Welcome to NPL’s Maker Lab!

Through a LSTA grant received from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, administered by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners NPL was able to create a Maker Lab area in the program room that is open to the public to explore independently. Not comfortable coming in or need something to do at home? Check out one of our Maker Packs through the Stuffbrary. 

Please read the Maker Lab Policy for all information about using the Makerspace. Children under 16 must have a waiver signed by a parent/guardian. Makers under the age of 12 must be accompanied by their parent or guardian. Your waiver will be good for 30 days. See a staff member at the circulation or information desks before entering the Maker Lab. 

Appointments will be necessary if you would like anything printed on the 3D printer. Check out the Makerlab Thingiverse for print ideas. Make an appointment in person or by emailing Courtney. Projects are limited to a maximum of 5 hours print time and your project/file type will need to be approved by library staff. Please allow for several days for prints to be completed.

Maker Lab Hours

Temporarily closed for updates

*Please note that if there is a library program scheduled, the Maker Lab will be closed for that time period*

Waiver

Each signed waiver is good for the current calendar year, come in as often as you would like! Children under 16 must have a waiver signed by a parent/guardian. Makers under the age of 12 must be accompanied by their parent or guardian.

Available in the Maker Lab Room

  • 3D printer (Appointments will be necessary if you would like anything printed on the 3D printer. Make an appointment in person or by emailing Courtney. Projects are limited to a maximum of 5 hours print time and your project/file type will need to be approved by library staff. Check out the Makerlab Thingiverse for print ideas. Please allow for several days for prints to be completed.)
  • 3Doodler pen
  • Artie 3000 (2)
  • Button Maker and supplies
  • Canakit Raspberry Pi
  • Craft supplies:
  • Craft sticks, duct tape, glitter, glue, googly eyes, markers, paint, paint brushes, paper pads, pipe cleaners, ribbons, sandpaper, styrofoam, toothpicks, wax paper, wooden dowels, x-acto knife, yarn
  • Digital Camera
  • Embroidery materials
  • Goobi construction set (180 pieces)
  • Green Screen
  • iPad
  • Jewelry making tools and materials
  • Keva blocks
  • K’Nex
  • Leather Tool Kit
  • LEGOs and LEGO boards (6)
  • Light Tracer light box
  • littleBits STEAM student set
  • Lux Blox STEAM Basic Kit
  • Magnifying Glass
  • Makey Makey Invention Kit
  • Marble Race Deluxe
  • Marbling Paint Kit
  • Modular Robotics Cubelets Robot Blocks
  • Nano Bots Robotics Kit with Tools
  • Play Doh
  • Roylco Straws and Connectors
  • Safety Goggles
  • Scrapbooking supplies (limited amount)
  • Screen Printing Press
  • Sewing Machines (2) and miscellaneous sewing supplies
  • Snapino Snap circuits (2)
  • SPRK+ robotic ball
  • Squishy Circuits Deluxe
  • Swing Bridge Kit
  • Tool Kits (2)

Maker Lab Books Available for checkout at NPL (look for the maker lab sticker on the spine!):

  • Art Lab for Kids by Susan Schwake – a refreshing source of wonderful ideas for creating fine art with children. This step-by-step book offers 52 fun and creative art projects set into weekly lessons, beginning with drawing, moving through painting and printmaking, and then building to paper collage and mixed media. Each lesson features and relates to the work and style of a contemporary artist and their unique style. The labs can be used as singular projects or to build up to a year of hands-on fine art experiences. Grouped by medium, the labs are set up loosely to build skills upon the previous ones; however, you can begin anywhere.

 

  • The LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Idea Book: 181 Simple Machines and Clever Contraptions by Yoshihito Isogawa – The LEGO® MINDSTORMS® EV3 Idea Book explores dozens of creative ways to build amazing mechanisms with the LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 set. Each model includes a list of the required parts, minimal text, and colorful photographs from multiple angles so you can re-create it without the need for step-by-step instructions. You’ll learn to build cars with real suspension, steerable crawlers, ball-shooters, grasping robotic arms, and other creative marvels. Each model demonstrates simple mechanical principles that you can use as building blocks for your own creations.

 

  • 50 Nifty Thrifty Upcycled Fashions: Sew Something from Nothing by Cynthia Anderson – Create a fun, stylish new wardrobe from tired old pieces and found treasures! Cynthia shows you step-by-step how to take what you have on hand and turn it into unique, eco-friendly fashion. Only basic machine- and hand-sewing skills required. Tips for sourcing materials and adding details and embellishments. Colorful ideas for creating one-of-a-kind fashions on a budget.

 

  • The Big Book of Makerspace Projects: Inspiring Makers to Experiment, Create and Learn by Colleen Graves – This easy-to-follow guide features dozens of DIY, low-cost projects that will arm you with the skills necessary to dream up and build your own creations. The Big Book of Makerspace Projects: Inspiring Makers to Experiment, Create, and Learn offers practical tips for beginners and open-ended challenges for advanced makers. Each project features non-technical, step-by-step instructions with photos and illustrations to ensure success and expand your imagination. You will learn recyclables hacks, smartphone tweaks, paper circuits, e-textiles, musical instruments, coding and programming, 3-D printing, and much, much more!

 

  • 3D Printing and Maker Lab for Kids: Create Amazing Projects with CAD Design and STEAM Ideas by Eldrid Sequeira – Create 25 amazing projects with 3D printing! With 3D Printing and Maker Lab for Kids, you can explore the creative potential behind this game-changing technology. Design your projects using free browser-based versions of CAD software Tinkercad and SketchUp. Follow the simple steps to create a variety of different projects. Learn about the fascinating science behind your creations. Get guidance on organizing team activities and contests.

 

  • Make: Tools – How They Work and How to Use Them by Charles Platt – Whether you’re interested in becoming a handyman or developing artisanal woodworking skills, the place to begin is by learning the fundamentals of using basic workshop tools correctly. The place to find out how is right here. Make: Tools is shop class in a book.

 

  • Practical Electronics for Inventors by Paul Scherz – Advance your electronics knowledge and gain the skills necessary to develop and construct your own functioning gadgets. Written by a pair of experienced engineers and dedicated hobbyists, Practical Electronics for Inventors, Fourth Edition, lays out the essentials and provides step by step instructions, schematics, and illustrations. Discover how to select the right components, design and build circuits, use microcontrollers and ICs, work with the latest software tools, and test and tweak your creations. This easy to follow book features new instruction on programmable logic, semiconductors, operational amplifiers, voltage regulators, power supplies, digital electronics, and more.

 

  • Make: Start Making! A Guide to Engaging Young People in Maker Activities by Danielle Martin – With this guide, you will discover how to plan and coordinate projects. Each session includes a list of the supplies you’ll need, step-by-step instructions for completing the projects, and prompts for stimulating discussion, curiosity, and confidence. These fun do-it-yourself (and do-it-together) projects teach fundamental STEAM concepts — science, technology, engineering, art, and math — while introducing young people to the basics of circuitry, design, coding, crafting, and construction.

 

  • STEAM Lab for Kids: 52 Creative Hands-On Projects for Exploring Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math by Liz Lee Heinecke – While many aspiring artists don’t necessarily identify with STEM subjects, and many young inventors don’t see the need for art, one is essential to the other. Revealing this connection and encouraging kids to explore it fills hungry minds with tools essential to problem solving and creative thinking. Each of the projects in this book is designed to demonstrate that the deeper you look into art, the more engineering and math you’ll find. “The STEAM Behind the Fun” sections throughout explain the science behind the art.

 

  • Tech Lab: Awesome Builds for Smart Makers by Jack Challoner – Keep your siblings out of your room with a brilliant bedroom alarm, power a propellor motorboat, make a thermoelectric phone charger, build a set of speakers, and construct a crane by following step-by-step instructions and using affordable equipment. Tech Lab will engage budding scientists and engineers as they experiment, invent, trial, and test technology, electronics, and mechanics at home. Simple steps with clear photographs take readers through the stages of each low-cost project, with fact-filled panels to explain the science behind each one, and to fascinate them with real-world examples.

 

  • NPR’s Podcast Start Up Guide: Create, Launch, and Grow a Podcast on Any Budget by Glen Weldon – From NPR comes the definitive guide to podcasting—featuring step-by-step advice on how to find a unique topic, tell the best stories, and engage the most listeners, as well as the secrets that will take your pod to the next level.

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