Custom made Portal portals are an interior decorating triumph

by Randy Nelson on Mar 14th 2011 6:00PM

One husband and wife DIY team recently announced on Reddit that they'd unlocked the secret of portal technology* using everyday, off-the-shelf parts. By attaching LED rope light to the backs of two oval mirrors, they succeeded in creating one of the most effective (and easily replicated) displays of video game related wall art we've ever had the pleasure to lay eyes on: Portal portals that look strikingly authentic.

The Redditors in question, corttana and dahburbb, say that the "spiraling" effect of the lights is actually the unexpected result of curving the light rope they used into an oval shape. When asked by other users, the duo said they plan to building a Companion Cube storage chest to round out their personal Enrichment Center. You can see more photos of it at the source link.

*Portal Technology is a registered trademark of Aperture Science

Via: Reddit
Source: imgur

Tags: art, custom, mac, microsoft, pc, playstation, portal, portal-2, ps3, valve, xbox

Reader Comments (61)

Awesome now I wanna do this

i like the asterisk haha. and this looks so simple i want to do this in my house

This was a triumph.

Awesome. But the Cake is still a lie.

@DasMadHatter I feel bad that you were downvoted. I think that Girlz n Gamez webcomic destroyed the quote for everyone I guess.

Portals are not meant for art, they are meant for Science...you monster.

(jokes aside, I really want to buy those)

I'd say this was a....
*puts on glasses*
Success.

Oh yeah. Breakin' the memes.

@Mach2
Making a note here.

I want these in all the ways a young man can want something.

Can you go in one portal and out the other? If not, it's not worth it.

@Zenith

Man, I don't even know why I got downvoted there. I'm sorry for whatever I did! You can have by firstborn.

@Zenith

*my. asdf.

Boner

They used my design specs:

http://davesgeekyideas.com/2010/12/01/if-ikea-made-geeky-furniture-part-8-portal/

I get a lot of people searching for portal mirrors landing on that post, so I imagine that's how they got the idea.

@originaldave77 or, ya know, they figured out how mirrors work.

@TheDarkWayne

I get a ton of views on that post. They used the exact method I prescribed.

@originaldave77

Look, a guy who builds a nice chair doesn't owe money to everyone who ever has built a chair.

@oOWallaceOo

Not looking for money. Clearly they used my design, and I have a Creative Commons license that is share-based. I ask for acknowledgment and a link to the origin.

If it is so generic and bland, then it wouldn't be spotlighted here in such a fashion, now would it? They don't post about chairs here every day now do they?

@originaldave77 Wow dude, get over yourself. Your "prescribed" designs? All you have is a crappy digital mock-up that looks nothing like the portals from the game. They created a real work of art that puts "your designs" to shame. The fact that you also linked their work at the bottom of your page claiming that they used your design to do it is just appalling.

@TheDarkWayne - Are you trying to say that the married couple in question figured out how to buy a mirror AND rope lighting by themselves? Am I then to believe that it was entirely their idea to string said rope lighting behind the mirror, to make something that kind of looks like a portal? Without help?

Pfft. Get real.

No offense man, and they might have used your plans, but the idea of sticking lighted rope behind a mirror is pretty generic. It's featured here because it ended up looking really nice.

Rope lighting behind mirrors was a common decoration back in the 70's/80's.

It's like someone who thought of putting neon in a clock ripping off the guy who patented it. It's not necessarily a rip-off, it's a generic idea that looks good.

@Poor Tom

I concocted that 20 minutes. That's the kind of art I throw together for a blog post. I defy to make anything remotely as decent in a short time frame.

Now I work for Hollywood Studios, Video Game Publishers, and Fortune 500 Companies designing cool shit because guess what - they think I am creative as hell.

I don't need your validation. I got plenty.

As for these guys, acknowledgment is what my blog asks for in return for sharing ideas. It's just too similar.

@Drakkenfyre

I'd say it's harder for them to prove they DIDN'T use my designs than for me claim they did.

That post gets a lot of hits. I see the search terms people use to get to it: how to make portal mirrors, portal mirrors light, LED portal, and so many more. My blog draws many DIYers.

I am actually thrilled to see it become a reality, but my blog asks for credit where credit is due.

It's just too similar, and I do a heavy search before I post anything, because my blog is all about original ideas.

@originaldave77

How about matching I.P. access? That'd prove whether they even saw your crappy pictures or not. Just saying.

Let me say this again.

Rope lighting behind mirrors were a common decoration in the 70's/80's.

While they may have used your idea, your idea is NOT unique.

@originaldave77

1) they didn't actually use LED's as your blog specifies; those come on strips. they used the older-style cylindrical ropes that use incandescent bulbs.
2) theirs are ovular, yours are circular.

combined with the fact that that the idea is so basic, and you didn't completely specify the design (mounting, etc), you really don't have a case here.

you should probably learn more about IP as well. if you're talking about the design for an actual, physical thing, you would need a design patent, which you don't have.

note this, from the CC website's FAQ:
"A Creative Commons license is based on copyright. So they apply to all works that are protected by copyright law. The kinds of works that are protected by copyright law are books, websites, blogs, photographs, films, videos, songs and other audio & visual recordings, for example."

your CC license doesn't even cover the design. you could only claim copyright if they posted the images from your blog without permission.

i have a hard time believing that someone in your claimed field would know so little about IP law.

@maveric101 Wow. OWNED.

@originaldave77 LOL @ his claim that his post gets a ton of hits. And yet nobody has ever pushed the 'like' button on the site.

@originaldave77 Care to post some of your Fortune 500, Hollywood and/or Video Game designs? I'm really interested to see what it is you actually do, Mr. ``Creative As Hell``.

@Hoops
Well, he's not completely owned - I had this great idea of a lamp that was essentially 3 heart shapes in a row, but only 1 half of one heart was illuminated by LED's (The how-to is on my web site), but it looks like he beat me to it with every single post.

@originaldave77

While looking at some of your design ideas, I came across the S-shaped toilet dispenser (http://davesgeekyideas.com/2011/02/26/the-s-shaped-toilet-paper-dispenser/). The only other thing that I could think of when I saw it was this: http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20090908145333/simpsons/images/0/05/TheHomer.png

Seriously, man, you should work for Powell Motors. But I guess it's not a Fortune 500 company.

P.S.: As an environmental lawyer, I can honestly say that your ideas for wind turbines are all kinds of wrong.

@originaldave77

Here's a shovel. Please, continue. This is quite entertaining.

/popcorn

@originaldave77

if you can think of it
so can they

@EeK85

Alright alright. I don't have time to respond to everyone (I wish there was an edit feature here) so I shall retract my claim that they used my idea.

This web-savvy couple embarked on an endeavor to create a Portal-themed room, a high-profile intellectual property that did not require any online referencing whatsoever. Their end-result was a huge coincidence.

So while I got many haters today (at Joystiq) and rightly so because I was in a pissy mood, I have also yielded many new opportunities as a result, so the internet is a weird divisive thing.

You can pick apart my work all you want. There is no denying I demonstrated a lot of originality and creativity in that body of work, and it's taking me places.

@originaldave77

Fine. Would you kindly remove the following quote from the bottom of your page?

"UPDATE: A couple actually made some Portal mirrors using my prescribed design. Check it out here. "

@originaldave77 Still aren't showing your work are you? Not even some personal artwork? I'm really dissapointed. I thought the point of being an artist was getting your work out there for the world to see.

@originaldave77 You should post a footnote on your logotype that a Danish company named "LEGO" has used your logotype as basis for their toys.

@Design by Adrian

I'm not selling anything (like art), so that doesn't apply.

Why not a footnote explaining your avatar is a licensed image from EA? Or did you "design" it yourself? Impressive Adrian.

I will be making a pair of these.

would be funnier if they put the mirrors on opposite sides of the room so you see yourself on the other side

@grantjroe

Yes! I want to see the infinite portal tunnel!

Awesome couples are awesome.

For what it's worth, saw the post on Reddit on Thursday and spent the weekend trying to do this...for a guy with zero hardware no-how, I spent around $70 and ended up getting nowhere. So good luck.

@meeeeeeoooooow - Step 1: Mirror. Step 2: Rope lighting. Step 3: Glue (or staples, or velcro strips, or other adhesive strips, whatever). Step 4: Attach the rope lighting to the mirror using whichever method you picked in Step 3. Step 5: Profit

@BananaBoat

Well, at some point you have to figure out how to actually attach it to your wall.

And you have to figure out how to match the circumference of the mirror with the length of the light rope, it's not like you can get it by the inch.

@WiredKnight

if you look at the link with more photos, they just doubled/tripled up on the rope. as for mounting, just glue a wood block to the back of the mirror for a spacer, and put a mounting hook on it. simple.

@BananaBoat And then there's the superglue you have to buy - does it work on the back of the mirror? Consulting two Home Depot employees, I bought two kinds *just in case* and both failed to attach a plastic tab on the back of the mirror.

In addition - do you know how to hang a mirror using a word block onto a wall? Because I don't..

@WiredKnight - I wrote a long post detailing the steps that would go into making something like this. Unfortunately, the comment ghost seems to have stolen it, and it hasn't appeared. I'll give it some time, and if it doesn't show up, I'll rewrite the post later tonight.

It was only after I wrote out the steps that I realized doing this wasn't as simple as I made it out to be for someone that isn't handy. There aren't that many steps, but there are a lot of things to think about (like making sure you are in a stud for one thing) that this isn't exactly a no-brainer.

(I'm going to start copying my comments to a word document before I hit submit. I'm tired of retyping posts that don't show up)

@meeeeeeoooooow - It's hard to say without knowing the weight and size of the mirror you've chosen. If it is super lite, you could always use command strips, velcro strips, or something of that nature. If it's heavy, you're probably going to have to buy some sort of mount. I don't think mirror clips are going to work because of the spacer board. You could try using wire (ala a framed poster) but the wire loops would need to be long enough to clear the spacer, and far apart enough so that the entire thing isn't lopsided.

There may be an obvious solution I'm missing. It's been a while since I've had to mount anything out of the ordinary.

(I have to leave now. I'll be back later.)

@meeeeeeoooooow - I forgot to mention that without knowing the material on the back surface of the mirror, it is impossible to recommend glue. Is it wood? What type of plastic are you trying to glue to it?

(BBL)

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Portal 2

Custom made Portal portals are an interior decorating triumph

Reader Comments (61)

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 6:09PM The1stMJC said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 6:11PM chromekreeper said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 6:12PM Rizraz said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 6:13PM DasMadHatter said

Posted: Mar 15th 2011 2:58AM I am a machineee said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 6:13PM Dashx747 said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 6:14PM Mach2 said

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Posted: Mar 14th 2011 8:42PM Zenith said

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Posted: Mar 14th 2011 6:44PM originaldave77 said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 6:45PM Poor Tom said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 6:46PM BananaBoat said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 6:48PM Drakkenfyre said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 7:00PM originaldave77 said

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Posted: Mar 14th 2011 7:24PM TheBlahMasta said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 7:24PM Drakkenfyre said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 7:30PM maveric101 said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 7:38PM Hoops said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 7:44PM Hoops said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 9:20PM DrummingJon said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 9:42PM TC said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 10:48PM EeK85 said

Posted: Mar 15th 2011 1:25AM ipsum said

Posted: Mar 15th 2011 2:12AM Rizraz said

Posted: Mar 15th 2011 2:55AM originaldave77 said

Posted: Mar 15th 2011 10:31AM Uphillbothways said

Posted: Mar 15th 2011 4:03PM DrummingJon said

Posted: May 1st 2011 7:41AM Design by Adrian said

Posted: May 1st 2011 4:42PM originaldave77 said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 6:34PM (Unverified) said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 6:42PM grantjroe said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 6:59PM WiredKnight said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 6:44PM Puertoricarious said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 6:45PM meeeeeeoooooow said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 6:52PM BananaBoat said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 7:00PM WiredKnight said

Posted: Mar 14th 2011 7:34PM maveric101 said

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