Hot MacGyverisms Posts
How To: 10 Holiday Life Hacks You Need to Know for a Merrier Christmas
Holidays can be challenging, especially around Christmastime—but not if you invoke your inner MacGyver spirit. In my latest "life hacks" guide, I show you 10 amazing tips and tricks that'll hopefully make your holiday season a little more merry.
Shave Smarter: 6 Ways to Save Money on Replacement Razor Blades Cartridges
I've never understood the phrase "smooth as a baby's bottom" to describe a really close shave. I mean, have you ever touched a baby's cheek? It's even smoother and a lot more sanitary. It just doesn't spew off the tongue as nice.
How To: Top 12 Hacks for Making Your Gadgets Better with Sugru
Sugru is some pretty versatile stuff. The company's slogan is "Hack things better," and for good reason. It sticks to aluminum, steel, ceramics, glass and plastics, it's waterproof and heat-resistant, and it can be molded into any shape you can imagine. Anything from your kitchen cabinets to your bicycle can be improved with some Sugru and a little creativity, and gadgets are no exception. Here are 10 of the coolest hacks to fix or upgrade your smartphone, tablet, or camera.
How To: Keep Your Earphones Tangle-Free & Smelling Good with This Minty Fresh DIY Cord Container
The cord on your headphones is usually more enemy than friend. While they obviously need it to function, a tangled or unnecessarily long cord can wreak havoc on your sanity. Personally, I've broken at least two pairs of headphones by tripping over the cord and yanking the jack right off of the wiring. There is a fix for that, but you can prevent the problem altogether by organizing your cords. There are plenty of ways to wrap a cord so it won't get tangled, but you still have to unwrap it if ...
How To: 10 Life Hacks You Need to Know for a Better Summer
Are you a messy burger eater? Ants and fruit flies invading your home? Hate drinking warm drinks? Find out the quick and easy DIY solutions to these problems with these 10 amazing tips and tricks for the summer.
How To: No Smartphone Stand? Just Use Your Wallet
My wallet is useful for pretty much two things. The first, holding my credit cards, lottery tickets, and money (or lack thereof). Second, making my ass number whenever I'm driving.
How To: Recycle an Empty Wipes Canister into a Neat & Tidy Plastic Bag Dispenser
Plastic bags may be banned from retail stores in some cities, like Santa Monica, Seattle, and San Fransisco, and will be banned in Los Angeles shortly, but we still use billions of them every year. What else are we going to use for throwing away cat litter or picking up dog poop?
How To: Make a Super Simple Toothbrush Holder and Declutter Your Bathroom Sink
If you don't have a lot of counter space in your bathroom, even something as small as a toothbrush can seem like it takes up a lot of room. Hanging a toothbrush holder on the wall helps to declutter your counter, or you can hang it inside the cabinet to hide them from sight. Photographer and Instructables user Andrea Biffi used one mini-pack of Sugru to make a really simple wall-mounted toothbrush holder. All you have to do is roll the Sugru into a cylinder, then press the toothbrushes into i...
How To: Turn Boxed Wine into a Mega Ice Pack That's Perfect for Big Coolers
Next time you finish a box of Franzia, don't throw out the bag. Instead, wash it out, fill it with water, and lay it flat in the freezer. As America's Test Kitchen points out, your newly created flat ice pack is perfect for lining the bottom of a cooler for a barbeque, camping trip, or hot summer day on the beach.
How To: Kill or Keep Away Flies & Other Small Pests with Homemade Sticky Flypaper
Despite being disgusting, houseflies are actually beneficial to humans in a few ways. As scavengers, they help the environment by eating rotting organic matter, and make great food for pet tarantulas. Regardless of the advantages to their existence, having them in your home can be infuriating. There are countless sprays, traps and devices made to kill or deter the little pests, one of the most common being flypaper that hangs from the ceiling. These sticky strips are incredibly easy to make a...
How To: Silence Obnoxiously Noisy Laptops & Smartphones with a Simple Device-Muting Key Fob
Electronic devices seem to have an uncanny ability to make noise at the worst possible times. It's always during an important meeting, a quiet study session at the library, or a biology final that your laptop or smartphone decides to play some obnoxious or embarrassing sound.
How To: Fix Your Cell Phone's Broken or Missing Volume Buttons Using Sugru
Smartphones are almost completely controlled through touchscreens now, but most of them still rely on physical buttons to turn it on or adjust volume. When those buttons stop working, you've got trouble (especially if it's your Home button).
How To: Keep Tall Boots from Slouching (And Organize Your Closet Chaos)
During the colder months, it seems like almost everyone wears boots. Even when it's hot out, people can be spotted with knee-highs and westerns. Whether it's for fashion or because you live in a place where 3 feet of snow is common, a good pair of boots (or five) is nice to have.
How To: Turn Corn or Potato Chips into a MacGyver-Style Emergency Candle
Not having power sucks. It can be fun for the first few hours, but if it lasts any longer than that, most people run out of things to do pretty quickly (i.e. the batteries in all their devices die).
How To: Never Lose the Detachable AC Plug to Your MacBook's Power Adapter Ever Again
Apple's power adapters have had their fair share of criticism. Some users complain that the magnets aren't strong enough, others say the adapters overheat and just stop working, and there was even a class action lawsuit over fraying issues.
How To: Organize Cords, Customize Your Keyboard, & Make Your Desk Nonslip with DIY Fabric Tape
There are thousands of uses for tape, and plenty of different types of it, too. Masking tape is perfect for labeling, double-sided tape is great for crafts, and duct tape is good for...well, just about everything.
How To: Make Your Headphones More Comfortable with Caulk Backer Rods
There are quite a few different types of headphones, and they all have their fair share of both pros and cons. Circumaural (full-size) headphones typically have better sound quality, but the in-ear kind are much more convenient to wear on the go.
How To: Recycle Your Junk Cardboard Boxes into a Super Simple & Stylish Cube Lamp
The problem with a lot of DIY projects is that they can require a lot of materials. You still end up with the satisfaction of something you built with your own hands, but the shopping trips can get pricey.
How To: Stop Squashing Bananas—Make Your Fruit Indestructible with This DIY Banana Case!
I've had a thing against bananas ever since Mario Kart; not only do I believe it's the worst weapon in the game, but it's also a very funny-looking food. Nevertheless, bananas are a great source of potassium, and I can't overlook that.
How To: Build a Tiny LED Flashlight Out of Nuts, Bolts, and Washers
A flashlight is one of those things you rarely need, but hardly ever have when you do. The normal-sized ones are unwieldy to carry around, and the small ones that you keep in a purse or car are easy to lose.
How To: Make a DIY Magnetic Hammer
So simple yet so brilliant: Designer Jung Soo Park found a way to improve a “run of the mill” hammer by incorporating a magnet at the end of the handle. It holds a few nails while you’re working and if you drop a few on the floor, the magnet makes it easier to pick them up.
How To: Make Your Own Single-Use Packs of Antibiotic Ointment (Or Any Other Substance)
Convenience is a big deal these days. You can buy single-serving or single-use sizes of just about anything, from fruits and vegetables to sanitizing wipes, and, apparently, even bananas. Uhh, it already has a wrapper...
How To: Turn an Old Metal Slinky and Coat Hanger into a Bird Feeder
While the heyday of the Slinky may have been a few decades ago, I still think it's one of the coolest toys to ever go to market. Not to mention it probably has the best commercial ever created.
How To: Turn Leftover Cardboard Boxes into Sturdy Chairs and Stylish Nightstands
Contrary to popular belief, IKEA can get pretty expensive. You find something that comes pretty cheap, but then, you decide that your GORF will look good with the BLERGH, and you really need the SPLOOF to tie it all together. Pretty soon, your living room looks like an IKEA magazine ad, and your bank account has seen better days. Instead of spending so much money at IKEA, why not build your own pieces of furniture?
How To: Make a Picture Frame Jewelry Organizer
Frustrated with how to organize your jewelry? Why not make your own jewelry organizer! In this episode, learn how to make a frame to transform an ordinary picture frame into a DIY jewelry organizer, using easy to find materials and simple tools. You will be able to store your jewelry on the wall, out of sight, while at the same time displaying a beautiful photo. Having decorative items like this DIY jewelry holder that also function as storage is perfect for small space decorating.
How To: Make a Tiki Torch from a Bottle of Jack Daniels
There are tons of ways to make simple DIY lamps out of things you have lying around at home. If you've got an empty container, (even an orange or tuna can), there's probably a way to upcycle it into a lamp of some sort, and they can come in handy if you ever lose power.
How To: Repurpose Your Old LEGO Bricks into a Functional Hanging Key Holder
LEGO may no longer be in its heyday, but those colored building blocks of joy can still make some really cool and creative things. I mean, take a look at these pieces from LEGO artist Nathan Sawaya. While making something like that is undoubtedly impressive, it could be just a little too difficult for the common LEGO enthusiast—and expensive (LEGOs aren't cheap these days). So, for the regular LEGO-builders, usefulness is more important that extravagance.
How To: Make a Pendant Lamp
Not sure how or what kind of lights to add to a room in your rental? Consider making your own pendant lamps from materials you can recycle from your closet and kitchen. This is a do it yourself lighting project on a budget that's perfect for renters and anyone needing to add light to a room. You'll see how easy it is to make customized pendant lamps that will add that extra touch of style to any room, no electrical wiring needed!
How To: Boost Up Your Smartphone Tunes with One of These MacGyver-Style Speaker Amplifiers
There's nothing worst than throwing a party without any music. That's like having watching the Super Bowl without any chips or beers...lame.
How To: Turn an Old Gooseneck Lamp into a Flexible Smartphone Stand
Need a good way to hold your iPhone up? There are a ton of smartphone stands out on the market, but they can be pricey or just downright ugly—and potentially phone damaging. But like the Une Bobine above, they do have their perks, like movability at almost any angle. But to alleviate pressure off of the connection port, Sharon Vaknin from CNET developed her own flexible iPhone stand—from an old desk lamp and suction cup.
How To: Turn Your Smokes into an iPad Stylus, Plus 4 More Super Simple DIY Styli
Fingers are very useful for many things in life—but fingers get dirty. With most smartphone and tablets using touchscreen technology, our fingers have become our greatest technological asset. But if you want to keep your phone or tablet from looking like this: Then you can try some of these awesome and easy DIY styluses.
How To: Make a Dry Erase Board That'll Fold Up to Fit in Your Pocket
There's so much you can do with packing tape (besides packing). You can use it to seal art designs, turn everyday objects into sculptures, and even transfer photos. Or, if you have some index cards, you can turn them into a DIY dry-erase board that folds up and fits in your pocket like Redditor robertgfthomas did.
How To: Turn Your Old NES Controller into a Wireless Light Switch Remote
The original NES controller has become one of the most recognizable symbols of the Nintendo gaming culture, thanks to its perfectly rectangular shape and simple button design. But despite its popular appeal, people just don't game with them anymore. So, what do they do with them? They savor the memories and turn it into something more useful, like a light switch.
How To: Make Toast Cooler by Modding a VHS Player into a Working Toaster
Toasters can do so much more than toast bread. A toaster oven can make your Halloween jack-o'-lanterns look pretty creepy, and you can even mod one into a reflow oven. But what about a regular ol' toaster? Well, you can turn one into a working NES console—or you can keep its bread-toasting functionality by just making it look cooler, like Instructables user lemonie did with his VHS player toaster mod.
How To: Strut Your Stuff—Build This Super Cheap Multi-Monitor Rig for Three-Screen Gaming
Want to take your gaming to the next level? If you're going to do it, why not go big—by building a multi-monitor setup with not two, but three screens like Redditor optec did. Most multi-monitor setups are pretty pricey, but he built this using simple parts that ended up costing him about 30 bucks. The frame is made of four pieces of Unistrut, bent to 45-degree angles. He used a couple of brackets to attach them and made the mounts out of medium-density fibreboard. Finally, he added some more...
How To: Make a Foldable, Wallet-Sized Paper Amplifier for Your Smartphone
Are your smartphone's built-in speakers not loud enough? Don't want to fork out the cash for some additional speakers? Instructables user urant's got you covered. He created the Whirlwind—a portable paper stand and speaker that folds up to fit in your pocket or wallet so you can take it with you on the go. The best part about this amplifier is that it's free to make. You can use regular old printer paper, but urant suggests using something a little sturdier for the stand.
How To: Turn Dried Out Markers into DIY Alcohol Ink That Works on Glass, Metal, and Plastic
Dried out markers are the worst. They take up space, and for some reason, even though they're totally useless, most of us have at least a few lying around just for the sake of not throwing them out. Luckily, Julie Finn over at Crafting a Green World has come up with a way to repurpose them into alcohol ink, a versatile type of ink that can be used on non-porous materials like plastic, glass, and metal. This is truly a tutorial for the pack rat in all of us. First, a little primer on what you ...
How To: Build Your Own Projector Screen at Home for Less Than Fifty Bucks
A few weeks ago, we saw a simple 128 inch DIY Projector Screen that looked like a pro built it—and it only cost $200. But this one is even cheaper, and looks just as good. It's also simpler because it's painted right onto the wall. In the video below, How To Lou shows us how to make it with just some white or silverscreen paint, a few pieces of casement molding, and some black velvet for the trim.
How To: Save Money on Your Home Theater with This Pro-Looking DIY Projector Screen
Projector screens can be pretty expensive, depending on the size and quality you're looking for. If you're thinking of installing one and want to save some money, you can build a pretty decent one yourself with just a few simple materials. Redditor dodgeboy made this 128" DIY projector screen for only $200, and I have to say it looks pretty impressive. Poplar 1x4s make up the frame, with pine 1x3s as supports. Once the frame was assembled and painted black, he installed mounting blocks on bot...
How To: Keep Your Dog Entertained All Day Long with the Fetch-O-Matic Ball Launcher
Dogs make great best friends, but anyone who's had one knows they can be the most high-maintenance friend you've ever had. Bathroom breaks, feeding schedules and walks are only the beginning. Even if you make your dog organic treats and teach it neat tricks, it still needs to play. And after that fifth game of fetch, your arm can get pretty tired.