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Magazine Features:
Accolades:
Newegg.com Monthly Case Mod Contest - October 2005 Winner
STORY:
I came up with the idea for this case after completing numerous household projects, and deciding what to do with the left-over parts. I wanted to build my Mom a new case, so I thought that building a home-themed case would be a great concept. Using my mom's old case, I basically created an outer cover made out of 1/8" pressboard.
For the power switch, I took a momentary toggle switch and disguised it as a standard wall light switch. The screw holes in the plate served as positions for the power led and reset button. Below the switch is the mouse hole, where my mom's cordless mouse is stored when not in use.
For the top, I used left-over redwood planks set at a 45° angle to simulate a hardwood floor. And to accomodate the exhaust fan, I incorporated a heat register into the top of the case. The slide lever adjusts the speed of the fan.
The back of the case was built out 3 inches to allow for cabling. I added a functional 120v outlet and wired it directly to the power supply. Then I made a double-ended power cable in order to bring power in. For safety reasons, the end going into the outlet is permanent, and cannot be removed. I also added an ethernet wall port and a round cable grommet (normally used on desks) for cable-routing.
I wanted the case to be as stealthy as possible, so all hints of it being a computer were removed. The CD-ROM drive was hidden behind the top front moulding piece, and can be opened by the remote eject button on the keyboard.
Since my Mom isn't really interested in the inner workings of a computer, and the fact that she doesn't have any high performance components to boast about, it wasn't necessary to have a see-through window. However, I did want a homey feature on the side of the case. So I came up with an etched and frosted acrylic window that looks like a cross-stitched "Home Sweet Home" picture hanging on the wall. I even went so far as to use a real nail and wire to hang it with. It's small details like these that end up completing the theme, and really make the case stand out.
If you would like to view my actual worklog with in-progress pics,
please check out this link:
Home Sweet Home Worklog