For the family and friends who ask, so what is it exactly that you do? I will attempt to explain.
Electronics is now apart of everyone's daily life. Almost everything you touch is electronics. And if it isn't, it was definitely manufactured with electronics. I bet even 'hand made' wooden photo frames at an Arts & Crafts stall aren't 100% hand made. The wood probably came from a saw mill, which uses electronics to place, align and cut the wood. And don't forget the electric sander he used to sand the frame.

What I do, is what any electronics manufacturer goes through.
Idea. Design. Built. Test. Mass Produce.
Except I'm not quite at the mass produce stage.
Yet.

For Example;
An Alarm System.
One of my many creations. I design the circuit. I research the parts I need. I buy the parts I need. I put it all together and program the brains (chips) to make it do what I want it to do, and Bob's your Son's Grandma's Grandma's Grandson.

This is created on a prototype board where you can temporarily 'plug' parts in and interconnect them. This board is called a Bread Board. Don't ask, I don’t know why.
Then if I want to be able to use/sell the system, I design a PCB. Which is an acronym for Printed Circuit Board. It is (commonly) a piece of woven glass and epoxy, and often green. If you have ever seen in a computer, the big green board is the PCB.
A PCB holds all the required parts, or components for correct terminology, for the particular system.
The PCB has electrically conductive "tracks" which link the components together to form a system and perform a function.

Well, that's as far as I will go.
You know that blank look on your face...
I can still see it.
:)