Aetheric Candles and other things

[Aleister Crow]

"Holy crap, Crow actually finished something!?" 



Close up, candles on:


Close up, candles off:


These started life as your basic boring battery operated "flameless tea lights".


There isn't really much I did to them. I started by disassembling them, removing the plastic "flame" and painting the casing with Rustoleum Hammered Copper. The next step was to make an opening in the center of some brass filigree rounds and glue them in place. This was followed by glueing on some small glass craft bottles mouth down over the LEDs. Topping them off are plastic lamp finials, painted to match the base. Pretty simple, but it makes a huge difference in appearance.

[Maets]

Simple, but nice.

[Aleister Crow]

Thank you kindly, sir. 

[Uncle Arthur]

I agree. Nice indeed!

[Capt James Salt]

Excellent idea !!

[MakerMike]

Very nice.  I've used the same technique to make Harry Potter-type levitating candles.  Disassembling tea lights is the cheapest way to get a flickering yellow LED, considering that sometimes you can find the tea lights for less money than buying the 2032 coin cell it contains separately.

Bravo!

[Delireus]

I love them, simple but with just the right attention to detail 

[Vox Cerae]

Ah, I love it! I had this same idea, although with different parts.
I strip down tea candles, whenever I get them cheap. 2032 battery, yellow led, power switch, and a nice and easily convertible base all ready to be put into other uses.

[Aleister Crow]

Thanks everyone, this is great encouragement to stop procrastinating and finish a few more projects.

Very nice.  I've used the same technique to make Harry Potter-type levitating candles.  Disassembling tea lights is the cheapest way to get a flickering yellow LED, considering that sometimes you can find the tea lights for less money than buying the 2032 coin cell it contains separately.

Bravo!

Hilarious, isn't it? Seventy-five cents each for the lights with batteries included; $2.50 to replace just one of those batteries.

(or it would be, if I hadn't bought some in bulk from ebay.)

[TVC15]

Nice work,there, Aleister. After looking at the two lights and the skull next to it I thought: "Wouldn't it be wonderful to give ole baldy there some eyes of his own?" But hey, that's just me.

[Aleister Crow]

Yorick has an eye, a big green glass marble. Unfortunately I seem to have misplaced it. The other socket is where I usually keep my letter opener.

I've been thinking of getting another skull for modifying, but Yorick is pretty much staying as-is. I do want to get him a jester's hat, though.

[Arvis]

Yorick has an eye, a big green glass marble. Unfortunately I seem to have misplaced it. The other socket is where I usually keep my letter opener.

I've been thinking of getting another skull for modifying, but Yorick is pretty much staying as-is. I do want to get him a jester's hat, though.

 Are you saying Yorick has lost his marbles?

 That's an excellent and fairly easy build. I like how they turned out.

 My wife have just received a fist full of these candles in the mail last week for use in her show. Hers actually change colors and are submersible. I'm probably going to inherit a few when she's done with them. I think they would make nifty control panel decorations for some device.

[Aleister Crow]

Yorick has an eye, a big green glass marble. Unfortunately I seem to have misplaced it. The other socket is where I usually keep my letter opener.

I've been thinking of getting another skull for modifying, but Yorick is pretty much staying as-is. I do want to get him a jester's hat, though.

 Are you saying Yorick has lost his marbles?

 

That's an excellent and fairly easy build. I like how they turned out.

 My wife have just received a fist full of these candles in the mail last week for use in her show. Hers actually change colors and are submersible. I'm probably going to inherit a few when she's done with them. I think they would make nifty control panel decorations for some device.

I look forward to seeing it.

[Arvis]

I look forward to seeing it.

 Oh, there's no plan as of yet per-say. I was just fiddling with them and coming up with ideas on what could be done with them. You on the other hand elaborated on what they were and went with that. And quiet nicely I might add.
 But now that I look at them a bit closer, imagine them being painted to resemble knobs that light up as you turn them on. A "kick'n" knob with built in FX.

[Arabella Periscope]

Lovely!

[Kevin C Cooper Esq]

Simple is sometimes best, as my mother used to say to me.

[Aleister Crow]

Letter to William Breckenridge, Professor of Esoteric Studies, Miskatonic University
from Daniel Eismann, Professor of Anthropology, at the Gramercy Archeological Dig site, outside Wilmington, N.C.
Along with the letter was a small box containing a stone amulet of undetermined origin.

Prof. William Breckenridge,                     August 14th, 1924
Department of Esoteric Studies
Miskatonic University

Prof. Breckenridge,

    We're sending you a stone amulet we found at the dig. Taylor found it buried along with some old pottery. The amulet is amazingly intact, especially considering the age of the artifacts it was buried with. It's possible it was buried here at a later date, but doubtful. Most of the site had been looted ages ago, but Taylor is certain he didn't find any sign of more recent digging.
    You and I both know the symbol, but what it's doing here is a mystery. Also Harrtz still hasn't been able to identify the material. What we do know is that it's somewhat phosphorescent, and, according to the geiger counters, very slightly radioactive (as a precaution, the box is lined with lead paint). The cord is silk- what it's doing here is another mystery, as is it's condition. By all logic, it should have been long since rotted away. Haartz suggested we send it back to you at the university; perhaps there something in the Library that may shed some light on things.
    One other thing to note- when we arrived we were told that there was some sort of cult activity on the site, a few days before we got here. The police broke it up, and have had a guard here in case the cultists return. I don't think finding that amulet here was a coincidence.
    Aside from this, we haven't found much of interest. Anything of value is long gone; aside from the amulet and Taylor's pots, we've found almost nothing. We'll be on site a few more days, then returning to Arkham.

                        Yrs,
                        Prof. D. Eismann

Professor Eismann and his interns Mr. Haartz and Mr. Taylor never returned to Arkham. They were found dead the following morning along with the two police officers assigned to guard the dig site. All had had their eyes and tongues forcibly removed- these were the only wounds on any of the bodies. There was no sign of a struggle.




Another project, long overdue to get finished. The Amulet was made from Sculpey, using equal parts Glow-in-the-dark and Moss green. The detailing was done with black and red Sharpies. As mentioned in the letter, the cord is silk. This is the first time I've worked with Sculpey, and didn't turn out bad at all, in my opinion, though I could do with more practice. The letter was simply typed and printed; for future projects I'll probably hand write them, and they'll definitely need better that bright white modern paper, but it's all I have at the moment.

Come to think of it, I could also do with a nice antique desk to take these pictures on. And a better decorated room to put the desk in. 

[Owen Mortimer]

Lovelty work Mr. Crow, the radioactive pendant looks quite eerie indeed. Perhaps some more shots of its more "luminescent" properties?

The mini aether lamps are amazingly simple but still elegant and victorian. Had you not pointed it out first, I never would have guessed electric tea lamps as the basis of lighting. Thought it was an actual candle at first, maybe even a small vaccume tube. Might have to nik thi.... erm I mean "borrow" this idea for later. 

[Aleister Crow]

Lovelty work Mr. Crow, the radioactive pendant looks quite eerie indeed. Perhaps some more shots of its more "luminescent" properties?

The mini aether lamps are amazingly simple but still elegant and victorian. Had you not pointed it out first, I never would have guessed electric tea lamps as the basis of lighting. Thought it was an actual candle at first, maybe even a small vaccume tube. Might have to nik thi.... erm I mean "borrow" this idea for later. 

I tried to take a picture of the pendant's glow, but it's very faint, and unfortunately my camera can't do long exposures.

You're welcome to nick the candle idea, of course. I'm  hoping people will, to be honest, so I can see what they did and nick borrow the ideas back again.