Salvaging Circuits • Rewiring Futures • Building Tomorrows
For European Week for Waste Reduction, I crafted a glowing lotus flower from electronic waste; a symbol of renewal built from laptop battery cells and forgotten components. Complementing it was a "Rewired" light frame made from an old circuit board, LED strip, and other discarded e-waste. Both pieces were showcased at MSPCA's Thrift Pop-Up event on November 28-29, 2025.
This torch was likely tossed due to its rare, hard-to-find batteries. A quick fix-swapping in a compact rechargeable battery and upgrading to an LED bulb, breathed new life into it with minimal effort. Later, adding a USB charging module kept it sleek and lightweight, with plenty of spare space inside.
Crafted from workshop scraps, this dragonfly's delicate wings emerged from dismantled display screen glass; the natural cracks forming perfect vein patterns. A slender copper wire tail and other salvaged bits brought it buzzing to life.
Petals shimmer from the internal reflective sheets of dismantled display screens, while a hollowed-out LED bulb cradles LEDs, a subtle switch, and battery. Ethernet wire forms delicate stamen filaments, transforming e-waste into a blooming electronic flower.
A rectangular PCB serves as the canvas for this functional clock, with salvaged keyboard number keys arranged as decorative numerals. The analog hands sweep smoothly over the digital relics, blending time's relentless motion with electronic nostalgia.
A repurposed food can transforms into a bunker diorama, sliced in half with hinges salvaged from an old laptop lid to form a swinging door. Inside reveals a wooden floor, metal door with wheel valve handle, red light above the entrance/exit, and yellow ceiling glow, while the exterior sprouts patches of grass.
Twisted trees spring from discarded ethernet cables, their wires meticulously braided into organic trunks and branches. Beads make for vibrant fruits and flowers, turning network waste into a miniature wired forest.
A voice visualizer emerges from a 3D-printed cylinder and base, cradling a laser diode powered by AAA batteries at one end. The beam dances off a mirror mounted on a reused balloon membrane, vibrated by your voice or speaker at the opposite end - casting hypnotic patterns across the wall.
A tiny pendant gleams from old HDD components and diffuser sheets salvaged from shattered monitors, backed by a 3D-printed housing that cradles a button battery, switch, and LED for wearable luminescence.
Inspired by FABRI_CREATOR's robotic arm on Cults3D, this build challenged me to 3D print precise mechanical joints fused with Arduino, potentiometers, and servos - bringing a functional robotic appendage to life. It requires further refinement for smoother movement.