Seattle Makers is a member-based makerspace located in the Interbay neighborhood of Seattle. We are a group of makers creating a community and a space that provides all the knowledge and tools to make your ideas a reality. Whether you’re a long-time maker, in a specialized field looking to expand, or just curious, you are welcome to join us!  Learn more about memberships here.  Learn more about volunteering here.

Learn more about our mission, values, team, and how we got started.

 

To redeem the free class coupon that you receive with your recurring membership, simply sign into your account and add the class or machine time to your cart from the Store. Go to checkout and click the “Your Credits and Coupons” dropdown. From the options that appear, select Coupon to redeem a free class, or Credit to redeem machine time.

We have an awesome new location in Interbay! Our address is 3012 16th Ave W. For directions to our space, go here.

 

Our current hours are here.

As we get more volunteers to help staff the space, we’ll be able to open for longer hours. If you’re interested in volunteering as a “maketeer,”  let us know. Seattle Makers’ hours will evolve as we see when members are most excited to hang out.

 

Yes, the upstairs is accessible by the member entrance on the north side of the building in the parking lot, and the downstairs is accessible by the front door on the west side of the building.

 

Per our favorite online encyclopedia, a makerspace is “a community-operated […] work space where people with common interests, often in computers, machining, technology, science, digital art or electronic art, can meet, socialize and collaborate.” We like to think of ourselves as a community garage – a place where folks with a variety of skill levels and ideas can come use tools and equipment to make all the things.

 

Seattle Makers is membership-based, like a gym.  Members have full access to the space during open hours. They can come and go as they please, work on their own projects, chat with other makers in the space about their projects, and get first crack at new tools and opportunities. So much of innovation happens when folks are hanging out, chatting about ideas, and being a member at Seattle Makers means you’ll be around other clever, curious, and innovative folks that will stimulate your imagination and get those creative juices flowing.

 

Seattle Makers has a variety of ways to get involved, whether you’re brand new to the world of making or an old (or young) pro. If you want to come make something at the space, you can: become a member, volunteer, take a class, or do a team building event.  If you’re interested in teaching, let us know what kind of class you’re interested in leading. We also host a variety of meetups at the makerspace, which are free ways for folks to come check out our space and hang out with other makers. Want to come take a look and ask some questions? Our twice-weekly tours are free and open to the public.

 

Seattle Makers was founded in order to obliterate barriers to creativity and innovation. To do that, we are very intentional about the environment that we’re building and fostering at the makerspace. Our values are front and center in how we operate, and we ask members to support these as well:

• Love & connection
• Curiosity & exploration
• Learning by doing
• Play
• Listening
• Effectiveness & reliability
• Equity & contribution
• Health & harmony

 

We are insured for kids 8 and over. Adult supervision is required under age 16.

 

A recent survey shows that we all love dogs, and most of us are ok having them in the space.  That said, it’s important to us to maintain a safe space for those who may be allergic to dogs, or are not comfortable around them.  Our primary responsibility is to serve makers, not their animals.

We accept dogs on a case-by-case and day-by-day basis, with the onus on the owner to ensure there is no impact on others in the community.  If you bring your dog to the space, we ask that that you agree to the following:

• It is your (the dog owner’s) responsibility to ensure any dogs in the space do not impact other members
• Dogs must be always on a leash with someone responsible nearby
• Dogs are never allowed in the back room (woodshop)
• For each visit, you (the owner) must ensure the people in the space are okay with dogs BEFORE bringing them inside.

Dog owners accepts that dogs may be asked to leave at any time if:

• We have a member who is uncomfortable with dogs, for any reason (they don’t need to explain).
• Barking and whining
• Destruction of projects or property
• Attempts at fornication with people or objects

 

We recommend pants and close-toed shoes to safely access all areas of the shop. If you are working in the woodshop or with sharp and/or powered tools, this is a requirement.

 

We have several monthly and yearly membership options, and we offer discounts for students, youth, and all yearly membership purchases. See the pricing table here. All monthly memberships are automatically recurring.

 

No, we’re so bursting with ideas that we can’t fit in a nutshell.  However, we can give you a normal-sized run-down:

• Our Maker Membership is the most popular, and costs $125/month. You’ll get $120 toward machine time (3D Printing, Laser Cutting, Wood CNC Milling, Metal CNC Milling) each month.  To learn how to redeem your machine time credit, go here.
• Our Builder Membership offers unlimited machine time at $245 per month.  To learn how to redeem your machine time credit, go here.

For a full breakdown of the different membership options and their costs, go here.

 

Are you trying to set up your account and getting an error that you already have an account with that email?  This is because if you’ve ever submitted a form or purchased something (even as a guest), you are entered in our system.  You just need to create a password to have access to your account.  This process is identical to resetting your password, so keep reading!

Have you forgotten your password and need to reset it?  To reset your password, simply select “Account” from the menu.  Under the fields for your username and password, select the “lost password” link.  On the next screen, enter the email associated with your account and select “send.”  (If you don’t know the email address you used to set up your account, call or email us.)  Check your email account that you entered for a message from Seattle Makers.  Follow the instructions to reset your password.

Click on the thumbnails below to see the process.

 

If the card you use for your membership has expired or has insufficient funds, our system will notify you to update your card information.  The system will try once a day for three days to charge your card; if you haven’t updated your card by then, you’ll see that your membership status is “suspended” rather than “active”.  Instructions on how to update your card and reinstate your membership is below.  After you update your card information, our system will process your card again (for recurring payments like memberships, this usually happens around midnight-2am) and your membership will re-activate.

Click on the thumbnails below to see the process.

 

You can now change your membership in your profile.  In your profile, click on “Payments” in the top right and select your membership (e.g. Tinkerer or Maker Membership).

Click the “Change Plan” button further down the page, and select your plan.  You can also choose whether to make the change immediately or at your next payment cycle.

 

Yes. Pay for the time and materials you know you’ll use. If you go over you can purchase more. If you use less time than expected, email members@seattlemakers.com and we will send you credit for the unused time. Members must pay for all time and materials before leaving the space that day.

 

They are not included in your membership, but we’d love to welcome them to the community. Invite them to a tour, class, certification, or meetup!  You can invite them as a visitor (no tool use) or purchase a one-day guest pass on our membership page for $20.  We also have discounted memberships for family/household members.  Inquire for details in person or at contact@seattlemakers.org.

 

Yes! You can bring unlimited visitors with you to the space. They may not use any equipment that requires certification, but can use the wifi and common areas.

If they are using any tools, you must purchase a one-time Guest Pass for $20 using your account.  This will grant them the same access as your membership for the day.  You are responsible for them following all community rules and all safety/training requirements for tool or studio use apply.

 

All of our monthly memberships are automatically recurring. To cancel, simply sign into your account, and go to your profile. In the upper right, select the “payment” icon, and then select your membership payment plan. In the window that pops up, scroll down to the “Plan Details” section and un-check the box that says “Auto Renew”. That’s all there is to it!  Even after un-checking “auto-renew”, your plan will remain active until your renewal date at which point it will not renew.

IMPORTANT NOTE: After cancelling, you will receive ONE more email regarding a failed attempt to charge your card, and that it will try three more times.  You can disregard this message.  The system has no ability to charge your card after “autopay” is disconnected.  We cannot change the text of this automated message, and apologize for any confusion.

Click on the thumbnails below to see the process.

 

Our calendar of courses and events can be found here. We offer weekly or twice-monthly certifications for 3D printers, laser cutters, and the CNC mill. We offer classes for fun introductory projects on each of these machines as well. We also have a variety of meetups around art, Raspberry Pi, cosplay, and more. Are you interested in learning something, but don’t see it on our calendar? Let us know!

 

Members of Seattle Makers get a discount on courses and certifications. Certifications and classes range in cost depending on what you’re learning. Select an event from the calendar to get pricing for the courses you’re interested in.

 

Absolutely! All are welcome to come to any classes, meetups, events, or certifications.  Non-members pay our normal rates, while members get a discount on classes and certifications. Free events are free for all. Get more information on our events here.

 

Easy! We are all over social media. Share our Facebook posts, follow us on Instagram, retweet us on Twitter, and invite folks to our meetups​. And, of course, you can invite your friends to our free, twice-weekly tours.

 

The short answer is:  Yes! Contact us regarding the item in question and for tools we need in the shop, or those that we can resell, we can organize an exchange for credit or services at the makerspace. Tools that are not needed in the shop will be donated to Rebuilding Together Seattle (a non-profit in our building). We do not currently offer a tax exemption for donations.

 

We’re always down for new tools in the makerspace! We do need to let our insurance know about it, to see if we can use it in the space. And if it’s a flamethrower, it turns out the answer is no :/

 

We are not set up to lend tools in terms of having a system, adequate staff, and the insurance to cover that. For now, tools must stay at the makerspace (inside, on our balcony, and in our parking lot). You can check out tool libraries in your area, including the Phinney Ridge Neighborhood Association (Wallingford), Capitol Hill Tool Library, Ballard Tool Library, and West Seattle Tool Library.

 

We are insured for the specific tools that we have submitted, and created training protocols for. We may be able to make an exception, but please check with us before bringing in your own tools.

If you are willing to share your tools with the community, we will maintain them and assume 100% responsibility for breakage or loss. Depending on the tool, its usage, and its normal lifetime, we’ll write an agreement that works for both of us. Contact us for more information on community tools, and thanks for sharing!

 

We are always taking requests and suggestions. Let us know what tools or equipment you’d like to see at the makerspace.

 

Ask us! We accept fabrication requests as time, talent, and resources allow.

 

We can do anything together. We’re always happy to provide you and your team with guided tool access and one-on-one coaching from seasoned professionals. We will set you up with someone to help with your project based on availability.

Please email any fabrication, design, and consulting requests to fab@seattlemakers.org, including any relevant files.

 

Read all about our consultation time cancellation policy here.