A Beautiful Retro Floppy Disk Picture Frame With a Secret Auto-save Feature!

I recently started making YouTube videos (This project is one of them :D) and there is a challenge I face: I always forget to save the edit file at regular intervals. And then the software crashes and an hour's worth of effort goes down the drain.

So I decided to take it to the extreme and make this giant save button that will be connected to the PC while editing. How will I not remember to press the huge floppy staring at me now? (I later added an autosave feature as well). And to my surprise, it turned out to be so satisfying to press the button! Plus, it looks beautiful as a picture frame.

The floppy disk has a 3D structure with a nice soft-touch feel. Pressing the disk triggers the save action on your PC, just like the classic save icon that resembles a floppy disk.

The additional autosave feature triggers the save command on your PC automatically at a set interval. This also makes for a great gift for any computer nerd or retro tech enthusiast!

A microcontroller with USB HID support. The one I used is a Seeeduino: Link to buy

White PVC foam board (Also called sunboard): Link to buy

An A5 size IKEA frame: Link to Buy

USB-C cable

Double-sided tape

Black acrylic paint

Paint brushes

Sand papers

Craft knife

Glue

Ruler

Pencil

The first step is designing the floppy disk itself.

I used Canva to create the design, starting from a reference picture I found on Pinterest.

My goal was a minimalistic, cartoonish look that still closely resembled a real floppy disk. To achieve this, I used simple rounded rectangles with black borders. A bright orange background was used to give the design a nice contrast.

I tried to keep the dimensions of the disk as close to a real floppy disk as possible. The most common floppy disks are about three and a half inches, mostly square designs.

Next, I printed the design on A4-sized sticker paper.

The floppy disk was divided into individual sections on one side, while the other side featured the complete design. I also added some text highlighting the peak usage era of floppy disks for a bit of retro context.

Now we can carefully cut the different sections from the sticker paper. Using small scissors is a good idea as this makes the tight rounded corners much easier to cut.

To make our floppy disk, we'll be using a material called Sunboard, also known as foam board.

This remarkable material is sturdy and durable, yet easy to cut with a craft knife.

It comes in various thicknesses. For this project, we’ll need Sunboard in 5 millimeter, 3 millimeter, and 1 millimeter thicknesses.

Start by aligning each of the cutouts on the Sunboard and tracing around them with a pencil.

For the base section, which is the light grey square, I used a 5-millimeter-thick board. For the layers that go on top, I used 3-millimetre and 1 millimeter thick boards.

After tracing out all the templates, use a ruler and craft knife to carefully cut the Sunboard pieces. For the thicker sheets, you may need a couple of passes to cut through completely.

Pay extra attention to the rounded corners. They might need a bit more care to get just right.

If you end up with any jagged edges, gently sand them with sandpaper to create a nice, smooth finish, especially around the corners.

Once everything is cut, you can align the pieces with the sticker paper cutouts to check the fit. If there are any inconsistencies, just sand them down to even things out.

Now, it’s time to paint the Sunboard edges.

Since the original design has black borders, painting these edges black will create a nice, seamless look. I used acrylic paint for this because it adheres well to Sunboard. Just make sure not to dilute the paint with water! Once you’re done painting, let it dry completely.

I did make a small mistake during the paint job, which I’ll be mentioning in the next step.

Once the paint is dry, we can get to the fun part. Carefully peel the stickers off their backing, making sure they don’t stick to themselves. It’s a nightmare to fix if they do! Now, align the sticker with its matching Sunboard cutout and press it into place.

Repeat this process for each section of the floppy disk.

Here you can see the mistake I made. I only painted the edges of the Sunboard pieces. The sticker paper is so thin that a bit of the uneven paint underneath shows through. To avoid this, I’d recommend painting the entire Sunboard black instead of just the edges.

But honestly, it’s not too noticeable, so I think it’ll still work just fine

Now, we can assemble all the pieces.

I applied generous amounts of white adhesive to each Sunboard section and used a scrap piece of Sunboard to spread the glue evenly.

After that, I carefully aligned the pieces and applied enough pressure to bond them together.

Once everything is stuck and dry, our floppy disk should look something like this.

Next, we’ll repeat the same process to make the orange base for the floppy to sit on.

I used 5-millimetre thick Sunboard for the base, and I also made a cutout where the floppy will fit.

The cutout is slightly larger than the floppy's dimensions, so it can move freely when pressed.

Again, paint the edges of the cutout black for a nice finish.

To trigger the save command, we’ll be using a microcontroller. But not just any microcontroller will do. We need one that supports USB Human Interface Device. This will allow it to be recognized as a keyboard by the PC.

Plus, it has to be small enough to sit flush underneath the frame.

A good choice for this is the Seeeduino. This thing is incredibly tiny—barely bigger than my thumb! And it has USB HID too.

First, we need to solder two wires to the Seeeduino. I connected a red wire to pin 2 and a black wire to GND.

Now, before soldering the push button, it’s a good time to upload the code. Start by connecting the Seeeduino to your PC with a USB-C cable.

Next, go to the preferences in the Arduino IDE and add this link to include the Seeeduino repository: https://files.seeedstudio.com/arduino/package_seeeduino_boards_index.json

Then, open the boards manager and install the Seeed SAMD board.

I wrote a simple piece of code that simulates pressing the 'Ctrl' and 's' keys on the keyboard when pin 2 detects the button press.

I also wrote another code for the autosave feature. After connecting to the PC, when you press the button, the autosave gets enabled. It triggers Ctrl+s every 5 minutes automatically. Press the button again to deactivate this feature.

You can find the codes at the end of this step.

Finally, we can upload the code to the board.  

Next, I soldered a small push button to the two wires from the Seeeduino.

To keep it steady while soldering, I used a pair of needle-nose pliers to hold the button in place.

Just make sure to position it so that the push button faces up when the Seeeduino is face-down.

Now, let’s make the back plate.

I used another piece of 5-millimeter-thick sunboard for this.

I cut a slot for the Seeeduino to fit into and a small hole for the wires connecting the push button to pass through to the front.

As you can see, I have also painted the base plate black.

I applied generous amounts of glue to firmly stick the back plate to the front.

I then attached the Seeeduino in its slot with double-sided tape, and fed the wires through the hole.

Finally, I glued the push button to the front, just below where the floppy disk will soon be placed.

Now we can attach the floppy disk in place.

First, I glued some sponge disks onto the base plate. I then glued the floppy disk to the sponges.

This setup allows the floppy to move up and down smoothly when pressed.

Since sunboard surfaces are typically quite smooth, it’s a good idea to sand them lightly before gluing. This helps the adhesive stick more securely.

As you can see, I’ve also added some feet made from sunboard to raise it a bit and protect the microcontroller

Add the ikea frame

Finally, I picked up an A5-sized photo frame from Ikea to give it a clean finish.

Attach the frame securely, and the build is complete!

Test

To test your save button, connect the Seeeduino to your PC using a USB-C cable.

Now, pressing the floppy should save anything you have open on your computer.

This works anywhere that uses the Control S shortcut for saving.

It works in Microsoft Word, Excel, and even web applications.

With the Ikea frame, the floppy disk looks absolutely fantastic.

It is a great addition to any desk setup! And the autosave and save buttons are useful as well.

You can use the same method to create all kinds of shortcut buttons. A print button, copy and paste buttons, etc.

I hope you enjoyed this project!