Our Night Out at Metrix Create:Space

Metrix Create: Space is a very low key basement shop in Capital Hill. So much so that Kate and I, who drove, passed the shop at least 2 times without realizing it. Adjacent to the Seattle Museum of Mystery you are greeted by a giant hairy, yet welcoming, Sasquatch statue reminiscent of the movie Harry and the Hendersons. I have to admit that it wasn't like we were walking into the Cheers bar in terms of friendliness but boy were we greeted with smiles. Everyone was quite welcoming as we introduced ourselves. We wanted to learn and they were willing to do whatever possible to help and direct us to help in our learning process. We first met Matt, the owner, and told him Beth says, "Hi". Giggle. Like Alexis, I was quite intimidated by the thought of going to Metrix Create:Space. I pictured a dark dank nerd-filled space with the air of intellect and closure. Instead of the cold shoulder, they gave us a tour of the shop and we were shown a room that housed the 2 in-house Makerbots, the different materials used, and a laser cutter (not part of the Makerbot process, but cool nonetheless.) We were then introduced to Matthew, who is a Systems Administrator at Google during the day and a Makerbot enthusiast by night. He knew the ins and outs of the Makerbot and created a copy of the Makerbot from scratch, using much of the same materials. Unfortunately, the cost of building one from scratch was equal to buying a kit. Throughout the night I felt like Matthew was our guide into this Makerbot world. He introduced us to so many new facets of "Makerbotting". It was a quick, private, interactive how-to-Makerbot session. I really appreciated the troubleshooting tips, such as using painter's tape to avoid warping the platform. The patrons were not hermit intellectuals lacking social skills at all, they were very cool and welcoming. Smiles all around and asked us back. During our evening of learning, a man brought his son to see the Makerbot in action. The awe in the boys face was amazing. Who would have thunk it, Metrix Create: Space is also family friendly! As a matter of fact Matt, the owner, mentioned his son, Mason, age 4, frequents the shop on Tuesday nights. As I recalled the evening to my husband, he quickly made plans to hire a babysitter for our younger son so that we could bring our 5 year old. I really enjoyed my time there and learned so much, being able to touch and smell the Makerbot and its creation was a great bonus.