Friday, September 28, 2007

DIY Recycled Cable Spool

DIY Recycled Cable Spool

Works great with iPod headphones and cellphone ear pieces!
Have a stack of empty trays from a frozen dinner binge? Turn them into useful cable spools. Each tray can make about 4 cable spools. First I designed my shape in Adobe Illustrator. I pinced the the sides a little and the hole is roughly the diameter of your standard hole-punch. I printed out a sheet of templates. Cut them out. Then used clear packing tape to afix them to the frozen dinner tray. I started the cut ordinary scissors, but paused as I passed a corner to punch the hole. If you cut it all the way out, the tape will nolonger hold the template in place. The last step is to cut a slit to the hole so you can slip the cable in the hole. I haven't determined if angled or straight is best.

Download a PDF of the cable spool templates.

Reuse Those Trays
These trays are great for warming food in the microwave. Some can be used in the oven! Two identical trays make a bottom in a lid. Cover your food, keeping it moist and the microwave clean. You can even use them to keep left over by covering with foil or plastic wrap.

If you don't reuse them, please rinse off and recycle them.

Hot Tray Caddy for Frozen Dinners

Hot Tray Caddy for Frozen Dinners
Laugh in face of uncomfortable temperatures and cautionary warnings!
Reuse that box your frozen dinner came in as a caddy to carry that hot tray fresh out of the microwave. Trace the top rim of the tray on a side of the box. Then, redraw the oval line about a quarter of an inch inside the trace-line. Note the ends of the oval are square-ish so adjust the inner line accordingly. Use an X-acto knife to cut the shape out. It helps to reseal the end of the box with some packing tape first. It makes the box less flimsy.

Digg It!
More projects at my blog, Pizza Box Art


Hot Tray Caddy for Frozen Dinners