Wood & Cork Phone Reading Stand!

Hello, instructables users! I would like to introduce my super cool, easy to make, DIY phone stand for those who enjoy a fun project, that requires an average of 0$! Of course, the items it this project are not "free" but you can still collet them or buy them for very little. Also, if you enjoyed this project, please be sure to vote for me in the phone contest! So, I'll stop wasting your time, and lets get started!

In the above photo, most of the tools you will need are shown. These are things that can be found around your home, or acquired easily. These include:

1. A hot glue gun.
2. A multi-tool such as a Swiss Army Knife or a Leatherman.
3. A file.
4. A small saw.
5. A knife.
6. Some wood pieces.
7. A few corks.
8. Some paper.
9. An old plastic cup.
10. And some birch bark, or any loose bark. bark styled paper will do fine too.

In this step we will build the stand itself. I started with a long piece of craft wood. You can use any wood, but light and easy to use woods that are easy to cut and glue such as balsa, are recommended. I marked the wood with a sharpie to show how long my phone was (iPhone 5). I also left about an inch on each side of the piece. Next, I cut 2 more pieces, the same length and width. You can see them all laid out. The next photo shows that I glued a piece of balsa to the back of the 3 pieces to join them together. I used a shorter piece, but you can use a longer one for a larger phone stand. You'll also notice two pieces of cork on the right side. You should do this to the right and left side so the bottom of the stand has "feet."

This piece is optional, I just put it in because I think it looks nice :). You can install a led light or a speaker if you want. Im not a super technical person, so I just put in a light, following a basic schematic you could find online. I used a old Italian Ice cup, but any plastic cup should work fine. I made a small slit in the side to put another piece of wood into, which was then glued to the cup. I also decided to hot glue pieces of bark I had found to the outside, to cover up the logo and make it look a little nicer. I also traced out a circular piece of paper and glued it on to the front. Lastly, I glued two corks to the corner of the base stand. I sandwiched the the piece of wood in between, and glued it for extra stability.

I was almost finished at this point, and decided to add some more decorations. I traced out the bottom of my phone on the bottom wood piece. I then glued two halves of a cork to each side, like so. After that, I glued a small piece of balsa to the top piece. This will enable your phone to tilt more natural and be easier to look at, and the bottom pieces will keep it from sliding. The last three are pictures of the completed stand.

This is the finished product, with the phone in it! I think it looks pretty good, if i do say so myself! If you enjoyed this project, please vote for it, or try it out! Thanks again!