Scheduling Committee Meeting
(Online) 6/19/2025 7:00 - 8:30 pm
Leesburg Workday: 6/28/2025 9am - 2pm
(If you can't make it on the day, a list of lite duty Volunteer Opportunities is always posted in the Main Room)
Purcellville Workday: 7/05/2025 9am - 12pm(There's something for everyone -get those volunteer hours in!)
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Letter from Makersmiths President Nedim Ogelman |
Fellow Makers, I want to reflect on our recent board member election. Congratulations to Brad Hess and Jim Waldron on their wins! I'd also like to thank Diane Bollinger and John Carter for their dedication. Our organization is fortunate to have such talented and passionate volunteers. A huge thank you to all who contribute, whether it's through cleanups, teaching, site stewardship, book keeping, coaching our children, marketing, pursuing grants and so much more. Your efforts make Makersmiths thrive. Best, Nedim
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Makersmiths 2025 Election Results Emma Pinto
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After weeks of voting, Makersmiths reelected Jim Waldron and Brad Hess to
the Board of Directors! We had 129 votes which is about 45% participation. Thank you to everyone who took the time to vote to keep our democracy alive! Both electees want to see our building fund grow and finances strong with Jim focused on getting MS grants and Brad continuing to work with the building owner of MSL. Makersmiths has hit the 10 year mark of being operational, which is typically the milestone that determines a maker space’s longevity. Having a board that is focused on the success of this group will be key in the upcoming years. Congratulations to the electees, and here are a few additional words from Jim.
“I am thrilled to be serving another term as a director. Thank you all for your support. It is an honor to serve. I hope to advance many of the projects and needs put forth by our stewards in this year's budget. I fully expect we can continue to improve our spaces and strengthen our community volunteer efforts to enrich everyone's knowledge and skills.” |
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What's that QR code on the Belt Sander, the Fiber Laser, the Canon photo printer and other equipment at Purcellville? Those QR codes are an easy way to pay the fee for use of that equipment. Please pay any fees before leaving the facility.
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Congratulations Makersmiths Artists Diane Painter
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The Artists of Makersmiths will be showing their artwork at the Purcellville
Town Hall’s art gallery from July 1 to August 31. The artists are: Sean Adams, Dana Eddy, Melinda Gretsinger, Russell Kelz, Ren Feliz-Durishin, Dawn Martin, Kayl Martin, David Painter, Diane Painter, Jonathon Sheard, and James Waldron.
The Arts Council of Purcellville will host the artists' reception
at the Town Hall on August 1, 2025, from 6 to 8:30 PM. Light refreshments
will be offered. The artists will share what inspired their creations and answer
questions from those who attend. Please come and enjoy the evening with our
Makersmiths artists.
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2025 Purcellville Fourth of July Parade Diane Painter |
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This family-friendly event involves creativity, maker skills, and lots of fun!
We have one hand truck with a wooden base left for a Makersmiths family
or group of creative members to prepare for the 2025 Purcellville Fourth of
July parade. Here is an example of our Makersmiths’ float from 2021. The
hand trucks are connected, one behind the other, and pulled by a small
vehicle such as an ATV or tractor.
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If interested in adopting the hand truck and wooden base, please contact
Tom Hill , the event organizer, or Diane.Painter@makersmiths.org, who is
storing the hand truck, so we can get it to you. This year’s theme is Let Freedom Ring! The parade will begin at 11 am. The
route is 2.5 miles long, starting at Blue Ridge Middle School, then right
onto A Street, right onto 20th Street, right onto Main Street, right onto
Maple Avenue, right onto A Street, and returning to Blue Ridge Middle
School.
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Marketing Team Diane Bollinger
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We have a request from our Marketing team. While we do not currently have a Marketing Chair, a few members have been taking the lead on the projects. I am working on building up a selection of posts for Facebook and Instagram, we have a ton of possible content to shift through and we could use all the help we can get. I have a few requests, if you have posted your work in the #whatcha_make_today channel, we have a note pinned to that channel mentioning that we may use your photo or post for social media, newsletter, etc. As much as I would love to just grab photos from there, I think it's in everyone's best interest to be consulted before posting. If you would like to give blanket permission for your posts to be used on Social media, please let me know, ideally by email at diane.bollinger@makersmiths.org . Please include your name on slack and how you would like your credit to be listed publicly. If you would like to be consulted before items are posted, also let me know in the same manner, send me an email with your request. I would like to avoid posts that are made without direct permission because I value our membership and would like to have a popular and successful social media presence. When we get an official Marketing chair I will also update them on this list. Let me know if you have any questions. And please like us and interact with our social media to help us grow!media to help us grow!Text |
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Education News Diane Painter |
The Virginia State KidWind Challenge was held at James Madison
University on April 12 in King Hall. Six Makersmiths teams competed, three
wind teams and three solar teams. The competition from Kidwind teams
throughout Virginia was very strong. In the end, our high school solar team,
Sub 4, came in third place and our middle school wind team, Recreational
Renewables, came in second place. The Recreational Renewables, coached
by Oliver Arend, went on to compete at KidWind Worlds May 18-21 at the
convention center in Phoenix, Arizona. Although the team did not win in
their middle school wind turbine division, they had a memorable time
meeting teams from all around the USA. Oliver states the team has big
plans for next year’s KidWind season! For interest in KidWind for youth in
grades 4-12, contact Diane Painter who will be organizing next year’s teams
to begin meeting in late fall. Email: diane.painter@makersmiths.org |
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Summer Family Friendly Workshop at Makersmiths
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Makersmiths members Diane Painter and Robin Schneck are gearing up to
co-teach Exploring TinkerCad: A Family-Friendly Workshop at Makersmiths
Purcellville July 21-July 24 from 1-3 PM in the Green Room. This 4-day
workshop is appropriate for ages 10 on up. Even adults who know other
CAD programs have shared that they learned in previous workshops some
things about computer-assisting drawing that they did not know before. It is
helpful if you bring your own laptop, but we will have some on hand if you
need to borrow one during the workshop sessions. At the end of the week,
participants in the workshop will be taught how to use the 3D printers to
print off what they design. Register at https://makersmiths.org/event-6207512
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In the works is a basic electronics and soldering workshop being planned
for this summer at Makersmiths Leesburg. Dave Hamrick and Jeff Deweese
are planning this family-friendly workshop and will have it on the calendar
very soon. Diane Painter would like to offer getting to know your Cricut classes. Please
see the article in this newsletter for examples of what you can make with
this desktop CNC machine. Please let her know of your interest and what
you want to learn to make.
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Getting to the Cricut Diane Painter |
Both Makersmiths locations have Cricut machines. Summer is a great time
to learn how to make projects for fun or profit! Diane Painter is trying to
determine interest in having workshops for folks ages 10 on up. Please let
her know of your interest in learning to use the Cricut machines. Here are
some examples of things she has made:
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Shadow box projects for decorating a child’s or baby’s room
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Customized t-shirts and a fancy tissue box
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Other items are customized beach towels, greeting cards and paper flowers!
If interested, please contact diane.painter@makersmiths.org to let her know
what you want to learn using a Cricut. |
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Did You Know This About Our Members? Diane Painter |
Allen Hamblin loves to play the game backgammon. In fact, he
plays in tournaments and is quite serious about it. So serious, he
spent months creating several versions of a game board, learning
all kinds of woodworking and inlay skills, including the use of the
EBF at Makersmiths Purcellville. Allen is happy to share is latest
version of the game that he can take with him when he travels to
play the game. |
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Not long ago, Randy Holland told us he is making an arcade
machine! He learned how to use the EBF and other woodshop
tools to make it. It is not quite finished but will be soon and he
will have it set up in his family room at home for his family to
enjoy!
Mike Payne is also into making a fun entertainment machine. It is
still a work in progress, but his remote-controlled machine now
has a new vinyl wrap. The webcam is mounted on top and
connected to a raspberry pi that’s wired into the main board via
GPIO and hosting a node JS web server with the control UI. He
still needs to skin the UI to match the graphics on the machine,
remount the webcam with a better composition, then finalize
testing on the script to record the play sessions. He says he is
close to getting it ready to play! Christa Stern is an artist and is on the Western Loudoun Art and
Studio Tour June 6, 7, and 8. You can see her work in her studio,
Utter Chaos Designs, at the Round Hill Arts Center from 10am to
5pm each of those dates. The center is located at 35246
Leesburg Pike (Rt. 7), studio 110-B located on the first floor. To
learn more about the tour, go to https://www.wlast.org and map
your route to see other artists throughout Loudoun County. |
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New and Improved Bluemont Fair Art Sale Diane Painter
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Just last week, I met a woman at Makersmiths Purcellville named Kendra
who handed me a flyer about the “new and improved” Bluemont Fair Art
Sale that will be held at the fair on September 20 and 21. The 90/10 split in
earnings for the sale of one’s artwork seemed very intriguing. Kendra stated
that they are looking for wall hangings, sculptures and out of the box work
as well as traditional paintings! If you are into making computer-generated
art, or paper, fiber, glass, metal and laser cut pieces that can hang on a wall
or serve as a sculpture and you would like to sell your pieces, this may be a
good event for you! I asked her about shadow box art and she said yes, that
would be most welcomed. If interested, please contact Kendra at
bluemontfairartsale@gmail.com.
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Sewing Circle at Makersmiths Leesburg Diane Painter |
Over a year ago, Amy Copely began a monthly Sewing Circle that meets on
the second Wednesday of each month from 6- 9 PM. We began at
Makersmiths Purcellville and during the winter months, transitioned to
Makersmiths Leesburg. Since the sewing machines and other sewing items
are at Makersmiths Leesburg, we decided to meet at Makersmiths Leesburg
each month from now on. To add to our capabilities to repair items, make
costumes, etc., Jim Waldron and Dave Painter moved the industrial sewing
machine from Purcellville to Leesburg. It is now located in the CosPlay
room. To learn how to use it, Jim has posted data and a video on its use on
the Wiki, under tools. Questions on this machine? Contact
James.Waldron@makersmiths.org. Does anyone want to learn how to make a tea cozy? At the Sewing Circle at
MSL on June 11 (6-9 pm), Diane Painter will work with anyone who wants to
make one. It is a great first project for novice sewers. Bring two 100%
cotton 12-inch square pieces of cloth. Diane will pick up a bag of 100%
cotton batting for us to use. What is a tea cozy? It is a bowl-shaped cotton
holder for a teacup or mug. When your beverage needs warming, you put
your cup or mug in the cozy and put the items in the microwave to heat up!
It saves burning your fingers when you retrieve it from the microwave.
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Red Tool Classes are an important step in your Maker journey!
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MS-L
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Tormach Red Tool 4/13/2025 - 09/01/2025
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Sublimation Printer Red Tool 6/09/2025 6:00pm - 7:00pm
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Big Red CNC Red Tool 6/11/2025 6:30pm - 9:30pm
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MS-P
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Woodworking Basics Red Tool 6/12/2025 6:30pm - 9:00pm
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Metalworking Basics Red Tool 6/18/2025 6:00pm - 8:30pm
Woodworking Adv Red Tool
07/20/2025 1pm-3:30pm
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Makersmiths runs on volunteers! Consider teaching a class or holding a workshop! check out the #class_planning_and_requests channel on Slack and join a meeting to get some help with your idea!
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Tool Authorization Groups
Dean Williamson
Makersmiths
has lots of cool and useful tools, machines, and equipment. Many of
them require training or authorization before you can use the
equipment. The training can be as simple as an orientation, to a more
formal “red tool” class, to demonstrating proficiency to the tool steward. Such mandatory training helps ensure that all users understand
how to use the equipment properly and safely, thus helping to keep the
equipment running smoothly and minimize maintenance downtime as well as
ensuring the safety of our members.
Below
is a link to the list of tools which require training and authorization from a Steward. Please contact the
steward for more information about each tool. This list is not
exhaustive of the tools available at Makersmiths and is updated
regularly as we get new equipment or as needed: |
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By clicking above, you can view the most current list posted on the Makersmiths wiki. Consider
checking it out, you might discover a new tool that you didn’t realize
Makersmiths had. |
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Makersmith Board Officers |
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Board Name/Officer | Position | Term |
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Brad Hess | Board Member | 2022 - 2025 |
Bo Wernick | Board Member/Secretary | 2024 - 2027 |
Scott Silvers | Board Member | 2023 - 2026 |
Evin Grano | Board Member | 2024 - 2027 |
Jonathan White | Board Member/Chairperson | 2023 - 2026 |
Jennifer Chu | Board Member | 2024 - 2027 |
Nedim Ogelman | President | 2024 - 2025 |
Mary Waldron | Treasurer | 2024 - 2025 |
Jim Waldron | Board Member | 2024 - 2025 |
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Did You Know...
You can find the newsletters from the last several years archived on our website? |
The
Newsletter could always use some new blood - share your projects, pitch
some article ideas, tell us about something cool you've seen in your
Maker travels!
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Makersmiths Leesburg: 106 Royal St SW, Leesburg, VA 20175 Makersmiths Purcellville: 785 S. 20th St, Purcellville, VA 20132 |
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