$3 easy DIY Light Table/Box

Yup. Only $3.

Very affordable, huh?

Here's the story.

I've been toying with the idea of a light table because it looks really fun and I would like to play with one.

I do not intend to purchase one due to its price tag and I cannot be sure that J would want to play with it for a long time. There are quite a few tutorials I found online for DIY ones but most required clear boxes which I will have to purchase. I came across one which explained the use of paper and aluminium foil in the project - to diffuse the light. Then I remembered that I have a TROFAST at home. Since that is already translucent, it could probably work?

It did! 

This 'light table/box" turns out to be really easy to make and it requires only two items, one of which I believe most of us already own.
Ready?

1. TROFAST storage box ($3, IKEA)

This one. The multi functional TROFAST storage box.


2. A smartphone, with a torch function
I noticed that using my own phone forces me to disconnect while I'm playing with J, which is a good thing! She did try to lift the box to retrieve the phone towards the end though.

Simply activate the torch on your smartphone and pop the TROFAST over your phone.
That's it!

Disclaimer: This is not a perfect light table since the corners aren't as brightly lit. But this would suffice if you just want to assess a child's response towards a light table before you commit to one. Or if your child has a really short attention span like mine and wouldn't spend more than 10 minutes playing with it each time. 

I like the TROFAST for its size. It isn't huge but provides a decent play area. Its raised sides also help prevent objects like marbles and pebbles from rolling off.

There's bright spot in the photo but it isn't that obvious in reality. Bonus if you have two smartphones to lay side by side because that gives a better diffusion of light. (Go take the phone away from Daddy now. Family bonding!)

The torch wasn't the first light source I first experimented with.

I used this - a frosted LED globe from my mum's place.

It doesn't give an even distribution of the light (obviously) and is constantly changing colour. But we discovered that the lights somehow turned out rather galactic and would work well for any space-themed play. So this is a keeper.

I tried it out with DAISO's LED light as well but the ring of bright spots turned out to be too obvious to me. Okay for a light table too and they would be perfect for a dot-themed activity.

I really ran out of ideas to do on stay-in-hazy days.

Can't wait to head out!

* I googled "trofast light table" after my little experiment and realised that the TROFAST is really quite popular as light table!

Linking up with: