For the Bookmark/Pin/Wristcuff project, I made three plans, a bookmark with a book on the top, a bookmark with a heart on the top, and a pin with a flower in the middle. At first, I only planned for one LED on my projects, but then I adjusted to 3 LEDs for every project. I chose a bookmark to make because I thought it was the most helpful thing to make, as I like to read paper books. I included a little book decoration on top because I thought it was the most relevant symbol that relates to a book. I made this design for myself, as a Christmas present, I think the bookmark will encourage me to read more in 2023. I chose this bookmark design, because the decoration is my favorite, even though it is just a simple bookmark, it is the most useful to me. I did not choose the other bookmark, simply because I liked this design better. I did not change anything from my original plan, because I thought it was already good enough for my final product. I thought of putting the conductive thread on the back of the bookmark, like doing a run-on stitch on the back side of the bookmark, but I was not sure if it would work, so I did not take the risk. I was most proud of my decoration part, because the precise measurements that I made, the stitches I used, and how I attached the felts to the bookmark felt great. I stitched my stitches to the middle of the white felt (the paper for the book) so that it can form a 3-D book.

During the sewable electronics unit, I learned how to sew with conductive thread (which is different from normal nonconductive threads), the way to tieing on and tieing off, how to do a backstitch, and securing the battery holder. Along with the stitches, I learned how to use the EPX, using the blocks to code how the LEDs work for the final project. I think my planning for the positive and negative sides and matching them to the correct outputs on the EPX needs improvement (final project). Some areas I need to improve are improving my skills in hiding the conductive thread that is being stitched on the felt (Bookmark/Pin/Wristcuff project). The project I planned for the EPX was not very reasonable with the positive and negative sides for the LEDS, I planned for too little space between the positive and negative pathways, which can lead to the LEDs not working, and not enough space to contain all the LEDs because the conductive threads blocked the LED’s original location.

1. What were some challenging areas and how did you work through them?

EPX project: Some challenging areas for me were planning before my project, but I worked through them with the help of teachers and classmates.

Bookmark/Pin/Wristcuff project: Some challenging areas for me were the sewing part since it was my first time doing a project with sewing the battery holder and LEDs on, and sewing the positive and negative sides.

What tips, tricks, and advice would you give to next semester’s new students? Please, don’t mention online learning.

I would advise the new students to plan well before they make their project and make the tiniest adjustments from their plan as possible, because many mistakes come from not following your plan in some places and following in other places, for example mixing up the positive and negative sides, getting on the wrong sides of the LEDs, etc.

What would you have liked me to change about the course and how it ran to make it better? Also, let me know what worked well so I don’t change that bit.

I liked how we learned about the circus and LEDs in a gradually increasing difficulty way, and introduced soldering, e-textiles, EPX, and code step by step, so it is easy for a beginner to follow, and learn not too challenging. I really liked how the course was designed, and I enjoyed learning it by the way it is!