Cville Mini-Maker Faire Brings ‘Making’ Into the Limelight
The 3rd Annual Cville Mini Maker Faire on Sat., March 26th, will be held at Monticello High School from 10AM to 4PM. In the spirit of Jefferson, and so many innovators and entrepreneurs, the Maker Faire brings a day of discovery, hands-on opportunities and an immersion into a world where curiosity and creativity rule.
The Faire is a showcase of resourcefulness and celebration of the Maker Movement — where you make items to suit yourself, rather than purchase them at a store. Many times, materials are sourced from discarded, yet fully usable, items. Building, Crafting, Homesteading, Tinkering… it’s all celebrated and shared, in an entertaining wonderland.
Mark Nizer, Gravitational engineer, inventor and show control geek, relates “I participate to keep my child-like wonder of the world and remind me to keep playing with my toys. Just like when I was a kid, but now mine can fly, launch into the clouds, appear from nowhere on a 3D print bed from ABS plastic or grow onto a white box with video mapping.”
“This is the one event every year I get the most out of.” Nizer continues, “It’s people who love to participate in life and make stuff all coming together for the ultimate play date. All of them, making stuff more fun, more amazing, more bright and more possibilities.”
Attendees can fly and race drones through hairpin turns, and meet drone enthusiasts from the Charlottesville area. Watch in amazement as ShopBot demonstrates their Handibot Handibot CNC Smart Router Power Tool – control it with a computer – or your phone !
No one could miss the gigantic CHAOS Machine, where children feed marbles into a machine of tubes, tracks, motors and widgets. And adults can add to tracks and fun stunts to the machine itself. Even UVA Engineering is in on the fun, sharing what engineering is, and providing interactive, hands-on activities such as building small structures.
“There’s something for everyone here at the Maker Faire,” says Steven Hunter, the organizer of the Faire. “You can operate robots, see solar-powered personal transport devices, see demonstrations from Cville Open Bio Lab, where citizens are stepping up and becoming part of a citizen biologist / scientist movement. And the Transition Cville and Living Energy Farm will share sustainable homesteading and urban lifestyle without fossil fuels fundamentals and gadgetry.
We’ll have working replicas of Jefferson’s creations via Monticello, flight simulators, a Big Hat Fashion Show at 3pm, and so many other activities… The six hours of the faire will go by fast !”
The Cville Mini Maker Faire runs Saturday, March 26th, from 10 AM to 4PM at Monticello High School, tons of exhibits you’ll be happy to hang around and enjoy.. Children 6 and under attend free. Buy tickets online thru Friday, at