Featured Maker: Piedmont Japanese Carpentry Club

Know what THIS is?

Neither did I!  It's a kama kebiki - a traditional Japanese woodworking tool belonging to Phillip Fuentes of the Piedmont Japanese Carpentry Club.  This group works wood using traditional Japanese methods -- no power tools, no sandpaper (fine blades are used to get a smooth finish), and lots of skill and patience.  They'll be bringing tools and materials and letting folks get hands-on to learn more about this amazing pasttime.  Personally, after a day sitting in front of a computer screen for hours on end, the idea of turning off the electronics and working wood by hand sounds *wonderful*.

2012 List of Makers!

We've posted a full list of all the Makers that will be exhibiting at this year's Faire.  From traditional techniques such as beekeeping, spinning yarn and making soap through modern jewelry-making and crafts and right on up to cutting edge technology including electronics, high voltage projects and a balloon launch to the edge of space, WE HAVE IT ALL!!!

Check out all the amazing things coming to this year's Maker Faire: NC!

http://makerfairenc.com/makers-2012/

Meet the Makers: McMichael High School Electric Vehicle Team

Suppose you're a high school student.

Now suppose you get your hands on an abandoned Mustang.

What would you *do* with it?

Well, if you were one of the students at McMichael High School you'd strip that sucker down and rebuild it as the award-winning ELECTRIC FOX!!!  Pure electric sports car!

Seriously... if kids like this don't give you hope for the future of the world, I honestly don't know what would.

Check out this amazing video of what a group of high-schoolers with dreams of a better world are actually ACHIEVING.  This isn't a pipe dream -- this is what real kids with real ambitions are doing RIGHT NOW.

http://lab306.com/

Maker Faire: NC 2012 is VERY PROUD to announce that the Electric Fox will be on display at this year's event!  Come talk to the team that made this a reality!

2012 T-Shirts Now Available

I'm so excited to show you our 2012 Maker Faire North Carolina T-Shirt!  Seth Patrick's totally awesome robot is featured front and back on this gorgeous, vivid 100% cotton natural shirt.

Shirts will be available to pick up at the Maker Faire North Carolina on Saturday, June 16th.  Sizes and quantity are limited so pre-order one to make sure you get your size!

You can buy your shirt with (or without) your tickets on our ticket ordering page.

Meet the Makers: Carolina Combat Robots & East Coast Bot Hockey

It's time to start letting everyone know about some of amazing people coming to Maker Faire: NC this year.  First off, we're thrilled that Carolina Combat Robots are returning!

Here's your chance to play with some really cool robots!  Attendees will have the opportunity to control a seriously quick robot in a game of 3 on 3 robot hockey.  This is fast-paced, high-energy and draws a big crowd.  Between sets the folks from Carolina Combat Robots and East Coast Bot Hockey will be available to talk about bot hockey, building robots and the next level of robot mayhem:  robots fighting robots! They'll be bringing some actual combat robots for you to see up-close. If you've every dreamed about building your own combat robot or just want to play a bit of lightning-fast bot hockey, Carolina Combat Robots is just the group you're looking for!