I Make: Laptop Case

Hello All,

I've been doing a lot of looking at D.I.Y. laptop cases on the ol' truth box, and it got me to thinking. So, last night, I grabbed an armload of studio trash, a roll of duct tape, a pen, an exacto, some scissors, and an Emergen-C, and set down to make my own laptop case.

Here's what I did:

First, I got some cardboard, which we've got a lot of. Then some thin type bubble wrap, not the kind with big bubbles, but nice and squashy just the same. A plastic bag for waterproofing and I was all set.

Here are my materials:


I lay the laptop out onto a doubled over length of bubble wrap and traced the outline, leaving room for the edges to fold up. Then I taped along the top and up one side. Then I used small tabs of tape to adjust the fit around the laptop, because if the sleeve was too tight, it would be frustrating to get in and out. Looked like this:


Then I just worked for a while and forgot to take pictures, but all I did was repeat the process with the cardboard. I taped an extra piece onto the top to serve as a flap, and that's what you see here:






Here I've taken the inner sleeve of bubble wrap out of the cardboard case and cut a plastic bag to size around it to serve as waterproofing. You can see it sticking out the top. I left it long so that I could fold it over for further protection.


I put a bit more tape on to protect against wear and tear and 'cause it looks nice, but I didn't cover up all the cardboard. That's because I wanted people to see that it was cardboard and duct tape. There is magic in simple things, and more magic still in what your hands can do with them. I also found a nice bit of velcro in the studio closet, and because it kept peeling off the case (strong stuff, velcro) I taped it down around the edges. Works great!


Here's the inner sleeve, all nice and waterproofed, next to the outer sleeve, and my Emergen-C.


Here it is all done. It took me three hours, start to finish, mostly because I didn't follow any directions. I just kept fiddling until it was done. Like Nero.


The best part about this laptop case, besides being cool, sleek, and hand-made, is that it kept a bunch of stuff out of a trash pile, AND I got a custom laptop case. All it cost me was time and a third of a roll of tape.
No logos, no worries.

You'll notice that these "instructions" are a little vague and maybe not all that useful. That's because I want you to see this and think: "I can do even better!"

And I want you to do better. Then I want you to take a picture of the better thing you've done and send it in to: Superforestnyc@gmail.com. Then I can put it up on the site so we can all admire you, you smart little duckling.

Then I want you to eat a nice piece of fruit or something, because maybe your blood sugar is a little low after all that makin'!

Have a wonderful and fruitful weekend.


Love to all,

Jackson



p.s. Be excellent to each other. Make each other laptop cases.