Day 001 - Noisemaker

Well, here we are on day one - New Year's Eve. In honor of the holiday, I figure that we need a little more noise around here, so I made an old-fashioned noisemaker. This was just about as tricky as I expected it would be, but it sure is rewarding to see that my guesses worked out.

The body, bushings, and flapper are made from resawn pine 2x4; the handle is mystery wood from a craft store dowel pack; and the star wheel is oak from a leftover piece of our 70 year old hardwood floors. The flapper was fun to make as it's only about 1mm thick.

Here's a video of the noisemaker in action (fair warning - it's loud):

Day 000

I know it seems silly, but I feel a little like I'm staring out on a grand adventure. Making a toy every day seems like such a small thing, but doing one thing every day for year, something that I've done only occasionally before, is a bit daunting. Will I be able to stick with it? Will I run out of ideas? Will it become a chore I dread instead of a hobby I enjoy? Time will tell.

For now, I'm excited. I do truly enjoy making things, and I think this will give me the opportunity to expand my skills. I'll be using those skills a lot more, and practice makes perfect, right?

I'm so excited about this that I'll be jumping the gun a little. Instead of starting on New Year's Day, I'm starting tomorrow. The road is waiting, let's go.

Coming Soon

I recently heard an interview with Noah Scalin on my local indie radio station, and I was inspired to do something myself. After knocking the idea around in my head for a couple of days I decided that I'll be making a toy, game, or other fun thing every day in 2011. I know I don't have to wait until 1/1 to start, but I like the idea of a new project with the new year, plus it'll give me time to lay in a stock of materials.

Toys are fun, and I like fun.