Before buying my Zen Micro, I read about making a case for it out of an Altoids tin and got all excited because it seemed like a great crafty thing to do. Plus I had two empty Altoids tins I'd been saving for no good reason. So the other day I dug out my Dremel, charged it up, and prepared to slice up the tin. I screwed up the first tin by not paying attention and cutting into the back instead of the front. (Never mind... that just meant I got to use my dad's cool clampy thing for a while longer.) I decided to leave the exterior as is, the thought being that if I left it on the front seat of my car while I ran to the ATM, people would be less inclined to grab a tin of ginger candy than a new MP3 player.

It turned out pretty well overall, except that I used the craft foam that comes with adhesive backing, the snot-like stuff they use to stick perfume ads into magazines. It doesn't stay stuck to the foam all that well and got all over the back of my Zen. After slightly scratching my player trying to get it off, I had to resort to Goo Gone. I also realized after carrying it around in the tin for a few days that I actually like and use the little kickstand a lot, so I need the shell cover to attach that. Plus, when it's in the tin you have to take it completely out to get to the on/off switch. And I'm terrified of scratching the thing more, a fear that the sharp edges of the cut up tin didn't really help much.

So for now it's back to using the tacky black drawstring bag the Zen came with until I have time to knit a cosy for it.

I love my Zen!