Being a follower of Nick Zammeti on YouTube, I discovered that there was going to be this amazing exhibition up in Birmingham (UK) which Nick was in charge of putting together. I was a little timid about booking tickets at first because I had only just started following a number of makers online and wasn’t really posting much myself, so I wasn’t sure if this would be the right thing for me to go to.
Buying the tickets for Makers Central was possibly one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.
The maker community is incredibly welcoming and friendly with people sharing all sorts of information. Everyone appears to be equal in the eyes of the maker community. Sure, there are those who are better known than others, but no one appears to have any sense of propriety, which is incredible and refreshing to see.
I got to meet a raft of people and have a little chat here and there. Matt Cremona and April Wilkerson were just great to talk to and it was great to listen in to April’s talk in the afternoon about her maker journey. Also got to watch/listen to Jimmy DiResta give a demo and Q&A as well as a bit of Laura Kampf and Colin Furze, but I think I need to especially mention Bob Clagett (I Like To Make Stuff).
I managed to catch him on the Saturday when he wasn’t scheduled to do any talks or demos and, being the kind person he is, he was happy to have a little chat with me. Unfortunately I don’t think I really prepared myself in terms of questions and made myself a bit nervous, which is silly in hindsight. So Bob, if you ever read this, my apologies. The next time I catch up with you I’m hoping it’ll be more like talking over a drink casually than me being a jittery fanboy.
The truth still stands in terms of what I said though. Bob’s book, Making Time, along with getting involved with making generally, has stopped me from burning out in my current full-time job (web developer) and that means a lot to me.
As for the rest of the exhibition, there was so much to see and do at the exhibition that there was pretty much something for everyone to get involved with, but hopefully everyone there was approaching all disciplines with an open mind and wanting to learn about new things. The only thing we didn’t really see was any welding, but with such an array of things going on we had plenty to see/do.
I’ve picked up a few wood stains and had some ‘bio-resin’ delivered so that I can try my hand at some different projects in the future. I really want to give epoxy resins a go after having watched a number of videos from those I’ve mentioned above as well as Evan & Katelyn and Chris Salomone. One of the key factors preventing me from buying any off-the-shelf epoxy is the eco-credentials. I don’t have a problem with using plastics, so long as its use is not wasteful or unnecessary, and if there’s an option to reduce the amount of harmful chemicals or impact on the environment, then that’s the avenue I’ll try to pursue first.
At Makers Central, I had a great chat with Wessex Resins about their eco-epoxy and what contributes to those credentials, and whilst it’s still a very low number in terms of what is not a petrochemical byproduct, the thinking and calculations of how to reduce things like the carbon footprint of transportation of chemicals are all factors that have been considered which is certainly a step in the right direction.
For those curious about what happened at Makers Central, take a look at https://www.makerscentral.co.uk/ and follow all their social media accounts. I had a great time and will definitely be there next year if I can.
Website links to everyone mentioned above (be sure to follow them online and watch a ton of their YouTube vids):
Nick Zammeti – https://www.nickzammeti.com/
Matt Cremona – https://www.mattcremona.com/
April Wilkerson – https://wilkerdos.com/
Jimmy DiResta – http://www.jimmydiresta.com/
Laura Kampf – http://laurakampf.com/
Colin Furze – http://www.colinfurze.com/
Bob Clagett – https://iliketomakestuff.com/
Evan & Katelyn – https://evanandkatelyn.com/
Chris Salomone – https://www.foureyesfurniture.com/
Wessex Resins – https://www.wessex-resins.com/