Pittsburgh Mini Maker Faire

Get a sneak preview of Pittsburgh Mini Maker Faire by category each day until the big day, Sept. 22nd! Today’s featured category is In the MAKESHOP™.

MAKESHOP is a beautiful new all-ages maker space for families at the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh that has been getting attention from all over the country since it opened on the same day as last year’s Pittsburgh Mini Maker Faire. This year, MAKESHOP will house an eclectic mix of maker experiences that will WOW you no matter how old you are! Dig through bins of fabric to sew your own upcycled wearables at the sewing machines, learn to solder as you make your own blinkie badge to wear around the Faire, see the “handheld lightning” of maker Luke Kambic’s portable tesla coils and much more. Get a sneak peek of each project below and experience them all on Sat., Sept. 22nd.

CoDe lab, Float Beijing
Our projects provide a meaningful, or fun interaction between people and the environments surrounding them, like our weather-predicting kite.

Goodwill Industries of the Conemaugh Valley, Inc.**
See the creative fashions designed by GoodGuides youth from deconstructed old clothes.

Handheld Tesla Coil
A portable lightning generator that lets you manipulate plasma with your hands.

Learn to Solder
Soldering electronics is an easy-to-learn skill! Put together your own custom kit with Wayne and Layne and teaching artists from HackPittsburgh and the MAKESHOP. We provide all the tools and supplies.

The MAKESHOP Show
Look for the camera crew of The MAKESHOP Show, covering this year’s Faire with kid maker interviewers.

The Patchwork Tote Project **
See upcycled totes from The Dreams of Hope Patchwork Tote Sewing Project at this years QAMP!

Upcycled Sewing in MAKESHOP
Stop by the MAKESHOP to learn about repurposing and sustainability as we reimagine old clothes, accessories and more!  Dig through our bins of clothes and fabric to find something that can be upcycled in whatever way you can imagine.

The Pittsburgh Tote Bag Project **
Repurpose tote bags to help food pantry clients

** denotes MAKESHOP Maker Micro Grant Recipients funded generously by The Grable Foundation and The Pittsburgh Foundation with support from The Sprout Fund.

Get a sneak preview of Pittsburgh Mini Maker Faire by category each day until the big day, Sept. 22nd! Today’s featured category is Robots and Monsters.

Be enchanted – and terrified – by the Robots + Monsters area of the Faire! You’ll find five completely diverse robot projects, from playful, therapeutic bots to large scale FIRST Teams to the inventive animal prototypes of roboticist Jason Bannister. Venture into the monster room if you dare to experience the artistry and process behind the monster masks of maker Adam King. Preview all these projects below and see them LIVE at Pittsburgh Mini Maker Faire.

Finch and Hummingbird: Robots for the classroom and the playroom
Program and build robots designed locally by BirdBrain Technologies LLC

FIRST Team 3062
See St. Joseph High School FIRST Team 3062′s robot entry for the Rebound Rumble competition.

Girls of Steel FIRST Robotics FRC team #3504
Girls of Steel will drive their robot, Watson, demonstrate its actions, describe its construction, and talk about FIRST robotics and STEM.

How to Make Monsters
See ghoulish life-size rubber monster masks, props and puppets and learn how to make your own monsters. *May not be suitable for small children.

Mechanimals!
One-of-a-kind robotic creatures by Jason Bannister.

Romibo Robot Project
Play with Romibo, a pet-like social robot designed for therapy, education, and fun!

Get a sneak preview of Pittsburgh Mini Maker Faire by category each day until the big day, Sept. 22nd! Today’s featured category is Rideables.

The Rideables area of Pittsburgh Mini Maker Faire is over 1,200 feet of wheels, including an arena for riding in! Each exhibiting maker project involved adults and kids working together to design rideable inventions. You’ll have a chance to build a rideable yourself with Tubular Travelers and mini gravity cars with the Irma Freeman Center for Imagination or accept the puzzle challenge of NRG2DO. See below for the full list of Rideable Makers. Each is an award winning project of the MAKESHOP Microgrant Competition 2012: Rideables.

Balloon Craft and Gravity Cars
Make Balloon Craft and Gravity Cars with the Irma Freeman Center for Imagination and Boyd Community Center.

Book Cart by Propel Schools
See a remote control operated car on wheels that can carry books for students who use crutches or a wheelchair.

NRG2DO
Challenge yourself with this pedal powered kinematic energy project by The Church Institute. Challenges begin at the top of each hour throughout the Faire.

Tubular Travelers
Design, assemble and ride vehicles built with this modular rideable system invented locally by Art Energy Design.

What’s In Your Cart?
See rideable prototypes built by kid makers using 3D modeling software and inspiration from everyday objects.

In addition to the Rideables at the Faire, don’t miss the live races outside in Buhl Community Park at 11 am, 12:45 and 3:00 pm!

MAKESHOP Maker Micro Grant Recipients funded generously by The Grable Foundation and The Pittsburgh Foundation with support from The Sprout Fund.