Death Star Shelf (Woodworking)

I saw a project like this online and figures it be great for the kids (and a fun project!). First thing I did was pick up some cabinet-grade plywood and then traced out a circle to cut with a jig saw.

Once the circle was cut out, I clamped a straight-edge on so that I could add some cutouts and have them all at the same angle.

I drew those on and then added table to 'black out the pieces I didn't want. I used a print out as a reference but pretty much just guessed / randomized where I wanted to remove wood. 

Once that was done, I cleaned it up a bit, specifically where the tape cuts didn't look the best. Then, to make a circle for the laser, I used a 10" saw blade as a stencil and cut that out.

I then used a router to cut out some dados to insert the shelves. I didn't want to add supports to it so I was hoping the dados would add more contact points and strengthen the shelves. I clamped these all down and then added screws for more support.

I then stained it with grey. I figured that paint would be too 'plane' and actually figured the grain would look nice since it's 3-4 feet wide. 

There were a few spots where the router had tearout (I've not used it much so this was practice). I took the pieces and glued them back on. I had a bit more glue than needed so the stain didn't take in those areas. I learned later there's some ways around it but it gives it character!

Once that was done, I flipped it over, and hot glued some LEDs on the back. I used a LOT of glue because it didn't adhere the best but it seems to be holding up. A 5 m strip seemed to be the perfect length.