Community Quality: 1
(5=Most community) How much of a community is there around the kit? Are there builder groups, online forums, circles, and meetups? Is the kit used in class- rooms or after-school programs? Do the kit makers or builders have a presence at events like Maker Faire?
Pee-Wee Herman Paint By Number
Without ever painting a portrait before in my life, I re-created the likeness of Pee-wee Herman with this PopParty Paint by Number Kit. Choose from the Golden Girls, Pee-wee, or my personal favorite, Lindsay Lohan’s mug shot. Better yet, order a custom kit from your own photo for $125, with up to 16 acrylic paint […]
Craft: art, celebrities, crafts, paint-by-number, Pee-Wee Herman
LED Video Light
Have you tried taking video using your digital camera but never seem to have enough light? Does your camera have trouble focusing in the dark? LEDs are cheap, and so are resistors, so why not make your own LED Video Light? With this second-generation kit from ProdMod, you’ll transform a simple battery holder into a […]
Karakuri Somersault Doll
Employing a centuries-old secret technique from the Edo period, this kit has everything needed to create an acrobatic doll, plus a festive kimono and a tiered pedestal on which to perform. You can even adjust the velocity of the doll’s action. The instructions are in Japanese with beautiful illustrations that make it easy to put together.
Solar Grasshopper Kit
Build your own life-size grasshopper and explore solar power with this educational mini solar robot kit. The snap-together, attention-getting Solar Frightened Grasshopper teaches how solar energy can be used to generate electricity. This easy-to-use science kit is perfect for first-time experimenters with little or no experience. Ages 10 and up.
Electric Plane Launcher
This kit’s great for office warfare but it’s really meant for flight-testing paper airplanes. Two DC motors spin rubber discs in opposite directions to grab your plane and propel it up to 30mph. There’s no soldering, just pre-cut wires and a screw terminal block. Intended for teaching kids ages 14 and up, it’s easily assembled in […]
HD2Combo Remote Control Relay
Don’t tell the co-op board, but I now use this RF fun relay kit to get into my apartment building wirelessly and keylessly, by hacking into its intercom system, which lets you buzz people into the front door. The kit consist a small printed circuit board and a key fob remote. After enclosing the PCB […]
Metabots
The box contains nothing more than a few sheets of die-cut foamcore, a dozen plastic ball joints, and instructions. But what they create, after some punching out and slotting together, are some of the coolest-looking posable robot action figures on the market today. Available in an all-white “prototype” version ripe for customization.
Topobo
My living room looks like Darwin’s laboratory. A three-legged creature writhes on the floor. My daughter pulls off a leg and connects it to its face. My son teaches it to walk. It’s really moving now! This is how you play and learn with Topobo. Topobo is part construction toy, part kinetic memory robot. By […]
