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So on July 4th I did an epic barbecue involving dry rubbed, apple smoked pulled pork served on Hawaiian Malasadas (Portuguese deep fried donuts) with fresh cabbage slaw and mango/jalapeno sauce...but that’s not what this blog entry is about. A byproduct of that effort was me not wanting to waste the half inch of fatback (skin and fat layer) that I cut off of the two pork shoulders. I decide to make Chicharróns, which is small squares of slow baked fatback that shrink into succulent, crispy chunks of fatty goodness that you salt and eat, preferably with a cool beer...but that's not what this

We have your favorite characters returning and three new stars entering the cast.

• Colin Bunting is an engineer and designer. He has built lots of drones, can bend a laser cutter or 3d printer to his will and has entrepreneurship in his blood.
• Catherine Cazes-Wiley is a hat designer and crafter. She is from France but has taken to her new home in the USA by volunteering to teaching marketable crafting skills people with disabilities, exiting homelessness or who are settling refugees.
• Lior Trestman is an advocate for making a better community. If he is not volunteering at the bike coop or

This cornhole board has lights that normally flash white.  When a beanbag goes through the hole, the lights flash red.  I used an infrared transmitter/receiver pair, a strand of NeoPixels, and an Arduino.  Anyone up for a game?

 
Cutting openings on the Shapeoko.

 
Finished board with wooden legs and clear acrylic inlay (cut on the laser cutter).  Neopixel strand is held in place with wire and masking tape.

 
 
A peek at the messy innards.  The IR sensor is mounted on the small posts next to the hole.

As part of the Arts and Ideas Festival we asked a number our members to demonstrate the work they are doing on projects. Here are three of those makers summarizing their projects in under a minute and a half. 

Elisa Shares Her Laser Cutter Work

Elisa talks about her work to use the laser to cut intricate paper designs and create a fold-able wood book cover.

Jacob Talks about Hand Tool Use in Building a Bench

Woodworker Jacob describes the tools he is using to build a bench for MakeHaven.

Jeremy Talks about the Shapeoko CNC Mill

MakeHaven member Jeremy explains what the Shapeoko CNC

So I finished my first bowl. In truth the past few months have been mostly waiting for the wood to dry and stabilize. One has to do that by slowly opening a bigger and bigger aperture in the plastic bag the bowl is stored in. At first it literally sweats and then slows down over time. Near the end of drying I had to mitigate some splitting with butterfly keys (a.k.a. bow ties or dutchmen) and then do some filling with cyanoacrylate glue (crazy glue or zap-a-gap) mixed with sawdust. I've read that there's a good 25% chance that a bowl will split because wood is unpredictable and $#!+ happens

MakeHaven has been recognized as the first FabLab in Connecticut. This designation will help to propel MakeHaven as a technical prototyping platform for innovation, invention and entrepreneurship. Being recognized as a FabLab means connecting to a global community of fabricators, artists, scientists, engineers, educators, students, amateurs, professionals, of all ages located in more than 78 countries. This community is simultaneously a distributed technical education network, and a distributed research laboratory working to digitize fabrication, inventing the next generation of manufacturing

You can use Electroluminescent (EL) wire to make a faux-neon sign for your wall or window. 

Materials used:

• Sculpture wire, available in the jewelry section of most craft stores.  I used 16-gauge, but 18 and 20 will also work.  http://www.amazon.com/Craft-Wire-Gauge-Gold-feet/dp/B0018NB9Q2/ref=sr_1…
• EL wire: https://www.adafruit.com/products/403
• EL inverter: https://www.adafruit.com/products/564
• Fishing line (10 lb test)

Bend the sculpture wire into the desired shape.  I would recommend not adding too many sharp angles

MakeHaven has sensors and Arduinos with them you can take senor data (sound, light, vibration, radio, etc) and turn it into light. How about a skate board that lights brighter the faster you go, or earrings that light up when you shake your head, or a scarf that tells you the temperature.

We bought a bunch of these led lights (neo pixils) for the make-a-thon, register now and start inventing!

Ears

Source: https://learn.adafruit.com/gemma-hoop-earrings

Scarf

Source: https://blog.adafruit.com/2016/01/20/thermometer-scarf-using-flora-wearablewednesday/

Skateboard

Source: https://learn

We have a Shapeoko CNC will which can many designs into wood and other materials. A great place to start is thinking about makeing a name plaque or even inlaying a design in wood.

The sky is the limit with what you can design.

The milling software pictured is called Easel. It is easy to use and avalible online for for free.

Here is a description of how you can us the CNC to make inlays

Web Resources

http://www.shapeoko.com/projects/project.php?id=155

http://designandmake.com/family-coat-of-arms-achievement-pack-no1/

http://www.marvinstuart.com/cnc-project-3/

Software:

MakeHaven has three lasercutters and a 3d scanner. You can create a model or scan an object which you slice in Autodesk’s 123D Make software. This generates a pattern you can use to make fantastic cardboard sculptures.

You can even capture the 3d model by doing a 3d scan. 

Resources:

https://www.epiloglaser.com/resources/sample-club/trex-head-3d-model.htm

http://lib.calpoly.edu/outloud/2014/01/on-the-cutting-edge-an-exhibit-of-landscape-architecture-laser-cut-projects/

http://www.makehaven.org/project/3d-scan-and-print-yourself

Software:

http://www.123dapp.com/make

Note changes since