Worth a look: Maker Spaces!

Maker Spaces, Art Labs, and Creator Spaces dot cities across the United States. Those are just a few of the names for facilities that make tools, machines, training and workspace available to anyone interested for a small monthly fee.

I found one here in Loveland, Colorado, and there are similar spaces in nearby Ft. Collins and Longmont, not to mention numerous facilities in the Denver area. Once you learn a little more about them, you’ll want to search for Maker Spaces in your area.

Take a look at this link for the Denver area. You can see how many options are available in just this one area. I’m sure all the spaces are different, with a different line-up of machines. Some may have a wider variety of equipment, while others may be more specialized. Keep looking!

My local Creator Space

The Loveland Creator Space is well equipped with the tools and machines many sign makers use. It has a full woodworking shop and a full metalworking/welding shop. The woodworking shop has the typical tools like a table saw, router table, two band saws, planer, surfacer, jointer, lathe and more.

It also has two CNC routers! The metalwork area has all the necessary tools you would expect, including a lathe, metal band saw, welder, grinders and so forth.

Another area of the facility has a large-format printer and a vinyl plotter. Numerous 3-D printers are available along with two laser cutters. I noticed several kinds and sizes of sewing machines, too.

The Loveland Creator Space charges $60 per month with no long-term contract for the use of any or all the machines. Some machines and equipment require a training class, but from what I can tell, they are free. Cubicles and storage lockers are available for a small monthly fee.

It’s apparent a number of Loveland-area small artistic enterprises do all of their work there. The building is usually bustling with a variety of skilled craftspeople. I’ve seen some extremely beautiful pieces of art and furniture work their way through the shop. The director told me many local businesses got their start at the Creator Space and now have their own shops.

It’s pretty amazing. Once I signed up for a month, I was given a digital key to the front door, allowing 24 access to the facility!

A sign company perspective

Even with a fairly nice set of tools in my home garage/shop, I DON’T have a CNC router or a 36-in. heavy duty band saw. I don’t have a surface sander, nor a 48-in. printer, much less a laser cutter! For $60, I can use any tool or machine in the facility. As a huge plus, the building is air conditioned in the summer and heated in the winter, and as I mentioned, I can use the facility at any time, 24 hours a day.

After taking the tour several months ago, I began to think about projects that I could do there. My printer at home prints images only as large as 13-by-19-in., but I have need for a few 20-by-30-in. photographic backdrop prints. They can cost $30 to $40 each if I outsource them. I plan on printing about a dozen, so it is easy to see how a month membership will pay off.

While I am not officially in the sign business these days, I may still do a few 3-D V-carved sign projects for Christmas gifts. Even if I were to open a sign shop, I’d certainly be willing to spend $60 just to use the CNC routers and laser cutter when the right projects came along.

Find a Maker Space!

Now that you know about “maker spaces,” get online and search for opportunities in your area. Take a tour and see if you can take advantage of a semi-hidden asset.

My Letterhead Project (Revisited)

 Back in the ’80s, Darla and I made a Letterheads project sign for a meeting in Clinton, Oklahoma—call it 35 years ago! I’ve had the panel all these years, but somewhere along the way, the small lettering plaques were lost or scratched. I had been thinking about how I would make a couple of worthy panels using my small band saw and routers.

After touring the Loveland Creator Space, I knew the laser cutters were the perfect tools for the job. I did a one-hour training session, received my certification for the machine, then went back several times to play with it. The laser cutters can etch glass and cut/etch felt, leather, wood, hardboard and cardboard up to ½-in. thick.

I started by making a series of coasters using inexpensive plywood. I learned a lot and made a fair amount of mistakes on the coaster projects.

 

 

I also cut some extremely delicate letters and panels from acrylic sheet.

 

Once I was comfortable with the laser, I tackled the Letterheads project, which used cherry and walnut panels.

If there had been a similar Creator Space in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, back when we were in the sign business there, I am positive I would have been a regular there, too.