Materials:

One sheet of 1/2" plywood                 2 light switches and boxes
2 empty coffee or large tin cans        2 60 watt bulbs
1" wood or sheetrock screws            Paint (your choice of color)
1 piece of glass cut to the finished inside dimensions of your box (I used 1/8" thickness)
2 light bulb sockets (I used the ceramic 120 volts that I took out of some outdoor lights)
4' length of 14/2 wire (more than enough)

Making the Box

I made my transforming box very plain so that only the illusion would be noticed but you can add all sorts of knobs and doodads to spruce it up to your liking.  I made the dimensions of my box 2' wide by 2' long by 1' high to make it easy to move around and easy to store.

**Note:  If you do not want to have two big tin cans sitting on the top of the box, you can make a modification to it by attaching the light socket to the inside wall of each of the compartments and drilling through the side to take the wiring through.  (Kind of like those lights in the headboard of a bed.)  If you do this, please install a buffer board to prevent the lightbulb and socket from being seen from the front as shown in the drawings.  I made my prop from one of the links on the MonsterList Page with the bulky coffee cans and I had a lot of problems with them falling off in transit.  Also the when the sockets were installed into the cans, there was a lot of sharp edges to deal with.

Cut the plywood and assemble as shown on the diagram.  **For the coffee can method, cut two holes in the top of the box for the coffee cans and make them snug to hold the cans in place.  Make sure that you locate the edge of the hole for the coffee can no closer than 8" from the back wall of the box.  The light should only illuminate in front of the object used for this illusion.  (My box did not work correctly for this reason.)

Carefully make a hole in the center of each can and install the light sockets.  You are working with electricity so ensure that you use the correct items and install them properly.  I do not use this prop outside nor do I set it up where anyone other than myself will have access to it.  Better safe than sorry.

Wire up the sockets to the light switches or dimmers (whichever you wish to use).  Refer to the wiring diagram.

Measure the dimensions of the box where the glass will be inserted.  See diagram.  I got 1/8" glass for my box and it works pretty good.  I tend to be a little nervous now because I broke the first piece of glass when I stuck my hand through it.  (Don't ask, it is a 'moron' story.)  Another modification I made to my box was to attach a thin strip of wood across the bottom of the box where the glass would be installed and two strips across the top so that the glass would slide into it and be secured.