As someone who has interviewed a lot of people, those projects do count. If you're leaving them out of your job applications, you're probably hurting your pros

As someone who has interviewed a lot of people, those projects do count. If you're leaving them out of your job applications, you're probably hurting your prospects. I'd say to describe them exactly as you have here. The very fact that you're motivated enough to do them is a point in your favor, and if the code looks decent, that's more points. If I compared you to someone else with the same resume, I'd hire you over them.