Put an Adafruit Gemma M0 to work as you attach 120 Adafruit NeoPixels to the lapels of a vintage band jacket. 

In a nutshell, this project starts by soldering small sections of NeoPixels into two longer strips and arrange them into a matrix formation. Add a clicky button to a Gemma M0 to showcase some beautiful animations and pick a brightness setting. Connect the two strips of NeoPixels to the Gemma M0, utilizing Mark Kriegsman's special XY mapping code to tell the Gemma the location of each pixel. Finally, protect the strips from the elements, and attach it to a costume jacket. Whether you’re headed to TTITD (that thing in the desert aka burning man) or leading a marching band, this wearable is sure to make you the star of any event.

This is a job for a board that packs a punch without much of a footprint, a perfect fit for the bite-sized Adafruit Gemma M0. This sketch only uses about 10% of the space on the Gemma M0, so there’s loads more space to add additional animations or power additional pixels.

There are about 75 solder joints in this project, so it’s great if you enjoy soldering! Remember to take breaks and triple check your work.

Reading Up

Check out these guides before you get started:

• Adafruit Neopixel Uberguide
• Adafruit Gemma M0
• Washing Wearables – Although we’re insulating our pixels and solder joints in glue, you should remove all of the electronics when washing or bathing your jacket. However, you may want to give your Gemma a spray of canned air or a quick wipe down now and again.