Documentation and Sketches
-Water Bottle: My inspiration for this project came to me immediately. The week before I started this project, I visited the Shedd aquarium with my family. My sister wanted to get a water bottle from the gift shop, but they were too expensive and the designs were too complicated so she didn't get one. With Easter coming up, I decided to make a bottle with the Shedd aquarium logo and my sister's name, then give it to her as a present.
-Notebook: This idea also came to me immediately. After filling out my march madness bracket, I wanted to proudly post my two finalists on the front and back covers. I found the appropriate Virginia and Auburn logos in black and white and then opened up Illustrator.
-Thingiverse: This project was harder to decipher due to the vast array of available options. At first, I was thinking a Star Wars model ship, but the designs were too complicated and unoriginal. Then I stumbled across a neat ping pong ball cannon and decided to go for it.
-Notebook: This idea also came to me immediately. After filling out my march madness bracket, I wanted to proudly post my two finalists on the front and back covers. I found the appropriate Virginia and Auburn logos in black and white and then opened up Illustrator.
-Thingiverse: This project was harder to decipher due to the vast array of available options. At first, I was thinking a Star Wars model ship, but the designs were too complicated and unoriginal. Then I stumbled across a neat ping pong ball cannon and decided to go for it.
How the Project was Completed
Due to the difference in project type and function, I have divided up each "recipe" according to the project type.
Water Bottle
This project was very easy. I converted a black and white Shedd logo and my sister's name into vector images using Illustrator. Then, I set up the rotary jig, adjusted the laser settings to anodized aluminum, and altered the direction of the logo so it would come out properly. All that was left was to press the green button, engrave the bottle, and give it to my sister.
Notebook
After I found team logos for Virginia and Auburn, NCAA, and a march madness bracket, I used Illustrator to convert them all into vector images. Then, I created two appropriately sized artboards-one per cover-and moved my images into place. I typed my predicted score, turned it into a vector image, and sent it to the laser. After it cut out, I punched out specific letter parts on the covers and cut out notebook paper for the inside. The last step was to use the binding machine to cut holes through the covers and paper and connect them with the notebook binding.
Ping Pong Cannon
I found this idea on Thingiverse and downloaded the Illustrator file. Then, I converted the stroke color to red and the thickness to .0001. The next step was to measure the thickness of my wood (.25in) and scale the entire project to fit. After this, I changed a lot of settings and printed my ping pong ball cannon on the laser. I brought the pieces home where I punched them out, and assembled them with wood glue and rubber bands. My final test was to shoot a ping pong ball and it worked!
Final Products
Notebook
Water Bottle
Ping Pong Cannon
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Final Evaluations
This was a massive project, but well worth the time and effort that I put into it. It was really cool to create fun items from scratch (Ping Pong Cannon) and improve upon an already existing thing (water bottle) both in the same overall project. Personally, this project helped my decision making skills tenfold, as there was no time to mess around or research dumb ideas. This project was also the most fulfilling and beneficial one so far, because I was able to create meaningful gifts and fun items for myself. Overall, this project tested my patience and software skills pretty far, but the results were well worth it.