Use Your Tablet or Cell Phone As a Light Box

Need a light box? Don't have one? Why not make one. A few scraps of wood and a sheet of glass (or plexiglass) and your favorite electronic device--you are good to go.

Step 1: Determine the Size and Cut Pieces

First--consider the projects you will be working on. Remember you may try new and different projects in the future. You also want to think about storage. Make it big enough to be useful and small enough to be convenient.

The height is also an important consideration. You need to have enough clearance to insert the electronic devise. You can change the light source each time you use the box. Consider all your devices.

Second--cut your pieces. I found a piece of glass from an old picture frame that was a good size. This saved me the trouble of cutting the glass. I had two scraps of wood leftover from another project.

Step 2: Taping the Edge of the Glass

After finishing the glue class here at Instructables, I trust that glue is secure enough for my needs. I chose hot glue because there is very little wait time before you can use the light box. If it turns out to not be durable in the long run, I will try something else.

Before gluing everything together, I decided to cover the cut edge of my glass. Duct tape fixes everything. (Whoever invented the stuff was a genius.) I wrapped the edge as neatly as I could. First laying the edge if the glass down the middle of the strip of tape.

I tried twice to do this in one piece all the way around. Disaster. The tape kept sticking to itself. So I tried to tape part of one side, the adjacent side and part of a third side. This worked much better. Then I snipped the tape at the corners. Last I folded the tape over the glass.

I used a second strip of the to wrap the remaining glass edge. Make sure that you overlap the first strip of tape a little.

If the glass ever breaks, this may help keep it from going everywhere--maybe. Hopefully I never find out (Hopefully it doesn't get broken.)

You can skip the taping step if you are using plexiglass--at least I have never cut my fingers on plexiglass.

Step 3: Glue Side Supports

Run a line of glue along the edge of the wood pieces. Adhere the wood to the taped edge of the glass. Hold it long enough for the glue to set. For hot glue, that is not very long.

You can download a flashlight app on your device but I have found that I can usually get away with just turning the device on. It provides enough light. Flip the table over. Slide the device under the glass and you are ready to work--in my case I was tracing some hand written words onto a handkerchief want to embroider.