The holiday season is creeping up fast, and if you're shopping for a Steampunk, it could be almost impossible to find anything for them unless you know exactly where to look. Luckily for you, some of us have done all of the work you'll need. Whether you're Steampunk shopping f ...more
Although Christmas is a time to spend with family and be happy and full of joy, sometimes it's nice to pull a prank here and there, especially since many will not be expecting them. In this tutorial, I'm going to show you 10 simple pranks and booby traps you can set up on you ...more
There's nothing better than gulping down an ice cold beer to calm the senses and ease the mind. The holiday season can be very stressful as people scramble around trying to find the best gifts for friends and family. And we all know that gifts can be very hit or miss, but it's ...more
You've found the perfect tree — or so you think. As hard as we try to display an ideal tree each year, both plastic and pine can disappoint, especially when you're shopping on the cheap. Whether you use an artificial or authentic Christmas tree, sometimes you discover gaping, ...more
Whether you choose to hang an authentic or artificial pine Christmas wreath on your door — or an entirely different type, like ones made of paper waste or even food — chances are you've spent a year or two struggling with how to keep your decor hanging. With one easy to apply, ...more
LEGOs are more than just a toy for young children— it's an emerging art form combining photography, stop-motion (i.e., brickfilms), and imitative models that portray today's pop culture as it is. It's something visual culture analysts are sure to be studying over the next deca ...more
It's time for the holidays, and you're full of Christmas cheer, all ready to make some homemade decorations. Well, get out your modeling sugar and check out these two video tutorials on how to make a snowman and Christmas tree with modeling sugar paste. These crafty Christmas ...more
This tutorial shows you how to take several circles of recycled paper (from sixteen centimeters to four centimeters in diameter) into a lovely Christmas tree decoration. Fold each of them in half several times, cut a hole in the tip, then just stack and decorate! Video: .
Almost Christmas... so time to make this 3-D origami Christmas star! If you still can't make the origami Christmas star after watching this video you'd better focus on completing about 1000 cranes first... With origami, practice makes perfect.Merry Christmas to all you origami ...more
Here is an easy way to make a beautiful parol. All that you need is colorful papers, scissors, tape, stapler pin. Now take five sheets. Cross fold it and tear the extra paper, so that a perfect square is formed. Do it for all the five sheets. Now fold it cross wise, and again ...more
You can use ribbon as a tree decoration! This tutorial shows you how to take a spool of wide ribbon (use wired ribbon for best results) and use it to create a unique and eye catching holiday decoration for your Christmas tree.
It's December 11th. Only 14 days left until Christmas. But today is something more than just a countdown date for the quintessential holiday—it's Angry Birds Day, which marks the one-year anniversary of the popular mobile video game. Today, Angry Birds fans around the world w ...more
Want to replicate that cool effect when you can watch Christmas lights flash in time to music? It's easy! You'll need a set of speakers, an outlet adapter, excess power cord, a solid state relay and, of course, Christmas lights! Once you've gotten all your project pieces assem ...more
The concept and structure of Christmas hasn't changed much since its inception. In its infancy, Christians recruited Roman pagans by associating Christmas with the Saturnalia, an ancient Roman festival in honor of the deity Saturn (also held in December). The pagans had long w ...more
Thanksgiving. It's sadly over. But happily replaced by the Christmas season! My apartment complex is already full of the Christmas spirit. Wreaths are tacked up on wooden doors, windows contain strands of bright and colorful lights, and there's even a few nearly decorated con ...more
When you can't quite figure out what to get someone for Christmas, turn to your inner creativity for a more personal, homemade holiday gift. To help give you some ideas, here are some DIY presents that never fail. You can never go wrong with homemade baked goods, especially i ...more
You've got the basic recipe. Now learn all the different ways you can decorate those holiday sugar cookies like a pro. You will need: specialty decorating items sugar cookie dough cookie cutters cookie sheets currants, chopped nuts, assorted candy eggs food coloring liquid an ...more
Christmas decorations aren't cheap. From outdoor lighting to fir trees, decorating for the holidays can break the bank. That's where ingenuity comes into play, like hacking battery-operated Christmas lights, modifying lighting patterns and building Christmas tree ornaments fro ...more
To be honest, these Christmas ornaments look more like sea urchins than stars to us. Either way, these festive ornaments are beautiful and cheap alternatives to purchasing standard ornaments at the store. Give each ornament character by using a different color or pattern paper ...more
Every year I wait until the last minute to wrap Christmas presents. I always tell myself I'm going to get it done ahead of time, but it never happens. And the worst thing that can happen when you put it off is running out of Scotch tape. If you find yourself in this predicame ...more
The holiday season is here, and if you didn't already pick up a SCRABBLE set during Black Friday or Cyber Monday, then you still have time to buy the perfect gift for your lexical-minded friend. There's sure to be deals out there over the next couple of weeks, you just need to ...more
Christmas is just a few weeks away and the decorating has already begun. The centerpiece for most home during the holiday is, of course, the Christmas tree. But let's face it—that tree can be a big pain in the ass to decorate. You'll run out of tinsel, your lights will be too ...more
Now that Thanksgiving is less than a week away, the holiday season is in full swing. And that means you're probably busier than ever, what with all the decorating, cookie baking, and present buying and wrapping. Take a breath and pencil in an hour or two to yourself - or with ...more
Christmas trees, once decorated and brightly lit, are the penultimate holiday decoration, but authentic pines lose their brilliance fast without any nourishment. Plus, they are major fire hazards without regular hydration. But watering one requires a lot of sliding around on t ...more
One of the more enjoyable parts of Christmas (other than opening gifts of course) is going out to find the perfect tree, struggle bringing it into the house, and decorating it. As the years went by, I realized that our tree looked exactly like every other tree in the neighborh ...more
Is it going to be an origami angel or a star that'll top your Christmas tree this yearj? If you're going with an angel, then why not personalize it a bit by making it yourself? Check out this cool origami video to see how to fold an easy origami angel for Christmas.
This is a fun and easy project you can do in an afternoon. Why spend money on expensive ornaments when you can go green to decorate your Christmas tree this year? All you need is some festive paper and thread.
General Electric isn't known for their Christmas lights, but maybe they should be, because their GE Color Effects are pretty awesome. Especially the LED Color Effects G-35 String sets. And especially when someone named Darco hacks them. Darco, whose real name is Robert Sun Qu ...more
Get into the Christmas spirit this holiday season by crafting! But don't worry - we're not talking about super complex and time-consuming crafts like crochet scarves or those fugly Christmas sweaters your grandma used to knit for you. Check out this video to learn how to fold ...more
If you love origami you'll love this project. Watch this video and see how simple and quick it is to make a 3D paper star.
Want to be more like Carson Williams this Christmas? Well, that means having a highly decorated house, full of Christmas lights and other holiday decorations, but that's not all... having your Christmas lights synchronized with your favorite holiday jingle or Yuletide tune is ...more
This video demonstrates how to make a christmas tree out of newspaper. The author suggests that you start with 3 full sheets of newspaper and have scissors and scotch tape ready to use. Begin the tree making process by rolling the newspaper tightly and then using the scissors ...more
Here's a neat little demonstration video on how to draw a Christmas tree using a pencil, an eraser and pen. This tree will be drawn with a more realistic looking drawing style, compared to the simplified abstract stack of triangles that people normally draw Christmas trees wit ...more
This is how my version of an origami Christmas tree turned out based on the instructions I posted awhile back. Cory also made a version from white glossy paper, which looks great. I opted for the green and brown look, but it wasn't easy. I tried making a really small version ...more
With gumpaste, anything is possible in the cake world. Gumpaste allows a cakemaker to mold intricate parts and cake accessories of all shapes, sizes, and theme. In this two-part cake decorating tutorial, learn how to make an adorable little Santa Claus using gumpaste for the p ...more
Learn how to make royal icing for decorating cookies and cakes this Christmas. It is a simple recipe, with just 2 ingredients: confectioner sugar and egg whites. You can use royal icing to assemble gingerbread houses. This is a strong, adhesive frosting, perfect for dessert as ...more
This cake decorating how-to video goes over how to create a unique and spectacularly decorated Christmas cake. Follow along and learn how to make a scene of handmade choir boys on your cake using regal ice from a craft shop. Regal icing is very versatile, don't just decorate y ...more
Why settle for static lighting when you can bring on the big guns? Learn how to make a Christmas lights controller so your lights blink. Happy holidays!
Christmas is fast approaching and that means it's time for the big guy to come down our chimneys and eat up all of our cookies. Whether or not you believe in good ol' St. Nicholas, here's your chance to look like him! Santa Booth is an app available in the App Store as well as ...more
Christmas sweaters are one of those anomalies that everyone complains about, yet so many are sold every year that someone has to like them (kind of like fruitcake). Whether you're keeping tradition for tradition's sake, or secretly you actually enjoy ugly sweaters (we won't te ...more
Diet Coke can be festive! After you drink all the Diet Coke, you can turn the empty cans into Christmas tree ornaments. Make sure you rinse all the cans and take the tabs off, and you'll also need a very sharp knife. Make soda cans into something cool!
Hackers can be notoriously difficult to buy gifts for, so we've curated a list of the top 20 most popular items Null Byte readers are buying during their ethical-hacking studies. Whether you're buying a gift for a friend or have been dying to share this list with someone shopp ...more
Finally purchased a tree from the tree lot but in serious lack of pretty ornaments? Not a problem. You can make a bundle of these Finish 8-pointed star ornaments quickly, and they look quite impressive. The Finnish star ornament can be made in any size from tiny sized tree or ...more
Kip "Kipkay" Kedersha is known for his intriguing and clever how-to and prank videos, even when he teams up with MAKE Magazine. He will show you how to tweak, hack, mod, and bend any technology to your hacking needs. No electronic device, gadget, or household item can stand th ...more
This video shows you how to turn your napkin into a star for a perfect Christmas table. It is as simple as napkin origami. Make a pretty napkin origami star for your table next holiday season.
When the weather outside is frightful, we have a holiday hat your kids will actually want to wear. This video shows how to make a beautiful reindeer hat. Your child will lead the pack in true Rudolph style with this cap whose fanciful antlers are made from a pair of basic knit ...more
Oh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree...how beautiful would a Christmas tree be, though, without any ornaments? If you've finally hit the tree lot and picked out the perfect grand fir, make sure it shines bright by decorating it with several of these intricate lacy snowflake de ...more
Winter weather always looks so pretty on postcards. A blanket of fluffy white snow, icicles hanging from the trees, little woodland creatures scampering about...it's like a picture straight out of a storybook. But in the real world, after a day or two it usually looks more lik ...more
After becoming addicted to basic sonobe modular origami, I decided to make ornaments for relatives as Christmas gifts. I tried using fancy paper from stores like Paper Source, and cutting it to proper origami size, but I could never get the tight folds I wanted with non-tradit ...more
Sally the ragdoll from The Nightmare Before Christmas was a fragile, excellently realized character, and makes a fantastic Halloween costume (especially when paired with a Jack Skellington). In this video you'll learn how to do perfect, and we mean perfect, makeup for a Sally ...more
Why buy an expensive tree topper when you can fold your own lovely Christmas tree fairy or angel? This also makes a great ornament! Start with a piece of origami paper, 18 cm by 18 cm, and follow the folding instructions in this video.
In this tutorial, we learn how to make a festive Christmas garland from fresh greenery. You will need: fresh greenery, wire cutters, floral wire, pruning clippers, and gloves to do this. The base should be made of holly, and then you can use different firs that you can find. Y ...more
Have your Christmas tree up finally but have very little time to adorn it? Not a problem. Instead of resorting to those cheap shatterproof ornaments you can get at any drugstore, put a more homespun - and beautiful - touch on your tree this year by crafting your own ornaments. ...more
In this How to we will create pretty stars that make a great Christmas tree ornament. Fold them from transparent paper and they'll be great window decorations too! Either follow the video instructions or use the printed diagram :) About the Model traditional design Material ...more
During the holidays, usually one of the hardest decisions you'll ever make when decorating your tree is whether you want to top it all off with a star or an angel. If an angel is your tree topper of choice this year, why not make it extra special by making it yourself? Check ...more
The Origami Spiked Pentakis Dodecahedron is an excellent Paper Christmas Decoration Star made out of 15 paper squares. In spite of the large paper size I was defeated by the last module after nearly 2 hours (!) of trying to lock the last unit in place each time another one dis ...more
In this tutorial, we learn how to make Styrofoam and fabric Christmas ornaments. First, shape the Styrofoam into a ball and then grab the fabric you want to place around it. Place the ball into the fabric, then tie it at the top with a ribbon and some string. After this, you w ...more
So you've chosen the ideal Christmas tree for your place and decorated it so that it's mathematically perfect, but something's missing. It's not quite complete without a topper, but all of the traditional ones are soooo boring. What's a geek to do? If you're a fan of the newer ...more
You can take a carton of plain glass (or plastic) Christmas ornaments and then add your own personal touch as a gift or holiday decoration. Fill the large globes with things like garlands or tinsel, and or add paint and glitter to others.
Decorating for the holidays can be a lot of fun, but it can also be a lot of work if you let it get out of hand. Keep it simple and try and use as many things as you have around the garden, like tomato cages. When you combine tomato cages with a few other unlikely objects, an ...more