Neck swap! and part scavenge

These are two guitars that belong to a friend of mine. The neck of the one on the left has worped so the plan is to take the neck from the one on the right and put it on the one on the left. Then hopefully my friend will let me use a couple of the left over parts for my guitar.

Here's a pic of the spilt wood. Mirroring the pattern for strength

The start

This is a pic of the mahogany that I am using to build my guitar.
I have two pieces that are each just over a meter long. The idea is to split the wood down the center and open it up to mirror the pattern. This
will give it streagnth and stop it from worping, as the grain will curve in opposite directions.

The guitar

The past two weeks have been hectic! Between working on my research and planing out the guitar that i am building, i have'nt had much time to share it all with you.

Something that i started on this last week is the design for an electric guitar. I decided that its something i've always wanted to do, and i could use my jewellery skills to make the components ("you gotta have skills") Ha Ha

These are some of the drawings that i have been playing with. I have got hold of a piece of mahogany which i am using for the major part of the body. Part of the bottom corner will be made from a perspex box construction, so that the components can be visible, and so i can equip it with LED's. I want to give it matt white finish, i'm sort of going for that ipod look. This week i'll be glueing the body together, so i'll be sure to put up picks of that.

Fashionable Technology

In my last post, I mentioned the book Fashionable Technology. Well when I was In London, I went to the Tate Modern. Apart from seeing the most amazing art, I visited the book shop. After walking to one side of the shop, the first book i picked up, happened to be the most important book I have ever seen! Fashionable Technology by Sabine Seymour.


This book has helped me so much in my research into using technology in jewellery. The author wanted to convey her concept on the amalgamation of technology and fashion.

"The theoretical discourse in this book intends to provide an initiation to fashionable technology. It addresses the major concepts and provides a detailed bibliography that points to additional publications. The list of materials, blogs, institutes and events affords a starting point for further exploration in the field."

Seymour,S. 2008. Fashionable Technology.

New York: Springer-Verlag/Wien



One of the most inspirational people that I have found in this book, relating to what I am doing, is Leah Buechley. She is making and exploring the very things that i would like to do. Her Beaded LED Bracelets are totally amazing and the ideas that she has about e-textiles, and soft circuits are incredible.
Leah Buechley is a post doctoral researcher in Computer Science at the University of Colorado at Boulder where she works with the Craft Technology Group. Her research explores the intersection of computational and physical media, focusing on computational textiles or electronic textiles (e-textiles) - soft, flexible, fabric-based computers.

I've been wanting to equip a hoodie with a LED display, and have just come across this page on Leah Buechley's site on how to make your own wearable LED display. So this will help me allot, as I only have a basic understanding of electronics, and have been relying on friends who are computer science students, to help me out.

Cyber Dog

During the July Holidays, I traveled around England. I had a great time, and saw some really amazing things. But there were two things that totally made my trip. The one was getting the book Fashionable Technology, which I will speak about in the next post, and the second was going to a shop in Camden Town called Cyber Dog.

Its A shop that sells rave clothing and accessories, and my stuff would fit in here perfectly! The clothing all glows under UV lights, or has scrolling dot matrix images or has some sort of computer based PC board pattern. Seriously amazing stuff! The shop itself is like another world, and unlike any place Ive ever been. Strobes, UV lights, and hard trance music playing, and the shop assistance all fit the part, with their florescent hair and massive boots. Add in a couple of beers and I could have had a party right there! and apparently that's what they do. they clear out the clothing and have parties!

How much better could it be? I loved Cyber Dog and cant wait to go back.

Dont you wish the moon was always heart shaped!

Just something random...
I took this photo a while ago, and must have shook the camera a bit, which blurred the shape of the moon a bit, but made it into an awesome heart shape

Link to Platinum Switch Brooch Video

I've done It! After much resezrch, tests, trials, and allot of burnt out SMD's. Ive finally mannaged to make a working example of my switch computer key brooch. I mannaged to get an electronic latching switch from a safety band, that runners and cyclists wear at night. The switch has three positions; on, off, and flashing. So now when you press the key into the frame, you have those options. This is something that ive been working on for some time now, and to have it finally working is great. This model I made for the Anglo Plat compoitition. The entire visible part is platinum, weighing 10.4grams.
The next task is to find out how to reproduce the switch, as cutting up safety bands is going to start getting heavy on my pocket, and quite wastefull, wich is an isue that i am trying to address by recycling computer components to make jewellery.

The Belt Mount Egokast Player

So after having this great idea, and doing the drawings, I have found a company who is one step ahead of me. The Belt Mount Egokast Player, is a personal media player. Its pretty much the idea i was talking about. its nice to know that there is common thought in the world, and that im not the only one out here...
Na...its not realy. you like to think that you are being original, and its so hard to do that. Marcel Duchamp's Mona Lisa with a Moustache, springs to mind.

LCD Screen Belt Buckel

Had such an awsome idea for a belt to add to my collection of ...Techno Freak belts.

A belt with an LCD screen as the phocal point, with flash, or memory card potential. So that you can upload videos, and play them on the belt screen, while you party it up!

I thought that the best place to get the parts from would be an old mobile phone. They have colour screens, video playing potential, and memory card slots. But then it was like...well that would just be like attaching a cell phone to your pants. But maybe that is the answer after all ...?...

What ever I do its going to take some pretty hectic engineering, and a large amount of help from a computer engineer.

...ja, computer engineers seem to be in shot suply round here.

Fan Belt complete

This is my completed Fan Belt. Made from the case fan from a computer. The belt part are the safety bands that i have been cannibalising for their circuitry, to use in my switch brooches. I have used a 9volt battery to power the fan, which works really well. I also tried a 12volt battery for a remote. It worked well, but the 9v was easier to connect. I wore it to the "Sex and Candy" party at Burn night club, and got a great reception. Having the lights flashing on the belt in the dark club was amazing!
I'll put up a video soon when i can actualy work out how to upload them properly.