Fools With Tools Treasure Trade 2021

Each year a worldwide group of makers do a holiday gift exchange. We draw a name and make something for them in the October-November time frame. This year, I drew the incomparable Keith Decent, the host of the “From the Ground Up” podcast and craftsman for many, many cool things.

Interested in Automata, a form of kinetic sculpture, I built him this statuesque effigy of him working on his passions: custom rug tufting and burritos.

More on Instagram

The Maker Bear

In 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, I answered a maker challenge. This was part of my audition for the television show, Making It Season 3, on NBC. The challenge: “Create Your Inner Beast.” This is the video I created, with some rough edits to remove some dialogue that may remain part of my NDA.

My inner beast is the Ursa Californicas Fabricas, or the Maker Bear. A bear, because I’m a proud papa bear, I like to hibernate whenever possible, and I’ve seen my back in the mirror… I’m a rather furry dude!

If you are a California Maker and want to do a sticker swap. DM me on Instagram and I’ll get one in the mail to you soon!

The Maker Bear on YouTube

This Little Free Library Design

In response to the Black Lives Matter movement, some friends of mine founded the group Rise Up Against Racism here in the San Francisco. Their flagship project has been to build Little Free Antiracist Libraries, fill them with a curated set of books for children and adults, and to install and maintain them with the help of stewards throughout the region.

The RUAR leadership approached me about designing and building their first batch of libraries. We prioritized simplicity, paintability and durability as they commissioned local artists to decorate each one with a unique mural. The libraries were constructed with MDO plywood, the same indestructible material that CalTrans uses to make highway road signs. As of this writing, we’ve installed 4 libraries and counting. Examples below:

Bake to the Future

For the Winter Holidays in 2019: My engineering department at work had a recipe contest. I took first place for both recipe and presentation! Here’s my submission: “Bake to the Future!”