Light Up Monster Card with Zara!

Hey guys! It’s Zara here. Welcome to my first ever blog post for Little Bird Electronics! Yay! I’m so excited to be sharing this cute little card I made for Father's Day, using Chibitronics. This card is super easy to make, and perfect for all occasions. For this card, I have used several cardmaking supplies, as it is my passion and hobby! In this blog post, I have kept these specialised tools out of the instructions, but if you are a crafter and want to hear about some crafty techniques that went into this card, check out my corresponding blog post!

First, I started by stamping my monster image onto some white cardstock, and colouring them. You can find stamps online that are very inexpensive, but if you don’t really want to buy stamps, simply print out an image, or try drawing them! Cut out the image.

Cut some foam tape, and adhere it to your image, to give it some dimension. Foam tape is inexpensive, and it can be found at craft stores or even most $2 shops, in the craft section. A helpful hint - some cheaper foam tape is incredibly sticky, and may ruin your scissors. Run a baby wipe over the blade to prevent the tape from sticking! Now you can set the image aside.

Now to the fun bit! Open up your Chibitronics and get excited. I’d recommend having a read through the Circuit Sticker Sketchbook that comes with the Starter Kit and giving the ‘Simple Circuit’ a try before you move onto your card. I found it really helpful to have a go first, so I could really understand how the product works.

Cut a piece of cardstock down to a bit larger than your Monster. Lay down your image, and figure out where you would like the light to shine. I thought it was cute to have the light shine from behind the monster, but giving him glowing eyes would be super cute too! Draw an X on the cardstock, so you can easily position the light later. Draw the shape of the light around the X, for easier circuit-ing. Trace the battery a little ways away from your monster image (when I make this project again, I will trace mine a bit further away). This will be your + side. Trace the battery again, a little under the first one. This will be your - side. Label them accordingly. Snip up the side of the negative battery, and then fold in between the positive and negative side. This will become your switch.

Draw in your circuit with pencil. Connect your positive battery side to the positive (wide) side of the light. Leave a tiny gap, and then connect your negative side of the light (narrow) to the negative side of the battery. Remember, the part we snipped (next to the negative battery) will be moving, so don’t run your circuit through the cut. Run it above and around the positive line we drew (watch the video to see exactly what I mean). Then, cut a length of the copper tape, and stick it, following the lines you drew. Remember not to cut the tape at the corners. Stick a light over the X you drew. And that's it! Your circuit is done! Place the battery over the allotted space, and fold the flap down - the light should turn on. Take a moment to celebrate! Yay!

I trimmed my cardstock down further, but this is optional. Take a blank piece of cardstock. This piece will be the front of your card, so go crazy with patterns or colours! Put the circuit piece and your Monster on the cardstock, so make sure everything lines up nicely. Draw an X where you want your light, and cut out a little opening with your scissors or knife. Now, adhere double sided tape on your circut piece, avoiding the copper tape. Cut tiny, thin lengths of foam tape, and adhere them in a box around your positive battery, avoiding the copper tape. An open topped box is fine, too. Depending on the height of your foam tape, you may want to put two layers of tape, one on top of the other. This serves two purposes. 1 - to keep the battery from moving around and 2 - it will ensure the circuit is not consistently completed, and thus the light will not shine all the time. It will only shine when pressure is added, because the paper, with the copper tape, will come in contact with the battery. Place the battery in its place, fold up the negative flap and adhere it together (creating a sort of battery pocket). Adhere this circuit piece to the front card panel using the double sided tape you applied earlier, making sure the light lines up with the hole you cut.

Stick your monster to the card panel, lining it up to where you want the light to shine. On the back side of the card panel, add foam tape on all four sides. We’re on the home stretch now! Cut out a small circle using cardstock, and write ‘push me’.  Stick it with a bit of double sided tape over the battery house. Write a sentiment on your card. The monster stamp set I used for the image comes with the sentiments ‘Hope your birthday is out of this world’ and ‘Have a monster birthday’. I also love the saying ‘Have a Rawr-some day’. Now, simply adhere the card onto a blank card base, write your message, package it up in a envelope and hey presto - you’ve made your very own light up card! How cool is that!

I really hope you’ll give this awesome card a go. Chibitronics are so fun and easy to use, and they are perfect tool to teach children (or adults who have no idea about circuits - like me!) about circuits and electricity. If you want to see more fun Chibitronics projects, make sure to check out my instagram @zobcreates. Not only do I have a bunch more projects coming soon, I’ll be giving away a Chibitronics Starter Kit valued at $50!

Zara