Josh Williams
November news!
November news!
Maker Works
We got a new planer!
We got a new planer!
Josh Williams
The Day The Robots Took Over
The Day The Robots Took Over
Josh Williams
Open House Wrap + New Classes!
Open House Wrap + New Classes!
Makerspace
Josh Williams
Open House Oct. 13th + New Tracks + Last Chance ...
Open House Oct. 13th + New Tracks + Last Chance Wood Carving & Member Projects!!

Maker Feature: Thomas Tusano

Maker Feature: Thomas Tusano

The advent of the Covid-19 pandemic changed things for a lot of makers—without access to the community spaces they were used to relying on, they had to adjust and figure out a new way of doing things. This is one of the factors that brought Thomas of Tusano Trading Co. to Maker Works. Since then he’s built new skills, grown his business, and has developed working relationships with other members at the shop. Read on to hear what he has to say about the community of creatives that makes our shop unique and why it’s such a vital resource.

Maker Feature: Yuye Elina Zhang

Maker Feature: Yuye Elina Zhang

It’s a familiar situation for art school graduates: you have access to top-of-the-line equipment in school, but as soon as you leave the program, you’re on your own. For some, this lack of resources forces them to leave their trade behind. Thankfully, some artists like Yuye get support from Artist in Residence programs like the one at Maker Works. After getting her MFA in Metal and Jewelry Arts, Yuye applied to our 6 month residency program and gained free access to the tools she needed to continue producing beautiful work.

Maker Feature: Erika Cross

Maker Feature: Erika Cross

Erika Cross is a Michigan local and a holder of art and design degrees from the University of Michigan, Eastern Michigan University, and The Royal College of Art. Though she still works out of her home state, her creations have garnered praise and won awards around the globe. You’ll often find her taking a hands-on design approach in the Maker Works woodshop or collaborating with other makers in our common spaces. To learn more about how she turns our community makerspace into a haven for creative experimentation, keep reading!

Maker Feature: Ewunet Tadesse

Maker Feature: Ewunet Tadesse

Ewunet founded his business, Bregga & Co., back in 2012 to design and craft “accessories for the young and young-at-heart professional.” His fine leather and hardwood designs include business card cases, wallets, portfolios, and furniture items. But when life brought him from Pennsylvania to Michigan, he was concerned about finding a space to keep doing the work he loved. Thankfully, he found that place in Maker Works—keep reading to hear his story.

Maker Feature: Anke Eichstaedt

Maker Feature: Anke Eichstaedt

Anke began developing her talents for textile design as a seamstress at a dressmaker’s studio in Germany and later on while getting a degree in fashion design. She discovered that while it was nice to have other people construct her designs for her, she missed making things by herself. Anke later moved to the United States, and we’re sure glad she (and Alice the goldendoodle, one of our canine members) ended up in Ann Arbor! Keep reading to find out how she uses the Maker Works textiles area to create beautiful luxury handbags, accessories, and art pieces from high-quality leathers in all colors of the rainbow.

Maker Feature: Elderwood Academy

Maker Feature: Elderwood Academy

Not all of the makers who use our shop have grand aspirations of starting a business, but for those that do, it helps to have a bit of inspiration in the form of a success story. One of the many fabulous startups with origins at Maker Works is Elderwood Academy, a business that began with nothing but a gift idea, access to our ShopBot and Epilog Lasers, and a little bit of traction on the internet. Today, they’re a major supplier of tabletop gaming accessories and have moved into their own production facility. Read on to learn how they got to where they are now!

Maker Feature: Kelly O'Neill

Maker Feature: Kelly O'Neill

Over the next few weeks we’ll be featuring some of the wonderful makers who make our community great. Today we’re highlighting Kelly, a total powerhouse in the metal shop. You might find her making sparks on the plasma cutter, bending sheet metal and rods into gorgeous curves on the slip roller, welding up a storm, or powder coating pieces in a vibrant array of colors. Read on to learn more about how she got to where she is today, and check back next week for another featured maker!

Maker Feature: Lana Krolikowski

Maker Feature: Lana Krolikowski

Over the next few weeks we’ll be featuring some of the wonderful makers who make our community great. First up is Lana Krolikowski, proprietress of Saving Throw Pillows. You can find her using tools all throughout the shop for her own personal projects as well as the textiles area, lasers, and wood shop to create TTRPG-themed accessories to sell. Read on to find out more about her work and her connection to Maker Works, and keep checking back to hear about more of our wonderful members!

Maker Works Open House!

Rainbow image with words Open House October 23rd 2pm - 5pm

Please join us on Sunday, October 23rd anytime between 2pm - 5pm for our Open House celebration of 11 years around the sun!

Stop in for a tour featuring live tool demonstrations! Meet some of our fabulous makers, see their work and hear their stories. Learn about some of our new programs, partnerships, and upcoming accessibility initiatives!

Help us out! We would love to take this opportunity to share the resources of Maker Works to as many groups as possible. Please share and invite a friend, organization, club, company, school, troop, etc. An event on Facebook can be found here.

Thank you!

The future is yours to make!