximate circular pattern

Connect the LED's to each other

i made 2 LED's in series and 3 such pairs in parallel to have them work on a 5V adapter without any resistors

solder the connectors (you can use any type you have lying around) i chose berg strip connectors

Step3:

Cut two pieces of PVC pipe of 10mm and 20mm length

Cut one piece of PVC pipe of 30mm length

Make a lengthwise slit in the large piece

Step4:

assemble the parts the smallest PVC pipe, then the PCB then the second PVC pipe and clamp them with the large piece with the slit

use adhesive to join each part to the next

Step5:

bring out the connecting wires for easy access and connecting to the adapter

Step 3: Setting the Mood

cut the bottom from one paper cup so that it fits snugly on the PVC pipe

if the cut becomes large, pad it with some tape

join the second cup to the first at the mouth with adhesive or just tape them together

Step 4: Finish It Off

insert the paper cups on the PVC aseembly

Viola it is done

Step 5: Light Up Your Life

i like bright white light so did not add anything to the paper cups

but,

patterns can be added to create shadow effects

colours can be added to change moods and so on