Gallery: Stormtrooper Sneakers, R2-D2 Coffee Makers and Other Jedi Craft Tricks
01r2-d2-dark-roast-edition
__R2-D2 Dark Roast Edition__ Initially Chris Gielens had planned to use his salvaged Bunn industrial coffee maker parts for some steam punk project. But things changed as he attempted to nail down the designs. “I was up late watching Star Wars—something I do when mulling over a new build idea—when I glanced at a large industrial float valve sitting on my coffee table and then up at the screen where R2-D2 is being spit out of the swamp in *The Empire Strikes Back*,” says Gielens. “Eureka struck.” He ditched his initial idea and decided instead to create a droid shell to hold the Bunn plumbing. The R2-D2 Dark Roast edition is a hit on [Instructables](http://www.instructables.com/id/R2D2-Dark-Roast-Edition/) —and an instantly likeable coffee delivery service. *Photo: Chris Gielens*
02stormtrooper-sugar-skull
__Stormtrooper Sugar Skull__ “Considering a cross-stitcher can spend anywhere from a few hours to a few months on one needlepoint project, you really should work on something you absolutely love,” says Dixie Champoux, owner of the Etsy shop [LosAngelesNeedlework](http://www.etsy.com/shop/LosAngelesNeedlework). For Champoux that meant combining a life-long soft spot for all things *Star Wars* with another passion: sugar skulls. She currently offers cross-stitch patterns for a done up Stormtrooper and Darth Vader. Next up: an Ewok and Chewbacca needlepoint. *Photo: Dixie Champoux*
03r2-d2-turntable
__R2-D2 Turntable__ It took Bill Rouse of the [Remix Turntable Lab](http://www.remixturntablelab.com/) and Ed Hubbs of [Full Blown Kustoms](http://www.fullblownkustoms.com/) three weeks to complete this tricked-out R2-D2 turntable. Rouse took care of the mechanics, adding custom LEDs and a completely rebuilt the tone arm onto a Technics SL-1200 platform. Hubbs, who is a professional air-brush artist, handled the paint. “The hardest part of the build was deciding how to do justice to R2-D2,” says Rouse. The pair has been now been commission by the same vinyl enthusiast to create a 24K gold-plated C-3PO table to match. *Photo: Bill Rouse*
04star-wars-kicks
__Skywalker Shoes__ [Damian Dayton]( http://toothyshoehorn.blogspot.com/ ) has painted some 30 pairs of shoes. He covered his first pair in clouds; naturally, he named them Skywalkers. The pun opened the door for pairs that were more directly franchise-related. “I have done Stormtroopers (Imperial Walkers), Darth Vader (Darth Kicks), C-FeetPOs and R2-Dshoes," says Dayton. He mostly just paints them just for fun, although he’s had a few special requests over the years. His next project: Shoebacca and Ewalks. "Sometimes I don't know if I like the idea for the shoe or just the puns." *Photo: Damian Dayton*
Miguel Valenzuela, 201105snow-sculpture-at-at
__AT-AT Snow Sculpture__ After moving to Norway from San Diego in 2010, [Miguel Valenzuela](http://makermig.blogspot.com) decided to embrace the cold by entertaining his two young daughters with it. Valenzuela’s impressive run with *Star Wars*-themed snow sculptures started with a giant rideable AT-AT. His trick is to do the sculptures in two stages. First he builds the bones, propping up limbs as needed. Then he seals the structure by spraying it with water and letting it freeze overnight, which makes it durable enough for his kids. “The girls love being able to ride on the sculptures and interact with them,” says Valenzuela. “Once they're finished, I let them go at the sculptures with sticks, lightsabers or whatever. Part of the fun of making them is also tearing them down.” *Photo: Miguel Valenzuela*
06star-wars-snowflakes
__Star Wars Snowflakes__ After finding patterns for stormtrooper and R2-D2 snowflakes online, graphic designer Anthony Herrera was hungry to craft more characters. When he couldn’t find a design, Herrera created his own. His intricate, repeating [patterns](http://www.anthonyherreradesigns.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=56:star-wars-snowflakes&catid=34:anthonydesign-blog) for Yoda, Admiral Ackbar, and Ahsoka Tano are impressive cut-paper portraits—free for anyone to create so long as there is a steady hand and a very sharp X-Acto knife available. *Photo: Anthony Herrera*
07wampug
The *Star Wars* universe has infiltrated our Halloween costumes, our hounds and our homes. We've collected some of our favorite handmade homages. Now go create some Jedi craft tricks of your own. __Above: Wampug__ Designer dogs are pretty neat, but they don’t have anything on the [Wampug](https://www.facebook.com/Chubbsthepug). This pug/wampa hybrid was created by Kristen Andrews, a vet at Stockton Hill Animal Hospital in Kingman, Arizona. For Halloween she adorned Chubbs with a costume made of fake fur, a florist’s foam ring, paint and hot glue. The outfit was such a hit that in February she and her husband drove up to Mount Charleston to create an accompanying video, [*The Wampug Strikes Back*](http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=9Ea1k-PHvRY). Chubbs does an adorable take on the predatory reptomammals. *Photo: Kristen Andrews*
08plush-wookiee
__Plush Wookiee__ Pilgrim Lee's son had a friend who was such a die-hard *Star Wars* fan, it inspired her to make him this cuddly Wookiee. “Chewie is just so cute,” says Lee. “How could I resist?” The result is a 20-inch corduroy plushy. She published the pattern on her [blog.](http://www.drawpilgrim.com/2011/10/star-wars-softie-pattern-cuddly-chewbacca/) *Photo: Pilgrim Lee*
