Makers Meetup Tonight in Burlington, NC

The Burlington Makers Meetup Group (Burlington, NC) - Meetup is tonight at 7:30PM at the Burlington Mall Starbucks.

This is a group for makers, artists, programmers, tinkerers, boffins, crafters, educators, and anyone who likes the kinds of projects and articles in "Make Magazine." It is a group for people who think “How can I make that?” instead of “where can I buy that.” Its a group for those who want to share their talents, knowledge, skills, and ideas with each other and with the world.

My name is Ben Harris and I'm a maker. I own my own small business (cottage industry) here in Burlington NC making science kits. I've recently become involved with Maker Faire (both in CA and here in NC!). I also own a CNC router, many bench power tools, a ton of hand tools, and lots of electronics equipment. I'm interested in exploring the idea of opening a “maker space” somewhere in Alamance county and would like to find out if there are other like minded people who might want to join such a space OR who might want to help out with creating such a space for others.

If you like to make things with your own two hands (either technical OR artistic or both!), and you like to share that with the world, and you are somewhere in/near Burlington-Graham/Alamance County then please join my new group.

Lightning Talks Tonight at Durham's Splat Space

Sorry for the short notice but better late than never, right?  Tonight at Splat Space, Durham's awesomest Hackerspace, there will be a series of lightning talks on a wide range of subjects. 

Cost: Free!

When: Friday, June 10, 2011, 7:30 PM 

Where: 331 W. Main St - Basement Durham, NC

RSVP: http://www.meetup.com/splatspace/events/19644181/

More on Durham's Hackerspace Splat Space.

SketchChair: Furniture Designed by You

Here's a Kickstarter project that I just contributed to.  The founders of SketchChair have developed software that allows you to easily design or customize a chair that can be cut by CNC routers (such as ShopBot), Laser, and other computer-controlled tools.  The software will be free but they're looking for funding for development of their online community for sharing chair designs.

Raleigh Group Making Feature Film

Today I came across the page for "Remnants," a film being made right now in Raleigh.  Go have a look at their trailer!  I'm dying to see this movie already!

A rare astrological event causes a permanent worldwide black out, forcing residents of a middle-class suburb to get by with no modern conveniences.

The community pulls together and adapts to a simpler way of life, but their success draws the attention of the less resourceful residents in the area and soon results in a war between subdivisions.

This is their story.

I've talked before about how overwhelmingly creative the triangle area is and this just reinforces my belief: there's no place like North Carolina.  I also wanted to highlight this film because it shows that you don't have to operate robots, solder circuits, or weld to be a maker.  Making is all about engenuity and it looks like the team making Remnants has that in spades.

Fan-Made Daft Punk Helmet - Incredible!

I find it hard to focus on long-term builds.  My longest-term build, the Danforth Standard Digitrola, was a labor of love so believe me when I say that the end product of this video must also be a labor of love.

 Atlanta Maker Harrison Krix of Volpini Props put this gorgeous piece together.  Go read the maker's blog for high resolution photos and more information.  Have a look at this amazing Daft Punk helmet build video below. (Thanks, @jmota3!)