A Better Way to Toggle the Turtle

We've been having fun getting Nathan's room ready, including setting up the turtle motif. We found a small lamp from the same collection as the other items in the room, and it looks nice on the dresser. There was one problem though. The switch was located on the power cord, which hung behind the dresser. Every time we wanted to turn it on, we had to pull it out far enough to reach the switch.

Knowing how much I enjoy "projects," Beth suggested moving or replacing the switch. After trips to radio shack for the switch, Menards for a new cord, and a quick run to Ace for a washer or just the right size, we have a new switch, custom painted to match the room.

I cleared out some space with a spade bit and the dremel to make room for the base of the switch. The new cord was cut, stripped, and soldered to the contacts. The exposed contacts were insulated with some heat shrink tubing and hot glue, and covered up by the felt base of the lamp.

Here's the new switch. It was originally red plastic, and has since been painted blue to match the room. I made sure to find a switch that was rated for household AC current, that had a design that would be easy to paint.

The finished product: