Jupiter Ascending by the Wachowski siblings opened this weekend. After seeing the original trailer, I was struck by the hovering, glowing cool factor of the boots for “Caine” (played by Channing Tatum). Hmmm, LEDs on the bottom of the sole. And there lying in the corner of my shop, an old pair of my boots. It…

With so many cool things coming out each week, it can be hard to wade through all the rock-awesomeness. With ‘Cool Tools’, we’ve done the hard work for you. This week we saw everything from a swirling tornado water faucet to drifting Hot Wheels and…a biodegradable drone (??!!) Ready? Let’s go! This week we look…

With so many cool things coming out each week, it can be hard to wade through all the rock-awesomeness. With ‘Cool Tools’, we’ve done the hard work for you. This week we saw everything from a brilliant popcorn machine to the release of Microsoft Outlook on iPhone and…a blowdart for shooting laser-guided marshmallows (??!!) Ready?…

With an 80 cent piezo buzzer, tungsten wire and some spare MDF, Dan Berard has managed to build an working Scanning Tunneling Microscope that can image whole atomic structures. Arthur C. Clarke once said that any sufficiently advanced technology would be indistinguishable from magic… …my variation would be “any sufficiently advanced technology made in your house…

With so many cool things coming out each week, it can be hard to wade through all the rock-awesomeness. With ‘Cool Tools’, we’ve done the hard work for you. This week we saw everything from the new release of Microsoft Windows 10 to “sewn” wood and…a self-destructing book? Ready? Let’s go! This week we look…

With so many cool things coming out each week, it can be hard to wade through all the rock-awesomeness. With ‘Cool Tools’, we’ve done the hard work for you. For our third week of 2015, we saw everything from a chocolate designs that alter taste based on texture alone, an update to Google’s Translate app…

Somewhere amongst the cat pictures, reaction gifs and weight loss photos, crowdsourced bulletin board and news site Reddit is capable of churning out some rather interesting show and tell design-related stories. Among others we’ve seen include a ‘husband of the year’ candidate who fabricated a race-ready bicycle for his competitive racer wife from scratch as…

With so many cool things coming out each week, it can be hard to wade through all the rock-awesomeness. With ‘Cool Tools’, we’ve done the hard work for you. For our second week of 2015, we saw everything from a release update on the self-lacing Nike’s as seen in Back to the Future, an iOS…

Since raising over $10 million USD on Kickstarter in May of 2012, the Pebble E-Paper Watch for iPhone and Android (AKA Pebble Smartwatch) has gone on to be one of the better success stories that has come out of the crowdfunding platform. At the time of their Kickstarter campaign, the smartwatch concept was still relatively…

With so many cool things coming out each week, it can be hard to wade through all the rock-awesomeness. With ‘Cool Tools’, we’ve done the hard work for you. For our first week of 2015, we saw everything from an 3D printed prosthetic for a turtle to a mini-documentary on people who call a treehouse…

They say vinyl produces the best sounding reproduction of music. It’s a big debate that seems to run in circles again and again. Get it? Well we can settle one question I’ve always had: I can burn a CD, and I can make a tape. But why can’t I make my own Vinyl records? Well look…

With so many cool things coming out each week, it can be hard to wade through all the rock-awesomeness. With ‘Cool Tools’, we’ve done the hard work for you. This week we saw everything from an ingenious solution for a 3D printed canine prosthetic to a new design trivia app and…Weird Al is a magician…

With so many cool things coming out each week, it can be hard to wade through all the rock-awesomeness. With ‘Cool Tools’, we’ve done the hard work for you. This week we saw everything from a nearly-crash proof video drone for filming your epic water balloon fights to a new type of rabbit-inspired joinery and…

As far as ‘Behind the Design’ and DIY videos go, whoever is operating behind the scenes at Inspire to Make has done an exceptional job of crafting and communicating the steps for unique projects without overestimating people’s short YouTube attention span these days. In fact, this recently-released video of Inspire to Make’s latest DIY project…

While we wait for our robot dogs and cats, the Germans from Zoobotics are working on bringing us modular spider robots called ZURI. The insect like robot-kit gives you the chance to finally start working on your personal pet army. Seemingly inspired by IKEA and Origami with a healthy dose of Sci-Fi styling, ZURI starts…

Presented last month at Autodesk’s Pop-Up Gallery in Paris, LeFabShop’s Open Toy Project is pretty much as close as you can get to playing with your food in every sense of the phrase. Designed by Samuel N. Bernier at a 2013 workshop at Domaine de Boisbuchet, the project came out of a decision to use…

With so many cool things coming out each week, it can be hard to wade through all the rock-awesomeness. With ‘Cool Tools’, we’ve done the hard work for you. This week we saw everything from a water well-inspired lamp design to the new trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens and more. Ready? Let’s go!…

While it may have vaporized out of mainstream news, the Red Bull Stratos jump featuring daredevil Felix Baumgartner is still one of the coolest feats that humanity has accomplished in the last few years. The supersonic jump—which occured at 128,100 feet above Earth—was possible thanks to a team of world-class designers, engineers, researchers and other…

With so many cool things coming out each week, it can be hard to wade through all the rock-awesomeness. With ‘Cool Tools’, we’ve done the hard work for you. This week we saw everything from a new concept for United States currency to a desktop fist bumping device and more. Ready? Let’s go! This week…

After a successful Kickstarter campaign in February of 2014 that saw them raise over $250,000 (with an original goal of $18,000) The Floyd Leg creators have been busy expanding their product line that was born out of the successful Kickstarter campaign. This time around, they want to enable you to create an entire workshop or…

With so many cool things coming out each week, it can be hard to wade through all the rock-awesomeness. With ‘Cool Tools’, we’ve done the hard work for you. This week we saw everything from a bike path that glows at night to a modern toboggan design and more. Ready? Let’s go! This week we…

With so many cool things coming out each week, it can be hard to wade through all the rock-awesomeness. With ‘Cool Tools’, we’ve done the hard work for you. This week we saw everything from a radical take on wheelchair design to a new app from Google that wants to make everybody a marketing expert.…

Ask anybody who plays in a code-based environment such as Rhino’s Grasshopper and you’re bound to meet some people doing wild and crazy things. While it may take a little bit of time getting familiar with a code environment–assuming you don’t know printf(“hello world”) from an actual printer–the results can oftentimes be stunning and worth…

With so many cool things coming out each week, it can be hard to wade through all the rock-awesomeness. With ‘Cool Tools’, we’ve done the hard work for you. This week we saw everything from a brilliant fish tank design that allows for goldfish to ‘escape’ from their tank to a couple of interesting projects…

With so many cool things coming out each week, it can be hard to wade through all the rock-awesomeness. With ‘Cool Tools’, we’ve done the hard work for you. This week we saw everything from a genius new take on the rubber band to an incredibly awesome DIY paper mask and…Keanu Reeves saw a ghost…

With so many cool things coming out each week, it can be hard to wade through all the rock-awesomeness. With ‘Cool Tools’, we’ve done the hard work for you. This week we saw everything from a pocket-sized espresso maker to one of the most complex popsicle stick models we’ve ever seen and more… Ready? Let’s…

With so many cool things coming out each week, it can be hard to wade through all the rock-awesomeness. Fortunately, we’ve done the hard work for you so. This week we saw everything from a pencil that documents your ‘sketching distance’ to the announcement of a LEGO factory tour and more… Ready? Let’s go! This…

With so many cool things coming out each week, it can be hard to wade through all the rock-awesomeness. Fortunately, we’ve done the hard work for you so all you have to do is lay back in your La-Z-Boy with your Blue Razz Big Gulp Slurpee and pop Reese’s Pieces into your mouth. This week…

With so many cool things coming out each week, it can be hard to wade through all the rock-awesomeness. Fortunately, we’ve done the hard work for you so all you have to do is lay back in your La-Z-Boy with your Blue Razz Big Gulp Slurpee and pop Reese’s Pieces into your mouth. This week…

It’s Friday, and you know what that means here on The Smack: time for another DIY project to add to your weekend plan arsenal. If you’re like us, you have a fairly organized workspace but somehow manage to continually lose your hammers…resulting in a drawer filled with replaced hammers down the road. If one of…

As far as internet video celebrities go, genius inventor and all-around mad man Colin Furze is certainly one of our favorites. The plumber, stuntman, inventor, and filmmaker from Stamford, Lincolnshire, England is known for his wild and downright impressive inventions ranging from ‘The World’s Fastest Pram’ (complete with a flamethrower and World Record to boot)…

Brought to you this week by an epidermal inclusion cyst on a newborn octopus, be sure to check out the all new episode of Cool Tools of Doom n’ Stuff! By the way, we love our SolidSmack readers! Have something cool you’ve come across and want to share it on SolidSmack? Don’t hide it in…

It’s Friday, and you know what that means here on The Smack: time for another DIY project to add to your arsenal. This week we’ve rounded up a dang-cool shelving project from software engineer-turned jewelry hacker Mat Brown who explains how to seal cracks and crevices of a piece of wood with glowing resin (AKA…

As more people get hip to streaming their music from various Cloud-based music services, the market for connected (and wireless) speakers has seen a huge surge in the past few years. While you could go out and get any number of connected speakers ranging from portable bluetooth options to more high-end kits made for serious…

Brought to you this week by the day-long shedding of Smoth Mealer’s tentacle skin, be sure to check out the all new episode of Cool Tools of Doom n’ Stuff! By the way, we love our SolidSmack readers! Have something cool you’ve come across and want to share it on SolidSmack? Don’t hide it in…

Brought to you this week by the pores in Smoth Mealer’s chin squirting freshly-steamed tortillas, be sure to check out the all new episode of Cool Tools of Doom n’ Stuff! By the way, we love our SolidSmack readers! Have something cool you’ve come across and want to share it on SolidSmack? Don’t hide it…

As a follow-up to the Tramline Ride showcased last week, we’ve rounded up ten delightful DIY Pallet Hacks to add to your summer project list. Sourcing used (or even new) pallets shouldn’t be hard—nearly two billion and counting are in circulation in the US alone. Needles to say, that’s a lot of wood; however do…

Office warfare can come in many forms. For some it involves competitive games of ping pong or foosball…for others it involves spitballs and the occasional foam dart. Perhaps you even find yourself having to protect your beloved toy collection or Copic marker set from thieving co-workers similar to Milton in the 1999 comedy classic Office…

Brought to you this week by a steaming plate of hair noodles plucked from the underbelly of a chihuahua, be sure to check out the all new episode of Cool Tools of Doom n’ Stuff! By the way, we love our SolidSmack readers! Have something cool you’ve come across and want to share it on…

When you live in expensive cities like London, every inch in your apartment is like prime real estate space, teaching you the art of multi-purposing the interiors. DIY fan Jude Pullen was recently in a similar situation – in London – and he came up with this really simple and minimalist Under Desk Tool Drawer…

Well, it’s Friday again folks and we all know what that means: time for another project to tack onto our weekend project board! The DIY Weekend Smack features a weekly project that we’ve found that is cheap, easy, effective and most importantly, something fun to keep that creative muscle flexed over the weekend! This week…

Here on SolidSmack we’re always on the lookout for cool projects. Sure, our readers love to take a juicy sketch and model it up in CAD for a slick 3D print or a more involved manufactured product, but sometimes it’s the simple and easy projects that can help keep our creative itch scratched…especially on the…

Brought to you this week by Paul Bunyan’s bunions, be sure to check out the all new episode of Cool Tools of Doom n’ Stuff! By the way, we love our SolidSmack readers! Have something cool you’ve come across and want to share it on SolidSmack? Don’t hide it in your neck skin! Send it…

The task on hand was to find you “11 Ways To Use a 3D Printer Cable (That Your Parents Didn’t Tell You About)”, however we thought to expand our horizons and include the likes of USB Cable, Telephone Cable, Ethernet Cable and more. So, if you have your parents’ permission (and access to a butt-load…

Brought to you this week by an alien lung bubble covered in pine mulch, be sure to check out the all new episode of Cool Tools of Doom n’ Stuff! By the way, we love our SolidSmack readers! Have something cool you’ve come across and want to share it on SolidSmack? Don’t hide it in…

Brought to you this week by a salty cod lounging on a lawn chair drinking strawberry soda from a swirly straw, be sure to check out the all new episode of Cool Tools of Doom n’ Stuff! By the way, we love our SolidSmack readers! Have something cool you’ve come across and want to share…

Since its launch in 2006 in San Mateo, California, the Bay Area Maker Faire has been the premiere event for makers, DIYers, hackers, and anybody with an interest in making things real. With everything from soldering clinics to a 3D printing village, it’s hard to leave the event feeling uninspired to get that wacky side…

Brought to you this week by a passive-aggressive guinea pig wearing an extra-large sombrero and singing the Macarena, be sure to check out the all new episode of Cool Tools of Doom n’ Stuff! By the way, we love our SolidSmack readers! Have something cool you’ve come across and want to share it on SolidSmack?…

Brought to you this week by a mutant Koala bear with vodka tentacles and a guacamole hat, be sure to check out the all new episode of Cool Tools of Doom n’ Stuff! By the way, we love our SolidSmack readers! Have something cool you’ve come across and want to share it on SolidSmack? Don’t…

When it comes to choosing people who you might want to be hanging out with during an apocalypse, leave it to those who are masters of upcycling…especially those who are also skilled in making crude weapons. Knife maker Trollsky of Poland recently uploaded a video to YouTube that shows his process of turning a leaf…