Tag: Makerspace

Need a fun way to beat the cold, snow, and icy sidewalks this winter? Looking for cozy, creative indoor activities that won’t break the bank? Come spend the season at Spark Place!

Spark Place is a welcoming makerspace where creativity stays warm all winter long. Our space is always free to use, with only minimal costs for consumable materials, making it easy to drop in, explore, and experiment without pressure. Whether you’re a complete beginner or an experienced maker, our friendly and knowledgeable staff are always available to help you get started, answer questions, and support your ideas from concept to creation.

This winter, try something new—learn a skill you’ve always been curious about, design and build a prototype, or create a one-of-a-kind handmade gift. Families are welcome too! Kids love making buttons, stickers, and other fun projects, while adults enjoy everything from crafting and design to hands-on problem solving.

If you’re looking for a warm place to gather, create, and be inspired, Spark Place is the perfect winter destination. Come in from the cold, spark your creativity, and make something amazing with us this season.

We do recommend making an appointment before visiting to ensure the equipment for your project is available for your use. Call 937-736-7092 today to arrange your visit to Spark Place at your Greene County Public Library.

Ready to Make? Your Journey Starts Here!

Do you want to create something but feel stuck on where to start? Do you have great ideas but aren’t sure how to implement them? Don’t worry, we are here to help!

Finding Inspiration

Great places to ignite your creativity include local craft fairs and shops. You can also explore websites that sell unique homemade goods. Other excellent resources for inspiration and design files are:

• makezine.com
• thingiverse.com
• printables.com
• vecteezy.com
• oesd.com
• instructables.com

Taking the Next Step

Once your idea is sparked, what happens next? While this depends on your specific project, you will generally need to know what materials are required and what files are needed to operate the equipment.

We’ve provided some basic information here on our website, but Makerspace Specialists are just a call away! We are always happy to hear your ideas and help direct you to the best equipment for the job. We are also available to walk you through getting started on your project.

Key Things to Remember on Your DIY Journey

Embarking on a making journey takes patience and perseverance. Keep these important points in mind:

• Embrace Iteration: DIY starts with an idea and often takes several tries to get right. The final product may not be exactly what you first imagined, and that’s perfectly okay!
• Pace Yourself: Learning new skills takes time. It may require several appointments to complete your project.
• Finishing Touches at Home: Finishing steps like painting, assembling, or staining may need to be completed at home.
• Start with Design: Most of the making in our space requires that you begin with a computer-generated design. We are happy to help you get started learning various design software, but being comfortable with computers is helpful.

Ready to bring your new idea to life? Call us at 937-736-7092 to make an appointment. We can’t wait to see what you create here at Spark Place!

Greetings from Spark Place! While we are excited for all things fall, for makers it is time to start preparing for December holidays. There is so much gift making in December that keeps us busy! If you start now, you won’t have to worry about the machine appointments being all full before your holiday gift exchange.

Need ideas for your holiday gifts? We have mugs and tumblers you can personalize. Add drink mixes or coffee house gift cards, and your gift is ready! Or maybe you’d like to gift personalized holiday hand towels. We have an embroidery machine that will make that gift idea a reality.

There are so many options for making gifts in Spark Place! Bring in some cork coasters or untreated wooden blocks and you can laser etch your personalization right on to make a truly timeless gift. You can laser etch or sublimate ornaments. We have sublimation ornament blanks for sale. Do you want to personalize your cookie tin, before you gift your delectable baked goods? The UV printer is the tool for you.

Do you have another amazing gift idea? Call us today to discuss the details and book the piece of equipment that is right for your project! We can’t wait to see what you create!

Welcome to Spark Place! We are enjoying the last of summer before gearing up for back to school. Whether you are going on vacation or stocking up on school supplies, there are things to create at Spark Place.

Are you going on vacation soon? We have luggage tags that you can personalize and create using sublimation. Or maybe you want to make custom shirts for your family to wear to celebrate the experience. You can do that here too! If your children are tired of the heat and the rain and need something to do indoors, you can pick up one of our take and makes as well as some library books to keep them busy.

Getting ready for back to school? You can print stickers to make supply labeling a little easier. Bring in your child’s coated metal water bottle or thermos and use the laser to etch their name right into the bottle – like in my picture to the right. You won’t have to worry about labels wearing or washing off. We also have bag tags you can sublimate to put on backpacks. Add names, bus numbers, emergency phone numbers, or whatever else you want to add.

Whatever it is you want to make, we are here to help! Just call us at 937-736-7092 to discuss your projects and book your appointments.

Spark Place is excited to be open in our new space. You will now find us on the first floor of the newly renovated Xenia Community Library. We are happy to resume offering regular classes soon. Check out our class schedule and join us to learn a new skill!

We are now using some of our increased floor space to offer low tech STEM and maker items for the youth that visit. We have expanded our offerings of STEM projects and activities that are accessible for our younger visitors at any time.

Do you know that Spark Place offers system wide support for activities like Summer Reading Club? If you enjoy some of the window clings and signs decorating our libraries this summer, they are an example of some of the things you can make in our makerspace!

We hope to see you in Spark Place this Summer!

Cara Kouse

Innovation and Makerspace Manager

Thinking about starting a small business and need affordable signage, stickers, and other marketing materials? Cynthia Stemple, or Cymp as her friends call her, did too when she started up a now Greene County Staple – Coffee Hub. So, when Cymp needed signage on a budget, she turned to Spark Place at the Xenia Community Library.

I had the chance to chat with Cymp about GCPL’s makerspace and why it’s so helpful for her as a small business owner.

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Can you give us a little backstory on the origin of Coffee Hub in Greene County?

I love coffee with a passion, and after moving to Xenia in 2012, I noticed that there was a need for a local, specialty coffee shop in Xenia. I filed the coffee shop away with my many other business ideas, until one day I got a call wanting to know if I was interested in starting a coffee shop in partnership with a community restaurant One Bistro. From there, the idea for Coffee Hub Xenia was born, and after getting professional training, being offered a great space right in the heart of downtown, and connecting with other coffee aficionados in the area, I opened Coffee Hub Xenia in July 2017. God gives us opportunities, and we walk through those doors…the next opportunity being opening a new Coffee Hub location in Centerville.

What are some projects you have worked on at Spark Place?

I’ve made Coffee Hub stickers, banners, buttons, mugs, big vinyl stickers of our logo for shops, trailers, and more!

How have these projects benefited your small business?

Spark Place allows me to create great signage for a super reasonable price, which is so helpful for us as a small business. Plus, it’s just fun to be able to create! Thanks to these projects I have met such wonderful people at the library and Spark place, and it’s always fun to connect with others in the community. I tell people about Spark Place all the time, and I am so happy my tax dollars go to such a wonderful space!

Do you have any future projects you plan to work on at Spark Place? Yes, soon I’ll be making vinyl stickers for our coffee truck we are building out, and a big logo for inside the new Centerville location. It’s great to know that I can continue to utilize Spark Place as my business grows, and I think having a makerspace available to library patrons is a wonderful way to spark creativity for all makers out there!

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Cymp goes on to give Spark Place a glowing review and recommends it to small business owners and individuals alike. Make sure to check out Coffee Hub and be on the lookout for their newest location coming to Centerville!

Make an appointment at Spark Place today to find numerous tools and technology to invent, build, and create your latest project! Visit GreeneLibrary.info/sparkplace/ to learn more or call (937) 736-7092.

Take on your newest creative project at Greene County’s very own makerspace Spark Place! First things first, if you don’t already know, a makerspace is a place where you’ll find tools and technology for community members to share as they invent, build, and create. Spark Place has all the make-whatever-your-heart-desires tools, and the staff are knowledgeable and ready to help while you work on your project.

This Maker’s Week we’re highlighting this amazing space, and a patron who frequents it with her family. Cyrill Bacher and her family love using Spark Place and want you to love it too! I had the chance to discuss Spark Place with Cyrill including some of the projects she’s worked on there.

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What is the best part about having accessibility to a makerspace in Greene County?

What is the best part about Spark Place? Every single thing is the best part. I mean that too. We started going to Spark Place after the pandemic hit and our family decided to home school. So, my kids and I needed a space where we could make art that made us smile. It was really intimidating for us at first because you just feel like you’re going to break everything, but the employees there are so great at teaching you about the machines, the software, how to use each machine that we felt like we could make anything.

What are some projects you and your family have worked on at Spark Place? What excites you guys about the makerspace?

We usually come up with fun ideas like using artwork my kids made or family pictures and transform them into cool projects using the tools at Spark Place like sublimated mugs (heat transferring art onto the outside of a mug), wood, t-shirts, 3D printing, laser engraved leather belts, wallets, glass, wood, pencils. We’ve made stickers as well.  

The most exciting part about Spark Place is hearing my kids say, “Mommy my friend’s birthday is next week. He’s really into Pokémon – I need to make him this!” Since we have started coming there, we do not buy presents; Instead, we make presents. Every holiday, birthday, event involves us thinking of what makes people happy, then coming to Spark Place and figuring out how to make it. Then we get to physically hand them the object that we think brings them joy. It’s so nice to come there and see artists so excited about what they are making because they know it’s going to make people smile so big. It’s the happiest place ever! 

Do you have any future projects you plan to work on at Spark Place?

Future projects are never ending. This past Christmas we made gifts for about 25 of my family members. My face hurt from smiling so hard! I want to sublimate photos on a blanket since I haven’t done that yet.  

What are some encouraging words you would give to a patron that may be on the fence about using Spark Place?

Just set up an appointment. Once you get here there’s going to be so many people that will help you make sure you can succeed at whatever project you’re thinking about making. You’re going to fall in love with this place!

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See the gallery below to view some of the cool projects Cyrill and her family have made at Spark Place. Maybe some of their projects will inspire your next project!

Make an appointment at Spark Place today to find numerous tools and technology to invent, build, and create your latest project! Visit GreeneLibrary.info/sparkplace/ to learn more or call (937) 736-7092