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June 28

Maker Faire KC 2015

Photos from Maker Faire Kansas City 2015

Have you been to a Maker Faire? A celebration of things people make themselves, Maker Faires are organized by MAKE Magazine, and started in San Mateo, California in 2006. Now these events take place across the country. My hometown, Kansas City, happens to be one of the “featured” Faires, where more than 200 makers participate. I have shared Faires in the past, in 2011 and 2012, so I figured it was time for an update.

Above is a montage of photos I took – here are the highlights, starting in the upper left corner, and working around clockwise:

  1. 3D printers were big again, as they have been at each Faire I’ve attended. These were some 3D-printed TARDISes and Star Trek Lego figures.
  2. Some more examples of 3D printed items – these were very ornate vases by Sage Kaneko.
  3. A chainmail demonstration by Michael of Amanda Lynn Chainmaille Creations.
  4. The Artifex 2 desktop 3D printer – it printed in the usual hard plastic filament, but also wood and a flexible “NinjaFlex” thermoplastic elastomer.
  5. Eco Elvis performed – he was all shook up about the effects of acid rain.
  6. The Flipbookits were a cool find in the Maker Store – it’s a DIY kit to make your own motorized flipbook, designed by kinetic artists.
  7. Artists from Dare to Dabble were on hand to help attendees create gelli prints with acrylic paints, brayers, stamps and stencils.
  8. I made my own glycerin soap with Feto Soap! It smells like cinnamon and I chose a cute little gnome as the “prize” in the center.
  9. There were speakers scheduled throughout the day, discussing all sorts of interesting make-y type topics. The one I heard was about the use of hydraulics in Hollywood.
  10. Many booths encouraged attendees, particularly kids, to try their hand at a variety of tasks. This booth by Leela Village School for Purposeful Play offered a DIY playground with robots made from found materials. (P.S. Did you know “Leela” means “divine play” in Sanskrit?)
  11. A steampunk dirigible
  12. There was a table for Raspberry Pi Geek magazine – we got my husband one of these little credit card-sized computers for his birthday this year, so I was sure to pick up one of their sample magazines.

There was so much to see, and scrolling through the Instagram feed for #MakerFaireKC, I can see I missed quite a bit! Be sure to allow a few hours at least if a Maker Faire hits your area, if not a whole day!

What have been your favorite things to see at a Maker Faire? Share with us in the comments below!

Links of Interest:

 

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April 25

Did you ever wonder what the Doctor’s closet might look like?

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SheepBlue, a craftster from Ann Arbor, MI, decided to craft up a tiny version of the Doctor’s very own closet.

She repurposed a simple wood box from Michael’s, and gave it an uneven Tardis blue staining. In the closet, SheepBlue included a spare spare key, emergency party bananas, a copy of Summer Falls and An Angel’s Kiss, *gasp* TWO Weeping Angel children (how did they get there! Don’t blink!), River Song’s party heels, a tropical umbrella (you never know when you’re going to need festively bright umbrella), a portrait of River Song, Vincent’s hat, the Doctor’s fez, an extra Christmas tree decoration, an extra psychic paper book, a copy of the Don’t Blink tapes on disc, oh, and a sword. Because the Doctor might need a sword someday…for some reason…

Be sure to take a look through the posting over at Craftster to see everything included in the Doctor’s closet.

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April 19

DIY Comic Book Collage Silhouettes

Comic book silhouette collage by The Nifty Nerd

With so many great TV shows and movies out, there’s a lot of attention on comic books these days. It’s always nice to go back to the source material for the full backstory. While you’ve got your comics out, you might want to use some of the extras for this cool collage project, brought to us by Jessica from The Nifty Nerd.

Jessica has kindly put together a Nerdy Craft Tutorial on how she created her striking silhouette collages to adorn her hallway, including cutouts from Spiderman, plus a really cool Rohan horse banner crafted from Fellowship of the Ring book pages – you won’t want to miss that!

She also talked about other cutout backgrounds, like the Hogwarts houses, or Game of Thrones family crests. What fandom would you like to collage? I have a TARDIS in mind, from Doctor Who comic book pages…

Links of Interest:

 

 

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March 27

Return of the Geek Cat

cat toys2

There was a lot of celebrating on the farm today.  After three weeks and two days, we finally found our cat, Ari!  Apparently he was hiding out in our closest neighbor’s shed the whole time.  I was pleasantly surprised that even after a 23 day stint in the pitch-dark shed he didn’t really resemble Gollum at all.

In addition to more cuddles than he’s comfortable with, I’m making him these geek cat toys as a welcome home gift.  (Underneath that cool cat exterior, I have no doubt that Ari is a total Whovian, Final Fantasy, AND Harry Potter nerd.)  The best part?  No sewing machine is needed for these adorable toys from Allons-Y Kimberly.

Oh man, remember when we posted this?  What a charming place for a geek cat to hang his hat!

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February 16

Geek Chic Clothing DIY Roundup

GatheredSkirtDIY

These days more and more people are rocking their personal geek chic style than ever before. So I’ve rounded up some fun DIY tutorials on starting (or adding to) your own geek chic wardrobe for everyday fabulousness. Take this awesome gathered skirt tutorial from the blog Set to Stunning by Lindz and Scruffy. It’s an easy-to-follow tutorial with pictures, and the idea is so simple you can use any fabric you want. Heck, make a bunch of these beauties, one for every day of the week if you like.

SequinGodzilla

If sewing isn’t your thing, then perhaps peel-n-stick is more your style. Maya Murillo from the blog I Love to Create has a quirky and quick video tutorial on making your own sequin Godzilla shirt, no sewing required. It’s a cute idea, and another one you can easily customize without a lot of effort. She uses Aleene’s Peel and Stick Sheets to adhere the sequined Godzilla to a t-shirt. I haven’t used the product myself, but it’s gotten some mixed reviews. If you want an alternative, try Wonder Under Fusible Web. All you’ll need is an iron. Be sure the fabric you’re using for the Godzilla shape is ironing friendly, however (so, maybe glitter instead of sequins).

 

GalaxyShirtDIYwithHiddenTARDIS

If you’re feeling a bit more artsy, then Alessandra from The Sparkle Queen has a nice photo tutorial on making your own galaxy shirt with a hidden TARDIS using bleach and paint. The process is similar to another technique featured here on Geek Crafts. Though Alessandra uses acrylic paints, if you’re looking for something that won’t change the hand of the fabric as much (you know, make your shirt feel a little crunchy once it’s all done), try some fabric paints designed to have a softer feel on fabric once dry. I’ve used Pebeo fabric paints before with good results myself, but there are tons of products out there available at your local craft store. Or, if you’re feeling really adventurous try out Dharma Trading online for some really excellent fabric paints, techniques, and tutorials. You can even get clothing blanks from them too.

Have fun spicing up your wardrobe!

Category: Comics, Craft, Geek, Girly, Movies, Sci-Fi, Tutorial, TV | Comments Off on Geek Chic Clothing DIY Roundup