Hi! This is a brief account of my first keyboard build, as well as a gathering place for links to materials and resources that I used.

If you have any questions, feel free to send me an email at siwin.lo[at]gmail.com!

Why the Iris?

Like many, my interest in an ergonomic keyboard was sparked by wrist pain. At first, it seemed like my options were to either get the Kinesis Advantage or the Ergodox EZ, since I hadn't thought about the building my own. Personally, I found the aesthetics of the Kinesis to be lacking, and most people on Reddit with small hands found the Ergodox difficult to use, which was corroborated by friends and co-workers who had that board. Around this time, I was introduced to the Cute Keyboard Club discord server, and started researching smaller split ergo options. I found a number of build guides for the Iris, which was in stock and also one of the recommended boards on the Astrolokeys keyboard suggestions (it's Libra, in case you're wondering). It was also recommended as an easy first build, since there weren't any diodes or microcontrollers to solder, only switch pins. So I thought, "I'm crafty and picky, why not", and a couple weeks later, here I am!

Materials

List of materials: