As a maker, I’m always looking for ways to add smart functionality and automate things around my home and workshop. One of my latest projects involved taking a basic motorized projector screen and integrating it with my voice assistant so I can control it with voice commands. It started out as a pretty simple idea – I wanted to be able to trigger the screen to raise, lower, and stop using an app or my voice rather than having to use the basic remote control it came with. I cracked open the remote and used an inexpensive microcontroller board to essentially hijack the button presses e ..read more

I spend a lot of time in the shop. A LOT of time. I get asked pretty often which products I recommend, whether it’s for beginner woodworkers looking to outfit a new shop or experienced makers who are looking for new tools. I’d like to go through of my favorite shop items that I’ve used this past year. Let’s get started. I should point out that all of these products are available to buy online through our affiliate links. Following these links don’t cost you anything, but they do allow us to keep making free videos, so if you are interested in any of these and want to help us out be sure ..read more

If you’ve followed me for a while, you know that I love two things: toys and customizing my home to display toys. Really, it’s all about making your home work for you. I recently came across several of my favorite childhood figures and really wanted to display them in a spot where I could see them all the time. What better place than my shop door! Destroying My Door I started by measuring and cutting a large square hole in my door. I tried my best to keep the door structurally sound, since it is a hollow core door and there’s not much to the middle of it. It did end up bending a little ..read more

I’ve been playing with LEGO for a long time. I’ve made several videos about them, from props, to organization tables, to sorters. I really liked the last LEGO sorter I made, but I recently decided to build a new Lego sorter that would be able to handle a larger number of bricks while still fitting on a tabletop. Let’s get into it. The Initial Idea First step—the white board! I sketched out several ideas first to get everything visualized. Many ideas wouldn’t work, but that’s ok. I really liked one idea that uses a pivoting container with interchangeable acrylic filters to sift the LEG ..read more

As a woodworker, having a functional and efficient sanding station is crucial. But my current setup was a mess – sanders stacked haphazardly on an old failed project with terrible dust collection. I set out to build a custom flip-top cart that would organize my tools and make sanding easier. There are A LOT of videos of flip-top tool stations, but I think I’ve found at least one improvement that I haven’t seen before. Constructing the Base I started by cutting plywood pieces for the cart base and sides. Using wood glue and screws, I assembled them into a simple open box shape. Don’t ..read more

When my son said he wanted to dress up as a hobbit for Halloween, I knew he needed big, hairy feet to really sell the costume. Of course, being the maker that I am, I took on the challenge of creating custom oversized hobbit feet for him. The process involved molding, casting, painting and plenty of trial and error, but the final disgustingly realistic results were worth it. Making the Foot Molds The first step was molding my own feet to use as the base shape. I built a box and mixed up some alginate mold material. After coating my foot in the alginate, I stood in the box mold while t ..read more

For Halloween this year, I decided to go all out and make an oversized, wearable Optimus Prime helmet. As a huge Transformers fan, I’ve always wanted to build a life-size Optimus Prime, and making his head seemed like a good place to start. The end result was an awesome, comfortable helmet that I can’t wait to wear trick or treating with my kids. Sizing Up Optimus Prime’s Head There are many different materials you could use for a helmet. I’ve 3D printed many helmets before and that can be a really great way to make a prop helmet! But this time I wanted it to be lighter and easier to ..read more

It works great with small objects that can fit in a toaster oven, but what about coating larger objects or even furniture? Unfortunately, a full-sized powder coating oven big enough to fit those is crazy expensive – we’re talking thousands of dollars. Powder coating is such a fascinating process. You take a powder that is electrostatically charged, and you spray it onto whatever object you want to coat. The powder sticks onto the surface, kind of like magnets. Then, you heat cure the coating by baking it in an oven. The heat fuses all of that powder into a smooth, durable, uniform fin ..read more

In his latest video adventure, Bob takes on a project to recreate and improve the popular Billy cabinet from IKEA. He’s determined to make it bigger, better, and cheaper. In this blog post, we’ll follow Bob’s journey as he transforms a basic IKEA design into a custom masterpiece. Better, Bigger, Cheaper A Cost-Conscious Approach Building the Cabinet Crafting the Doors The Final Product Better, Bigger, Cheaper Bob’s project begins with a clear vision: to enhance the IKEA Billy cabinet. He starts by using black melamine, opting for a thicker 3/4-inch material instead of the standard ..read more

In his latest video, Bob undertook an intriguing project: designing and crafting a stylish nightstand with a hidden compartment. The motivation behind this project? Storing some of this most prize possessions where others can’t find them. Upgrading with Style and Functionality Crafting the Perfect Nightstand Unveiling the Hidden Compartment   Upgrading with Style and Functionality Bob’s desire to replace his existing bedside table set a high bar for the new creation. He outlined his specific requirements: a more appealing design, adequate storage for his book collection, and t ..read more