thinking inside the box

[Matthew Hale]

every once on a while, we are presented with an opportunity to take on a new challenge that doesn't fit neatly inside our normal scope of operations. this was one such opportunity. i didn't deal directly with the client, so I don't know much about the piece inside, but i enjoyed creating the display case. it's not every day that i get to use the words "vitrine" and "plinth" in the same sentence.
I created the framework using readily available oak corner moulding from the home center, and clear silicone to adhere the glass panes. the joints were all cut on the miter saw. I used 3/4" mdf painted black for the plinth inside.

 

[Ylva]

What a beautiful display! I love what you did with this. Your customer must have been thrilled

 

[CharoDesigns210]

Thanks for sharing, great piece indeed!

 

[Matthew Hale]

What a beautiful display! I love what you did with this. Your customer must have been thrilled

yup. he cried. (in a good way).

 

[GreyDrakkon]

That's awesome!

 

[Matthew Hale]

...and now he wants me to put lights in it. I know some of you out there i Grumblestan have included LEDs in your projects before. any tips? My 1st thought is to run a strip of LED "tape" around the inside of the top edge but I've never used the stuff before.

 

[Ylva]

I have never used that before either but have seen those LED strings/tape on several projects and it looks good. You might have to post a new thread for this, as I am not sure if many people would see your question here

 

[Framar]

Hey Mike, I just glanced down at the "similar threads" feature and it seems that the algorithm is under the opinion that this thread is about "thinking." LOL

Maybe a tweak is in order?

 

[GreyDrakkon]

I've used the LED strip for a customer who wanted to backlight a glass panel taken from his door. The thing to keep in mind is that you can't cut those strips just anywhere, they have a "seam" that you have to cut on, else the lights in that section won't work. They do come in different lengths though so you would just have to do some measuring. There's also how you want to turn it on and off if you don't want it just to be a plug in for power, and having a...You know what, here's a video that will do a far better job explaining it than what I'm doing. Also, those things are SUPER bright, or at least the ones I got were, so you may want to see if there's different output levels.

 

[Matthew Hale]

...and now it's lit!

 

[Ylva]

That looks great! What did you end up using for the lights?

 

[Matthew Hale]

That looks great! What did you end up using for the lights?

I got some self-adhesive standard density led strips from LEDSupply. They can be cut every 4 inches and are super simple to install. They had all the supplies and info I needed to get it done. At first I tried using some snap-on connectors for the corners, but they proved to be a little too bulky, so I got some wire and soldered the connections instead and it turned out swimmingly.

 

[Dirk]

What a great title to the thread.

 

[Mervin02m]

...and now it's lit!
View attachment 35637 View attachment 35638

It's like the glaring beauty.