I got to design this month's kit, so that means mechanicals! I'm a big fan of mechanical irises and I've been wanting to do a lamp that uses an iris to determine the amount of light that comes out. 

This month is a really fun one, and a rare one that has no electronics whatsoever.  Designed by Rocco's Stuff, this vending machine is modular and stackable. We've provided enough parts to build 2 units, allowing for 2 items to be vended. 

The project for this month is one that we've been talking about internally for a while now. This plain looking box has an 8x8 LED matrix inside and does a simple physics simulation, making what we're calling "digital sand". It has no purpose other than to be neat to look at while you move it around in your hand. We LOVE this thing! 

I had a lot of fun designing this little mini boombox. It actually started life as a much bigger project but the sound that came out when I had it on my workbench for testing was much more fitting of a boombox that fit in the palm of your hand. 

It may not shake the walls with sound, but it makes up for it in style. 

This little escalator designed by Alex Yu has been on our list for quite some time. We're happy to finally bring it to you. 

DSK001 hit it out of the park again with this one. This screw sorter is super fun to assemble and get working. You'll have to run it a bit to "break it in" but once you've got it going, you can sit back and watch it go.