Crafts

UGear mechanical box

July 15th, 2018 by alephnaught

UGear mechanical box

I found this kit in the Los Angeles Science Center shop. They had a few different UGear models – I settled on the mechanical box. I assembled it in between 1 and 2 hours – it was pretty easy and required no glue. And it works – you can see it on a table in […]

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The Rambling Robbie Rhino cardboard kit

March 15th, 2014 by alephnaught

The Rambling Robbie Rhino cardboard kit

I was on Fab the other day and saw this cardboard kit for sale. It arrived earlier this week. It took me about 15 minutes to assemble – you can get an idea of the size of the finished model from the Mountain Dew can.

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New papercraft kits: Skull and pigeon

September 30th, 2013 by alephnaught

New papercraft kits: Skull and pigeon

While at Bergamot Station yesterday, I went into GFA / Lois Lambert Gallery – it’s a great little shop with lots of very odd things. They had a miniature Vince skull kit (I got the large skull from Fab and assembled it) and a new d-torso kit of a flying pigeon (or flying rat as […]

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RobotiKits Walking King Crab

September 2nd, 2013 by alephnaught

RobotiKits Walking King Crab

I bought this kit in Japantown in San Francisco and finally had time to assemble it today. And it works! Put it in bright sunshine and it slowly walks – check out the video:  

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Cardboard dragon kit assembly from d-torso (pictures)

August 3rd, 2013 by alephnaught

Cardboard dragon kit assembly from d-torso (pictures)

I recently purchased another d-torso kit, this time from Fab. This kit looked really cool – a red dragon (of Hannibal Lecter and William Blake fame). I love making things, I’ve made a few of these before (1, 2). Here are pictures of the finished kit – I think it’s fabulous!

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Vince, the cardboard skull kit

June 2nd, 2013 by alephnaught

Vince, the cardboard skull kit

I saw what looked like a cool cardboard skull kit on Fab, so I ordered it. This weekend I had time to put it together. The instructions were simple and clear, and assembly was pretty easy. The parts were numbered with little etched numbers on one side, so I punched them out and arranged them […]

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Paper skeleton

April 28th, 2013 by alephnaught

Paper skeleton

I recently bought a kit to build a cardboard skeleton, about 4 feet tall, at a local Barnes & Noble. I finally put it together yesterday and hung it from my mic stand in my office/studio.

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We finished a piece of furniture

March 17th, 2013 by alephnaught

We finished a piece of furniture

Aviva has been looking for something to put an oriental box on for a while – she found a black shelf with red interior at a neighbor’s (they run a regular yard sale of furniture). We got some gold wax and applied it, first thinned with mineral spirits, then direct from the can. We think […]

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Catapult kit, assembled

December 24th, 2011 by alephnaught

Catapult kit, assembled

My boss got me a (very cool) wooden catapult kit – as he said before I opened it, “Something he wished he had.” I love it! I wasn’t feeling well, getting over a bout of laryngitis, and spent about an hour assembling the kit. It’s over 6 inches long and can fire a clay ball […]

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May 29th, 2009 by alephnaught

Office toys (some new, some old)

I have quite a collection of toys in my office – I like to have things to look at and play with when I need to think.  Creativity often surges when you take your mind off the problem and let your thoughts operate independently.  Here’s a picture of the credenza behind my desk: I got […]

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