It’s Christmas Eve and if you’re lucky you’ve got some time off ahead of you. Let’s put that time to good use with some holiday-centered geeking out. Come on in for LEGO ornaments, Darth Vader snow flakes, and Christmas light hacks galore.

LEGO Holiday Ornaments

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Why limit yourself to using your LEGO blocks to recreate your favorite Dr. Who scenes? Visit the link above to grab LEGO building templates and crank out LEGO block ornaments. You can mix up the colors to make your ornaments as festive or Darth Vader’esque as you’d like.

Slice Up Some Star Wars Snowflakes

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Speaking of Darth Vader, if regular snowflakes are two boring for your Christmas party these Star Wars snow flakes might be just the right bit of décor. It’ll take more effort than a regular ol’ paper snow flake but the end result is far cooler than anything you ever hacked to life during grade school craft sessions.

Mix Up Your Christmas Lights with Ping Pong Ball Diffusers

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If you’re not one for the glare of naked Christmas lights, this ping pong ball hack is a quick and dirty way to diffuse the light. We’d recommend using an LED strand as the combination of hot incandescent Christmas lights and ping pong balls—which are made of nitrocellulose—seems like a bad idea, even if the operating temperature isn’t near the combustion point.

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For the paper craft geeks among us, you can deck out your tree or cube with a paper craft Link and Zelda courtesy of some Legend of Zelda loving paper crafts. Check out the Link and Zelda links above to grab the PDF files for the project.

Scavenge Some Drinks Cups and Turn Them Into a Mini Sparkle Ball

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Readers in the north United States are likely unfamiliar with sparkle balls. In the southern and south western United States, however, they’re a popular DIY holiday decoration. You need clear plastic drink cups, a strand of lights, and the patience to hot glue or zip tie them together. What starts off as a pile of wire and drink cups ends up looking like some sort of crystal organism, sparkling away on your front porch.

Have a Super Mario Bros. Christmas

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Not a huge fan of Star Wars? Skip the Star Wars snow flakes above and geek out with all these Super Mario Bros. themed DIY tutorials. Starman tree toppers, 1-UP ornaments, and gingerbread Marios are a few of the clever DIY projects you’ll find in the bundle.

Stuff an Old Wine Bottle with Christmas Lights for Swanky Ambient Lighting

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If the ping pong lighting was over the top and you’re getting sick of Christmas lights in general, it’s time to repurpose a strand or two and make some wine bottle lamps. They’re super simple to make (I’ve made several over the last year). You need bottles, Christmas lights, and a glass drill bit—which will set you back about $15 at the hardware store. Check out the link above for the full guide.


Have a DIY project with an electronic or otherwise geeky angle to share? Let’s hear about it in the comments—share pictures and links to tutorials if you have them.