Makerplace Celebrates First Anniversary

There’s only one place in Arlington Heights where you can custom engrave a glass or cutting board, embroider fabric with a monogram, create custom T-shirts or tote bags, use a 3D printer and so much more - all in one building. In 2022, the Arlington Heights community discovered the Makerplace, took classes, learned how to use equipment and got creative making their first DIY projects. The Makerplace celebrated its First Anniversary in September. In 2022, a total of 220 classes were offered and more than 13,500 people visited the Makerplace. There were 960 items 3D printed, with more than 100 of those being the library’s new assistive tools. About five miles of embroidery stitches were sewn, with almost 1.8 million stitches made on the embroidery machine.

Seven Tools to Help Make Everyday Tasks Easier

Some day-to-day tasks like carrying grocery bags, holding a key to open a door and twisting off small lids or bottle caps just got a whole lot easier thanks to the library’s Assistive Tools Kit, a collection of seven small devices created on the library’s 3D printers. The tools include a bottle opener, key turner, pen ball, palm pen, tube opener, signature guard and bag carrier. The tools have proved incredibly popular - 130 items have been ordered and 3D printed along with the circulating 7-item kits from the Library of Things, which was checked out 23 times since debuting in October.