3rd Annual NoVa Mini Maker Faire on March 13, 2016 - Makers, Activities and Sponsors Announced

(Reston, Virginia, February 17, 2016) – The NoVa Maker Faire is gearing up for its third annual family-friendly event that will bring more than 100 makers to a fun-filled day celebrating the diversity of makers across the region. The Faire will take place on March 13, 2016 from 11am to 5 pm at Langston Hughes Middle School and South Lakes High School in Reston, Virginia.

Today, the final plans for the Faire are announced including: participating Makers, activities, and sponsors. Makers will share their knowledge through hands-on projects for adults and children on topics ranging from blacksmithing and primitive skills to 3D printing, drones and robots to creative reuse of recycled materials to creative art-making. Makers will be grouped in neighborhoods by their topic. Neighborhoods include: Young Makers, Drone Zone, Robotics, 3D Printing, Science Lab, Fiber Alley, Sustainability Village, and more.

Mini doesn’t mean just for kids; there’s something for everyone at the Faire. Evolution Glass of Charlottesville creates beautiful and durable glass surfaces using 100% bottle glass as the only ingredient. Ian Larson, a high school student, will present an Aluminum Smelter that he made at home. Sally Byers of Threadwitch Light and Fabric will exhibit her “Soft Circuit Petting Zoo”, wearable electronics using soft circuits, using programmable LEDs and various sensors. Sally won an Editor’s Choice Award at the 2015 World Maker Faire in New York. The Federation of Galaxy Explorers Rovers and ROVs provides hands-on interactive displays of robotic kits for ground and underwater exploration. Bruce Lawton will present his Electric BMW Z3 Roadster which he converted from a gas engine to electric.

Makers returning from last year include: Children’s Science Center, Craig Trader’s Chaos Machine (large marble machine), Nova Labs Learn to Solder, Blacksmithing demonstration, and DC Area Drone User Group.

Area schools will present their programs including Camelot Elementary School makerspace, South Lakes High School STEAM TEAM and STEM Club, Marshall High School STEM Engineering class submersible vehicles, George Mason University’s Mason Innovation Exchange and Lofaro Labs Robotics, and Virginia Tech MakerLab.

Public libraries are becoming the home for makerspaces in our community. Arlington Library, Fairfax County Library, and Loudoun County Library will exhibit maker programs happening in their libraries.

A complete list of makers can be found on our website

There will also be activities for Faire-goers to try including a Take Apart Zone and a working Trebuchet. In the Take Apart Zone you can disassemble machines to explore how things work. The trebuchet, also built by student Ian Larson, launches tennis balls.

Food will be available for sale on site by area food trucks including: Doug the Food Dude, Hardy’s BBQ, Sweetz Cheesecake, Tasty Kabob, To Meat or Not To Meat, and Tortuga Truck.

A mobile website will provide a map, schedule, listing of makers, speaker schedule and other information.

Advance tickets are available online now. Tickets are $15 for adults and $5 for children through March 12, 2016. New this year is a family ticket $40, which is good for a family of 5 and is available only in advance. Tickets at the door are $20 for adults and $8 for children. Volunteer opportunities are still available which include a free admission ticket. Registration is available through our website.

NoVa Mini Maker Faire is independently organized by Nova Labs and is operated under license from Maker Media, Inc.

Sponsors for the 2016 Faire include: Google, The Innovation Fund of the Community Foundation for Northern Virginia, Reston Community Center, The Iron Yard and Reston Association. Our community partners include Fairfax County Public Schools and Fairfax Connector. Community sponsors include: Northern Virginia Technology Council (NVTC), Amazing Race Timing, Activity Rocket, and Myers Public Relations LLC.

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