A while back, a friend told me about the Tyler Mini-Maker Faire and suggested that it might be a good place to showcase The Tree Series. I looked into it and signed up to be an exhibitor. I then promptly forgot about it. The next thing I knew, it was a few days before the event and my displays (made by friends Melea Edwards and Patty Machin) were still in San Antonio. Luckily, Patty was willing to put new ones together for me, and with her help and a very late “event-eve” night, I was ready. #wherewouldwebewithouourfriends?
The morning of the event, my husband dropped me, my displays, and an assortment of Tree Series cards, calendars and prints at The Discovery Science Place. He got us all safely to our display area, then headed for home. I spent some time setting up, but that went well and I had a little bit of time to look around and get my bearings.
What a lot to see. The intent of a “Maker Faire” is to meld the disciplines of science, technology, crafts and art of all kinds with a large helping of fun. “Makers” include tech enthusiasts, engineers, hobbyists, scientists, students, artists, authors and entrepreneurs, among others. They set up their displays and share their projects and what they have learned. As you might imagine, there were creative displays everywhere, inside and out. And lots of variety. Displays ranged from 3-D printers to complicated construction projects. One young “maker” had actually constructed a full replica of the Discovery Science Place – using Legos.
And there were plenty of interactive things going on too – kids and adults alike had the opportunity to tie-dye shirts, create pet rocks, and try out new technology. There was even an Eepy Bird Mentos and Coke Zero geysers show – culminating in about 108 simultaneous geysers. What fun!
As the morning progressed, several people stopped by the LR Creations display, checking out the Tree People drawings and products and chatting a little about the process. But on the whole, it felt …well, slow. And then things changed!!
A young friend, Morgan Colby, came to help me at the display, and together we found a way to make the display interactive. I fired up my iPad and brought up the simplest drawing app. On a clean canvas, we wrote “Draw A Tree Person”, turned it outward, and let the fun begin. Now when people came by our table, they could use a finger to draw their own Tree Persons! In no time, we had several budding artists waiting for their turn. As each person finished his drawing, we saved it (to be emailed later) and brought up a clear canvas for the next person.
It was so much fun to watch as each new artist engaged in the process and created a Tree Person. And participants were of all ages – young kids, teenagers and young adults, and a fair share of grown-ups. We loved the interaction and the creativity.
Here’s a few of the completed pics. You can see more by clicking on the Mini-Maker Faire gallery.
LR
