Light Up Ears
In this project we’ll show you how to make your own set of light up Mickey Ears.
We made it so they flash like fireworks when you shake your head.
In this learn guide, you'll see how to wire up the electronics to make your own set of NeoPixel Mickey Ears.
Flexible Neon NeoPixel Strips
These are really bright LEDs that look a lot like neon lights. They’re Adafruit NeoPixel Strips with extra thick silicone so the diffusion looks really nice. They’re individually addressable, so you can create really nice animations.
Shake to Sparkle
Motion activated LED animations can be done in a number of different ways. In this guide, a tilt-switch is used to trigger LED animations. This build will use MakeCode to program the hardware!
Wearable Ear Hats
We got these mickey ears from Disney World, but you could use whatever you like. These mickey shorts style of ears feature pre-made holes just behind the ear cups.
Prerequisite Guides
There's resources in these guides that go beyond what's covered in this tutorial. The introduction guides walks you through all of the pinouts and setting up MakeCode with Adafruit's supported board.
Parts List
Here's a list of parts. You'll need to choose your NeoPixel LED strip – There's a few different densities and styles to pick from.
NeoPixel LED Strips (Pick one)
- Adafruit Flexible Neon Strip – https://www.adafruit.com/product/4310
- Adafruit NeoPixel Side Light Strip 90 – https://www.adafruit.com/product/3635
- Adafruit NeoPixel Side Light Strip 60 – https://www.adafruit.com/product/3636



Adafruit GEMMA M0 – https://www.adafruit.com/product/3501
- Tilt Ball Switch – https://www.adafruit.com/product/173
Battery, Switch and Wires
- Slide Switch – https://www.adafruit.com/product/805
- 500mAh Battery – https://www.adafruit.com/product/1578
- JST Extension Cable – https://www.adafruit.com/product/1131
- 10 Wire Silicone Cover Ribbon Cable – https://www.adafruit.com/product/3890













Page last edited March 08, 2024
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