by Genevieve Callaghan
Endeavouring to share a more meaningful gift with your loved ones this Christmas? The gift of knowledge – sharing a new skill, or craft is an enduring sentiment.
Learning and practising new skills with your hands is wonderfully mindful. Taking a class at FAB9 is a journey through every step of making a beautiful piece,and anyone can come along to experience the fun of working in the FAB9 makerspace.
A lot of class participants say they find the sessions very relaxing, too.
“The best part was the state of mindfulness,” says Kylie, a local maker who has come along to four of FAB9’s recent workshops, ‘Intro to Upholstery’, ‘Handmade’, ‘Make a Mini Synthesizer’ and ‘Make a laptop Cajon’.
But there’s also a sense of empowerment involved. In an age where so much of what we use has been made somewhere else by someone – or something – else, crafting an object by hand can be a profound act of self-empowerment.
Before attempting FAB9’s ‘Intro to Upholstery’ class, Kylie had never tried anything like it before.
“I had no idea what was involved, and had no experience in textiles. So I walked away with not only a product, but new skills and knowledge.”
And because inclusivity is a value at the core of FAB9, the team there actively invite all kinds of people of all skill levels, to come along and give something new a try.
“We’re really keen to challenge people to learn a new skill, so it’s important to us that our technicians and class facilitators aren’t just extremely experienced, but also great communicators,” says Michelle Thomas, FAB9’s Operations Manager.
Classes and workshops also offer an opportunity for newfound social engagement.
“The most important thing is that most of us want to belong to something bigger than ourselves, and share it with others,” says FAB9 CEO, Hans Chang.
“Spaces that strengthen in-person communities will become more popular in the coming years,” says Hans. “FAB9 celebrates creation by being a place where busy professionals can come together, meet new people, and discuss and debate new ideas and trends.”
Gift cards for classes, workshops and trial memberships to the makerspace available at FAB9, 90 Maribyrnong Street, Footscray (Entrance via Parker Street).
