One of the world’s luckiest 6-year-olds, at least this week, lives in Minnesota. This jaw-dropping custom bedroom renovation from Twin Cities builder Steve Kuhl is featured over at My Modern Metropolis:

The main feature of the room is the incredible floating pirate ship. Kuhl used 2×12 ribs to construct the hull of the ship, covering them with layers of 1/2 inch plywood to act as the planking. A bomb-proof blend of plaster and epoxy with integrated coloring was used simulate an old ship’s hull.

But that’s not all. The room is also decked out with a rope bridge that connects the pirate ship to the top of a jail cell, and a rope suspended from the ship’s hull provides drop-in access to the closet. There’s also a completely hidden spiral slide, that lets you travel downstairs in a more adventurous way.

They’ve also got a follow-on interview with Steve himself. I know I’m not the only thirty-something out there who’s at least a bit jealous.

More:

• Awesome Kinetic Marble Run Installed in Child’s Bedroomo
• Y-Wing Bunk Completes a Scifi Bedroom
• A 1970s Teenager’s Bedroom

I held off on “giant,” because, well, there’s really big, and then there’s giant. And, as cool as your Arduino-brained bubble blowing robot is, Instructables user zvizvi, the bubbles it blows are not truly giant IMNSHO. Check out zvizvi’s and the other winning entries in Instructables’ recent Microcontroller Contest.

• Giant Bubbles On The Beach
• Bubble Photography Tips And Tricks
• Out Of This World Soap Bubbles

Makers this month:

• The Cardboard Institute of Technology has been building a large installation in the Tinkering Studio since the beginning of the month. They will share their progress and host a “building with cardboard” workshop.
• Surfer and laser-cutting artist Mike Sheldrake will bring some of his amazing surfboards made with a cardboard core.
• Los Angeles artist Ana Serrano will talk about the incredibly detailed cityscapes she builds out of cardboard, inspired by real neighborhoods.
• Puppeteer Dan Tran-Caffee makes giant articulated puppets out of cardboard (some require as many as 6 people to operate!): he will bring some and have them roam around the museum all day long.
• And also keep an eye out for the giant cardboard robot costumes by Jason Lentz!

See the Exploratorium’s Tinkering Studio website for more info.

I’ve built a lot of stuff with wood in my life, but I do not consider myself a “woodworker” by any stretch of the imagination. When I evaluate a project that uses wood, personally, what I look for is the maximum cool result for the least amount of technical skill and work. Here, then, are ten of my personal favorite bangiest-for-the-buck wooden projects from the vault. Enjoy!

#10

#9

#8

#7

#6

#5

#4

#3

#2

#1

Did I miss a good one? Let me know, below!

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During the game children wear a Bee puppet wrist band with embedded electronics to allow for game play. The children have a finite amount of time (45 seconds) to collect and deposit nectar and a finite storage capacity of nectar (3 units). During the allotted time, a child runs from flower to flower and tries to collect nectar. A child can collect one unit of nectar from any given flower (if the flower is not empty) and will also be informed as to how much nectar remains inside the flower (via LED Array 1). A child may collect nectar from the same flower more than once. Once the child’s nectar stomach (represented via a LED array 2) has been filled, he or she returns to the hive and deposits the stored nectar. If time runs out prior to depositing nectar, the nectar is lost and is not counted. When a child’s turn is over, marked either by running out of time or by making a successful deposit, the bee puppet is passed to a teammate.

One of the team members, Ben Zaitlen, demonstrates the game and explains the technology:

[via Rob Faludi]

During the game children wear a Bee puppet wrist band with embedded electronics to allow for game play. The children have a finite amount of time (45 seconds) to collect and deposit nectar and a finite storage capacity of nectar (3 units). During the allotted time, a child runs from flower to flower and tries to collect nectar. A child can collect one unit of nectar from any given flower (if the flower is not empty) and will also be informed as to how much nectar remains inside the flower (via LED Array 1). A child may collect nectar from the same flower more than once. Once the child’s nectar stomach (represented via a LED array 2) has been filled, he or she returns to the hive and deposits the stored nectar. If time runs out prior to depositing nectar, the nectar is lost and is not counted. When a child’s turn is over, marked either by running out of time or by making a successful deposit, the bee puppet is passed to a teammate.

One of the team members, Ben Zaitlen, demonstrates the game and explains the technology:

[via Rob Faludi]

During the game children wear a Bee puppet wrist band with embedded electronics to allow for game play. The children have a finite amount of time (45 seconds) to collect and deposit nectar and a finite storage capacity of nectar (3 units). During the allotted time, a child runs from flower to flower and tries to collect nectar. A child can collect one unit of nectar from any given flower (if the flower is not empty) and will also be informed as to how much nectar remains inside the flower (via LED Array 1). A child may collect nectar from the same flower more than once. Once the child’s nectar stomach (represented via a LED array 2) has been filled, he or she returns to the hive and deposits the stored nectar. If time runs out prior to depositing nectar, the nectar is lost and is not counted. When a child’s turn is over, marked either by running out of time or by making a successful deposit, the bee puppet is passed to a teammate.

One of the team members, Ben Zaitlen, demonstrates the game and explains the technology:

[via Rob Faludi]

Continue reading VTech's InnoPad brings tablets to youngsters, floods their sponge-like brains with knowledge

VTech's InnoPad brings tablets to youngsters, floods their sponge-like brains with knowledge originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 12 Feb 2011 01:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

ZTE 005Z emergency cellphone keeps your kid safe, cooler than other kids originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 10 Feb 2011 19:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.