Maker Mania

OK, I think I'm due a new post, and I might as well tell you about our weekend adventures in Austin. On Saturday, we went to the Maker Faire. A little background info: my husband subscribes to Make Magazine, a quarterly journal that provides instructions for fun and random do-it-yourself projects that usually involve household items, some wires and circuits and stuff, a dremel or soldering iron... well, you get the picture. They have a Maker Faire where people come to display and demonstrate their little gadgets, inventions, and toys. So, John and I and his parents decided to go. Our other weekend excursions included dinner on 6th Street, browsing through Whole Foods Market, and a trip to Ikea. OK, now for some pictures:

Me and Bre: This guy, Bre Pettis, is the host of a Maker podcast called "Weekend Projects" that John and I watch every week. I joke about him being my hero, how I swoon over him, etc. So, I was pretty, er, stoked to meet him in person and have my picture taken with him. (Insert sound of heart fluttering and loud breathy sigh.)

Here is some funky ferris wheel thing where three people sit in the spinning chairs in the middle and the whole thing rolls around the fairgrounds.


Here is a fire display where some guys with too much time and money on their hands rigged up these contraptions that shoot out fire. They have a control panel, and I think they were trying to put on a synchronized fire show.


Here is a monster version of the game, MouseTrap. The demonstration was pretty short, but very cool.


Here are John, Alan, and me taking a breather. It was a TON of walking!


John's mom swings the hammer at a booth where you can win something fancy for being the fastest at hammering three nails into a plank of wood.


This guy is finger painting in the dust on his car.


The next three photos are part of the art car display: one covered in cameras, bricks, and yarn.


There was a lot to see, touch, and experience. John was pretty much in his element, and he's already excited about next year's Faire. I don't know if we'll want to bring our eight-month-old next year, but I did buy him a little Maker t-shirt. John says he looks forward to doing some Make projects with his son someday.