Custom LEDs With Hot Glue

Hi All,

Been a long time since my last published Instructable, so welcome back and I hope its not a let down

Anyway, to the Instructable..........

Its a project I've been meaning to try out for a while, Making / Customising your own LED's.

Since I am a bit fan of reusing, re purposing and recycling old into new and bits into something cool I thought using some old LED's and bits is a good idea.

LED's are so popular these days most people have them laying about in the form of old christmas lights, old projects or purchase them to use later, either way they are cheap and easy to use thought it would be fun to attempt making some cool ones for use on USBs, Cosplay projects and CHRISTMAS LIGHTS!!

A bit of info for you :

An light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor light source that emits light when current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy in the form of photons.

So for this Instructable you will not actually need alot..........

Items Needed:

Glue Gun - Any size

Hot Glue Sticks - LOTS, various colour options can be ordered from craft stores

Molds - I will be using my wide variety of silicone ice cude molds, (lego, star wars and more) but you can use what you wish......cookie cutters are a good thing too

LEDS

Now safety is key during this instructable, funnily enough Hot Glue will be HOT...........I know right shock! so please be careful not to burn yourself, other of pets and cover any work surfaces so not to damage any surfaces of carpets.

Anyway to the Molds!! like I said I use flexible silicone molds for cooking and ice cubes, but you could also use anything, the more flexible the better for getting them out. Hard plastic moulds will work too put getting the glue out after is harder work

Also be sure to test whether your mould will withstand the heat of the hot glue!

• Once the Glue Gun is hot and ready to use simply fill each mold with glue
• Balance out time to fill with the setting time, when considering how many you are doing at once.
• best to work with only a few at a time for neatness, they will take some time to set fully but be cautious as getting carried away with filling might have the 1st ones setting if doing more than 6 at a time,
• I found 1 stick did 2 small molds but other larger ones needed more than 1 stick so make sure you have plenty to hand.

Once your mould is properly filled, get and push an LED into the glue, be careful holding on to the "legs" of the LED ideally with some grips to keep your fingertips safe.

Have a wiggle around to find the bottom and sides of your mould and ensure that your LED is in the centre.

TIP: This stage is also ideal opportunity to add more to the LED with glitter and gems if so required, Credit for this tip to my fiancee who pointed this out after I finished lol

Remember not to rush and if an LED tries to sink a little and the legs begin to drop just carefully move it about to re adjust the glue as it cools.

The hot glue will take time to cool down, especially if you’re using a larger moulds so take this into consideration and be patient if needed

You’ll know that the glue has set when the shape pulls away easily from the mould.

It should just pop out when its ready.

Now you can test your LED's and admire your handy work.

As you can see I got carried away, but experimenting with different colour LED's and molds gives some great results.

These are ideal for use with anything you can thing of using LED's like USB s, Laptop Mods, Key rings, Christmas decorations.....the list goes on.....

Note: I will shortly be doing another Instructable on how to add these to Christmas lights and make your very own personal Christmas display.............(So excited to see how the Solo In carbonate comes out)

Anyway, hope you all enjoy

Happy creating