There were quite a few posts that inspired me in wanting to do this. I wanted the same functionality as what I have seen with stickerlight, but I wanted something re-usable at a good price point. For this reason, I used a removable sticker, printed on clear vinyl so that I can change the look of the laptop in the future.
Here is what I went with and here are all the secrets!
Parts List:
Laptop Cover
I am using a clear laptop cover. Here is the exact one that I used on amazon here: Clear Laptop Cover . This will allow the light from the EL Paper to show through.
ElectroLuminescent Paper
This is the secret sauce. The correct size that you will need for this project is A4. These are relatively hard to find in the USA. However, there are few sellers on amazon click here: EL Paper
You can also check on ebay, or get them directly from china (Alibaba or Ali Express).
Be sure that you also get the Electroluminescent inverter if it doesn’t already come with one. The A4 size EL Paper will require 12 Volts DC.
Removable Sticker
Measure the exact size of your laptop cover and order a custom sticker in that size. You will need to provide a graphic in a vector format (.ai, .pdf, .eps) I used a clear cling, light adhesive removable sticker from carstickers.com. Im using a 13″ macbook pro, which has the dimensions of 13″ x 9″. I designed my logo myself using canva.com
Putting it all together
Place the EL Paper behind the laptop cover and check fit.
You will need to make a cutout for the EL Paper connector. I used precision wire cutters to make the cut out.
Place the sticker on top of the cover.
Connect the battery pack or power source. They sell some battery packs on www.ellumiglow.com but make sure it is the right voltage. The larger sized A4 EL Paper needs a 12V DC!
Make sure your power source is 12V DC !
Final Thoughts
Everything came out perfect. One thing I plan on doing in the future is using a sound activated battery/inverter