After making an LED Christmas tree, I felt I really had to make an LED Advent Wreath!
I had a circular PCB by chance (as I tend to grab everything I can get my hands on when being recycled!):
I needed something to be the ‘candles’. Initially was thinking to go with putting the LEDs on the top of real candles to simulate the flame. But most likely I’d be storing this with the Christmas stuff in the attic after Epiphany and due to the Texas heat we typically don’t store candles there.
So after wandering around the store, thinking that I needed ‘magical colored plastic tubes’, I stumbled on these:
These perfectly fit on some white LEDs I had. I chose the most purpley and pink ones in the batch and cut them in half.
Next, in order to save myself replacing batteries and to keep the Advent Wreath lit as much as possible, I went and recycled a 5V Power Supply cable I had from an old bluetooth headset. (Electronics may die but power supplies live forever!).
Hooking up LEDs is generally very simple, you have to choose the proper resistor in series with them to limit the current through them. Wasn’t sure exactly on mine, but generally white LEDs have a forward voltage of 3.6V and can handle up to 20mA. I went with 100Ω per on online LED calculator (and because 100Ω is the smallest I have!).
Hookeing everything up to the ring PCB, it looks like this:
5V power supply hookup
Added a way to ‘light’ and ‘blow out’ the candles using some jumpers:
One “candle”. Jumpers added to permit “lighting” the candle.
Almost done!
Lights on!
Straws attached
Found some old plastic wreath material:
Glue gun was already on the table! (Wife making a Christmas wreath):
Finis
Now I can keep this Advent Wreath lit much longer than usual! Happy Advent y’all!