- Sarah Shuster
- Friday, January 25, 2019
One customer uses the makerspace not just for creating DIY projects, but also to create joy for others in need.
If you visit any of the new or renovated Richland Library locations, you will probably see a makerspace. These are spaces made for making and creating, cooking and sharing, learning and growing. Richland Library Sandhills has two of these spaces, one for adults and teens, and one for children. We host classes and open labs, and the walls are filled with works of art and projects in progress.
You might also meet some of our community of caring artists and crafters who use these spaces to enrich and beautify the world around them. Many Sew Devine groups put their needles together to provide extra layers of warmth for those in need.
In our Makerspace, we have Hope.
Hope attends most of the classes we offer in the adult makerspace. Sometimes she brings her daughter, an actual artist, who puts me to shame by creating works of art that surpass my poor little project samples.
Hope and her daughter also visit the space on weekends to enjoy our DIY Kits. You pick a project, grab the kit, and have all the supplies you need in one box to complete a nifty craft. I was so excited to see them frequently making chalk paint mason jars, birch tree canvases, t-shirt pillows, and their own creations. How sweet to see a mother/daughter pair enjoying each other in this free, creative space. But it goes beyond just a fun afternoon.
Hope shared with us that she volunteers her time helping others and putting in her own sweat equity at Habitat for Humanity. She and her daughter visit Sandhills to make crafty projects to decorate the rooms of new Habitat homeowners. Imagine the joy of walking into your new home, and now, not only do you have a place to sleep, you have a handmade pillow, stitched with love, a painting or two on the wall and a rustic chic mason jar to hold your silverware. Provided to you through the kindness of others who want to welcome you home.
The beginning of a new year often gives us an opportunity to make resolutions. This year, join us in making a resolution to craft with a purpose and brighten someone else’s day through the simple act of creating something for someone else. We have all the supplies you need.