Water lily night light

(I realize this project is mixed media, so if it does not comply with the “Wood Only” rule for posted projects I apologize)

I wanted to make my niece a 3rd birthday present that she could -hopefully- keep for many years, rather than something too childish or girly. I had some RGB LED strip and thought that a night light would be appropriate for her age.

I made the base from a 6×6 chunk of walnut, rough cut to resemble a lily pad, then turned on the lathe to give it a concave center. I then hollowed out the bottom with a router to house the wiring and switches, and drilled mounting holes in from the side. I gave it a light sanding and coat of poly, then upholstered the bottom with some black felt to hide the guts.

I cut petals from some clear glass with white marbling, and an opaque pink sheet. Burnished with copper foil and soldered from the inside out. Put a little patina on the edges to get an aged look. I coiled the LEDs in the center of the base, and tacked it in place with hot glue. Then tacked the glass on top of the LEDs.

I used a volume control knob as a dimmer, and red, green, and blue switches to control each color. She can opt for almost any primary or secondary color, which is kind of cool… Originally the switches were going to light up when selected, but strip LEDs have a common positive, which is reverse from everything else in the world. =/

Video of it in use

-- "I suggest a new strategy, R2: let the Wookiee win."