Getting Started with Raspberry PI
Originally, we set up this site to focus on woodcrafting and painting but as our interests grew, we have increasingly ...
Bell Hopper – Contraption Delta
For our upcoming Maker Faire presentation we wanted to make robotics more approachable. One barrier to robotics is, by its ...
Leibniz Calculator- Contraption Gamma
For the upcoming Maker Faire the Hip Monster's sisters team wanted a challenge. Something that required precision and also aligned ...
Number One On Its Own
Number One looks very simple, it's just a burnt out hair drier with wheels. As out first design we opted ...
Wiring of Number Two and Three
The HipMonster's sister team decided to push our robotics to the next level. They were dissatisfied with remote controlled robots ...
Number Three’s Controller
This post is an old one we forgot to publish a while back. Currently, Number Three is controlled by a ...
Cosplay Dragon Tail
One thing we have always been jealous of is tails. Cats and dogs flaunt them as they strut around waving ...
Carved Wooden Seals
As presents for our teachers last year, we decided to make a series of wooden seals. We chose cats because ...
Wooden Pony Carving
Our pony carving was inspired by Pinkie Pie from My Little Pony. We love Pinkie Pie's bright outlook and humor! ...
First Screen Test for Robot Freedom
Here is a preview of HipMonsters.com's next project, Robot Freedom. No robots were destroyed making this, but Number Three had ...
Foam-Mo Creations
This is an introduction to one of our favorite making materials, Foam-Mo. Foam-Mo is really great for making models of ...
DIY Moss Terrarium
What do you do if you break a pot? This fun DIY moss terrarium will teach you a great way ...
SF Zoo Fundraiser Jewelry
jfheTo support the San Francisco Zoo, the HipMonsters' sisters team, and a neighborhood friend decided to sell jewelry to raise ...
Making of Number Six and Number Seven
After finishing Number three, we wanted to make smaller and lighter walking robots. Leveraging what we had learned from building ...
Making Mandrake Roots
Inspired by the character Professor Sprout (from Harry Potter) and this wonderful article, we set out to make our mandrake ...
Upgrades to Number Three
Since we discovered how to make Number Five move, we decided to upgrade Number Three. We tried to preserve as ...
Color Splash Collection, Summer 2023
The Summer 2023 release of the Color Splash Collection is in! Made from wood and painted in acrylic paint, each ...
Herbal Potions
One of the small projects that we do is make herbal potions, tiny jars or pouches full of crushed up ...
The Making of the Hand of Glory
Inspired by Harry Potter, the HipMonsters team made our own Hand of Glory out of Foam-Mo. The Hand of Glory ...
Wooden Deer Sculpture
This is our wooden deer sculpture, made as a Christmas present. We only used wood from our yard to make ...
Making a Toy Bunny
It was the end of the school year and we want to make a toy for one of our teachers ...
Senecio Stellata (Cineraria) Flowers
Gardening season has started and we want to talk about one of our favorite flowers, Senecio Stellata (Cineraria). They add ...
The Making of Number Five
Inspired by the Boston Dynamics robot videos, steampunk art, and Girl Genius, the HipMonster team set out to make their ...
Steampunk Jewelry
Where technology and beauty meet, our steampunk jewelry embraces the genius within! This collection of steampunk jewelry is fit for ...
Puzzle Box: Push My Button
After building a number of dovetail puzzle boxes the HipMonsters sister team set out to make their own unique design ...
The Making of George the Mummy
We wanted to give people a scare on Halloween and was inspired by a visit to Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum so ...
Wooden Toy – Alligator
We decided to make a special present for our teachers at school. One of the teachers really loved alligators, so ...
Steampunk Contraption Model Beta
The Hip Monsters team decided to make something that interests people when they walk into the room. Inspired by Girl ...
Potion Cabinet
With all the potion-making we have been doing recently, we found that we needed a place to put our potion ...
The Making of Number Three
We saw the need for a new robot for halloween, so we made one. This is our steampunk squirrel powered ...
Ladder Bookcase
This project is about how to build a ladder bookcase. This bookcase has less room because its sides slope in ...
Monster: Lin the Dragon
Born from one of our favorite bushes and a failed costume, Lin the dragon was our most complex monster at ...
Monster: Hummingbird
The hummingbird monster was made from a branch too weak to be used for other projects. We decided to make ...
Monster: Anteater
We call this monster the Anteater. The Anteater monster was a wonderful branch that was too split to make a ...
DIY Pump Drill
The Hip Monster's sister team has created a DIY pump drill. Pump drills are ancient tools used by many cultures ...
Wand: Flame Tamer
Every wand we craft has unique mythos and a special spell. This wand is called the Flame Tamer. Mythos Flame ...
Wand: Scarlet Sunset
Every wand we craft has unique mythos and a special spell. This wand is called the Scarlet Sunset. Mythos Scarlet ...
Sun-Moon-Earth Orrery
Getting started Need to track the moon phases for that perfect time to cast a spell? Worried about when you ...
Wand: Night View
Every wand we craft has unique mythos and a special spell. This wand is called the Night View. Mythos The ...
DIY Ukulele
Inspired by our trips to Hawaii, the sisters team decided to make their own working DIY ukulele. We ended up ...
Color Splash Collection
Embracing color and elegance our necklaces will bring joy to those who wear them. Our collection of Color Splash necklaces ...
Puzzle Box: Dovetail
This puzzle box was inspired by Roy Underhill's Woodwright Shop. Based on an early American grease pot design it is ...
Shape Shifting Toy Robots
When the sisters team discovered Transformer comics (Go WindBlade!) they wanted a whole city of Transformers to play with. While ...
Our Apothecary Garden
Severus Snape and Professor Sprout are two of our favorite characters in Harry Potter, and their story inspired the sister team ...
Wooden Monster: Allie
The HipMonsters team does not like trees going to waste, so whenever we stumble upon a piece of wood too ...
Staff – Twisting Wave
When we go hiking, we sometimes pick up some good pieces of wood to make into staffs or other creations ...
Wand: Crimson Lava
Every wand we craft has unique mythos and a special spell. This wand is called the Crimson Lava. Mythos The ...