Hand Drawn QR Codes
Seth Larson created a hand-drawn QR code on a grid-lined sticky note from a local Minneapolis stationery store. He used a version 1 QR code format to encode his website URL, adjusting the text to fit within size constraints. Despite minor drawing errors and scanning difficulties due to paper curling, the QR code successfully scanned when held flat or mounted on a monitor.
- ▪Seth Larson made a hand-drawn QR code using a 10x10 and 2x10 grid by splitting squares to fit a 21x21 version 1 QR code.
- ▪He encoded 'sethmlarson.dev' to work within the 17-byte limit, later learning uppercase letters could have allowed the full URL.
- ▪The QR code was generated using the Python 'qrcode' package with low error correction, and it remained functional despite minor drawing mistakes.
- ▪Scanning was difficult due to paper curling but worked well when the paper was held flat or hung from a monitor.
- ▪A reader informed him that using 'HTTPS://SETHMLARSON.DEV' in uppercase would fit in a version 1 QR code using the alphanumeric mode.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
Hand‑drawn QR codes Seth Larson @ 2025-07-01 I really like QR codes. Recently I purchased a new sticky-note-like pad from a new local stationery store in Minneapolis. The sheets have a 10x10 grid and 2x10 grid. I knew what I wanted to do, I wanted to create a QR code on a sheet. The smallest QR code (besides micro QR codes) is "version 1" which uses 21x21 pixels. We'll have to split the squares in half and then use some of the margin. Version 1 QR codes can hold URLs up to 17 bytes long using the lowest data quality setting. Unfortunately https://sethmlarson.dev is 23 bytes long, so I'll have to improvise. I went with sethmlarson.dev instead, as this will prompt many QR code scanners to "search" for the term resulting in my website.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at sethmlarson.dev.
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