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helenleigh.bsky.social
Hardware hacker, author & maker of musical oddities Cymru - London - Berlin - Portland
29 posts 818 followers 324 following
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Posts 21 Comments 14

Going live in 15 minutes - join us!

submitted 3 days ago • 0 comments

Join @helenleigh for a livestream with Zeke Wheeler this Thurssday at noon PT www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqiI...

submitted 5 days ago • 0 comments

Hey #Portland! Hardware Happy Hour is tonight at the Bye and Bye on Alberta. Hosted by @helenleigh.bsky.social, It's an informal way to socialize, show off your projects, and talk about the world of hardware. From beginner to expert, all are welcome! www.meetup.com/hardware-hap... #PDX #PortlandPDX

submitted 5 days ago • 0 comments

Watch @helenleigh.bsky.social and I high five each other to make music in pure joy. youtu.be/L7at10FYFfg?...

submitted 5 days ago • 0 comments

Rounded out the weekend by doing an embroidery stitch sampler while watching some very good owls. This is destined to be a visual aid in a new e-textile workshop that I've been developing with @anu1905.bsky.social 🪡⚡

submitted 13 days ago • 0 comments

Spent this afternoon figuring out how to control a SUB 37 with my disco ball theremin. It's looking like my best option is to update the code and add in CV support. I've also added a MIDI cable in the hopes that I'll be able to use it to control Ableton Live as well.

submitted 15 days ago • 2 comments

I've been making devices that talk MIDI to Ableton Live for years but I somehow never learned how to use it to lay down a track. I signed up for a series of classes at an electronic music school in Portland. One workshop in & I already know that this will be a game changer. Weird noises incoming!

submitted 16 days ago • 1 comment

Welding class (TIG) started tonight. A fair amount of theory to start but we did also get to do some beading work towards the end. Making stuff out of metal is fun.

submitted 17 days ago • 5 comments

This weekend I learned how to cast bronze inside carved cuttlefish bone. This ancient metalworking technique has been around since the 6th century BCE (at least!) and produces objects with organic, unique features. Any weekend you get to play with fire is a good weekend 🔥

submitted 21 days ago • 5 comments

The best bit of buying yarn is when they make it into a ball for you

submitted 30 days ago • 0 comments

Bought this cool old purse with metal details in a vintage store at the Lloyd Center (the mall I run Teardown in). Gave it a tickle with my multimeter at home, and it turns out that the purse has good conductive properties. Hmm. My hobby: making things that shouldn't be buttons into buttons.

submitted 72 days ago • 0 comments

Going live now!

submitted 73 days ago • 0 comments

Open Hardware Summit is around the corner and it's IN EUROPE! Wohoo! So submit all your cool talks, art and everything else until Dec 22nd! docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F... @oshwassociation.bsky.social

submitted 73 days ago • 0 comments

Last night's fit for the Hacker Holiday Party

submitted 79 days ago • 1 comment

Introducing my open source Skill Trees project! Have you ever wanted to learn a new skill in a gamified way? I've created a range of printable templates where you can color in the boxes of anything you've already done, visualise your progress and find your skill gaps. 50+ skills now covered!

submitted 92 days ago • 4 comments

Teardown is one of my top conferences to attend. If you enjoy art, hardware, and good folks I hope you will join me at this event.

submitted 93 days ago • 0 comments

It's official! @crowdsupply.bsky.social's Teardown will be returning to the mall in June 2025 and they are still letting me run it. Keynotes will be Cory Doctorow (author, journalist, activist), Kate Stewart (VP of Embedded at Linux, Zephyr, RTOS) and bunnie Huang (hardware hacker, author).

submitted 93 days ago • 4 comments

Hardware Happy Hour #Portland is tonight from 7pm at the Bye & Bye on Alberta St. Bring your projects or just bring yourself. #HHH meetu.ps/e/NDP83/bgyT...

submitted 95 days ago • 0 comments

The first musical instrument I ever made was with @phoenixperry.bsky.social. We made a wearable keyboard with an Arduino nano connected to conductive paint + vinyl stencil keys. We finished it just in time to do a chaotic (but hilarious) talk that included Phoenix running onstage to reboot me.

submitted 95 days ago • 2 comments

I haven't been on social media much lately but here's some proof I'm still alive and hacking! Lately I've been working on some fun projects that I might even share with the Internet at some point ✨🟪🎹🟪✨ Clip on ⚡ earring by @lasermistress.bsky.social

submitted 101 days ago • 3 comments

Fine, let's do this.

submitted 102 days ago • 6 comments