Projects
Need inspiration? Find it here! These tutorials feature special projects broken down into steps to illustrate how you can use various concepts, skills, and technologies to build awesome stuff.
Modifying Your EL Wire Inverter
July 18, 2019
In this tutorial, we will modify the 12V EL wire inverter to power the EL Sequencer/EL Escudo Dos off a single power supply.
EL Wire Pants
July 18, 2019
In this tutorial, we will sew standard electroluminescent (EL) wire to a pair of pants.
3D Printed Illuminated Wand Prop
November 29, 2018
In this tutorial, we will learn about how to create a theatrical prop for a performance by 3D printing a wand and adding an LED.
Light Up Your 3D Printer's Bed
June 27, 2018
Having issues viewing your print in a dark lit room? In this tutorial, we will be using LED strips to light up a print bed's area on a LulzBot 3D printer!
Photon Remote Water Level Sensor
June 2, 2016
Learn how to build a remote water level sensor for a water storage tank and how to automate a pump based off the readings!
Arduino Wireless Communication via the Electric Imp
April 8, 2014
How to communicate between an Electric Imp and Arduino using serial.
Wireless Glove Controller
April 24, 2019
Build a wireless glove controller with Arduinos to trigger an LED using XBees!
Bare Conductive Musical Painting
May 5, 2015
Learn how to make a musical painting using the Bare Conductive Touch Board and Conductive Paint.
IoT Industrial Scale
October 10, 2016
What does a baby elephant weigh? How much impact force does a jump have? Answer these questions and more by building your very own IoT industrial scale using the SparkFun OpenScale.
SIK Keyboard Instrument
April 15, 2016
We can use the parts and concepts in the SparkFun Invetor's Kit to make a primitive keyboard instrument.
Interactive Hanging LED Array
April 10, 2014
Learn how we converted 72 lightbulbs into an interactive LED array for our conference room.
Actobotics Basic Differential Platform
December 22, 2014
Get started with Actobotics with this simple vehicle. Then expand and customize it for your own evil robot empire.
Hackers in Residence - Hacking MindWave Mobile
February 26, 2014
Review, teardown, and hacking tutorial for the MindWave Mobile, a $99 commercial grade EEG sensor.
BadgerHack: Gaming Add-On Kit
February 16, 2016
Make a Breakout clone with the BadgerHack Gaming Add-On Kit.
Hackers In Residence - The Tethered Quad
September 18, 2013
Our first-ever "Hackers in Residence" Tara Tiger Brown and Sean Bonner created a quadcopter that stays tethered to the ground. Here's how they did it!
Prototype Wearable LED Dance Harness
February 8, 2018
A project tutorial to add an extra effect for dancers performing a choreographed piece. The harness can be added quickly under a costume.
Raspberry Pi Zero Helmet Impact Force Monitor
March 8, 2018
How much impact can the human body handle? This tutorial will teach you how to build your very own impact force monitor using a helmet, Raspberry Pi Zero, and accelerometer!
Light Up Pennant with E-Textiles
September 17, 2015
Show your school spirit, geek pride, or fandom with a light up pennant using the LilyTwinkle or LilyPad Arduino.
Electronic E-craft Terrarium
January 21, 2016
A guest tutorial on an Electronic Terrarium from the Performative Sculpture class of Parsons DT.
Night Sky Halloween Costume
October 25, 2017
Make a beautiful night sky costume using the LilyPad LEDs and the LilyTiny.
Twinkle Zodiac Constellation
August 15, 2017
Create a quick and easy piece of e-textile art based on a Zodiac sign using a LilyTiny, LilyPad LEDs, battery holder, conductive thread, and coin cell battery.
Soft Circuits: LED Feelings Pizza
February 13, 2013
Here we will learn how to say how you feel with pizza. Electric pizza.
LilyTiny Plush Monster
January 27, 2015
Craft a stuffed monster while exploring the LilyTiny preprogrammed microcontroller. This is a project based on the Plush Monster Activity created at MIT's High-Low Tech Lab by Emily Lovell, Jie Qi, and Natalie Freed.
Old Tutorials
Looking for the old, archived tutorials? Head on over to the
archived tutorials on the main
SparkFun site.
Please be aware that the tutorials you find there are no longer
actively maintained.