Throw out some Bits-o-wood, along with wood glue, and let your makers make! Our HS students had a great time creating and they would bring their creations to us very enthusiastically and ask us to hold them behind the counter until they were dry. Surprising and awesome!

This can be used to cut letters and shapes out of cardstock, vinyl, fabric, and iron-on materials.

Vendor: Amazon, Michaels

Everyone loves these! Therapy for adults and students alike!

My former Home Economics teacher gave me 5 machines when her class was changed to Culinary Arts. I quilt, so I know how to use them. There is bound to be someone on your campus who knows how to operate one if you can buy or get one donated. We make simple projects like bookmarks and potholders, but I would love to do more with these! Sewing on felt is probably easiest (no frayed edges or interfacing needed). All of our fabric so far has been donated.

Bookmark Project

Vendor: Joann's, Amazon

We use our stamps for bookmarks and cardmaking. I used to collect them myself, so I donated most of my stuff to the library. Students really love using the embossing ink, powder, and heat tool.

Vendor: Michaels, Hobby Lobby

These are available as take-home kits that can be checked out, and I occasionally offer lunchtime tutorials on how to do these. For cross stitch, I have both Aida fabric (traditional) and perforated paper (easier for beginners). Any pixelated picture can be turned into a cross stitch pattern.

Vendor: craft stores, Amazon, Blick Art

Vendors: Dick Blick, Demco, Barnes & Noble, Craft Stores

Great for all kinds of projects! We've made duct tape flower pens, decorated notebooks with washi tape, and made duct tape wallets.

Vendor: Demco, Target, Home Depot, Blick Art

Make a valentine button for your love, make kindness buttons and give them away, have a button design contest. Vendor: Blick Art Materials

Find Button Maker Design Challenges here: http://www.teenlibrariantoolbox.com/2016/06/makerspace-button-maker-challenges/

This is a community project, but I do require students to get "certified" before using. This is more to keep them from messing up other students' hard work. Melissa and Doug makes this model, which is great for beginners. I get yarn on sale at craft stores, and when the project is finished, I let the students who worked on it put their names in a drawing to win it.

Vendor: Amazon, Michaels (online)

Feathers, glue, glue sticks, colored, pencils, markers, construction paper and so on.

Vendors: Oriental Trading, craft stores, Dick Blick, Office Depot, donations from parents, families, or staff

I knit (simple projects only), but I don't crochet. Fortunately, my school's math coach can crochet anything, so we are available if students are struggling. We check these out as take-home maker kits, and have tutorial videos posted on our LMS.

Vendor: Michaels, Hobby Lobby, Blick Art

These are super fun for design challenges and flying contests!

Balsa wood & wood glue

Vendor: NASCO

I bought 2 sizes of flexible tubing at Home Depot (one for the beads, and a small piece of the other to hold the ends together), and used seed beads that had been donated to make bracelets like these. I've seen them made with glitter and different types of beads, too. This is just one way to use beads in a makerspace--Pinterest has a lot more ideas.

Tutorial

We make slime several times a year (themed, of course!). Sometimes we'll make Borax slime, or contact solution slime. We've made clear and colored slime and even added scents. You can buy the clear or white glue in the gallon size.

Vendor: Target, Michaels, S&S Worldwide

Slime recipes

These are so much fun and so versatile! You need the beads, ironing sheets (that come with them), and iron and ironing board, plus the pegboards you build on. I recently got a set of large pegboards on Amazon that can be joined together to make really large images--24" x 24". Any pixeled image can become a pattern, but you will find tons if you Google them. We do backpack tags, keychains, etc., and I sometimes do themes--NFL helmets, Harry Potter, Minecraft, and more!

Vendor: Michaels, Amazon, Demco

I got rocks at a landscaping center--you can buy them by the pound if you don't have a free source. I spray painted them a variety of colors, then had Sharpie paint markers for them to write on and decorate them. We place our rocks around the school, but you could certainly make this a community project.

Kindness Rocks Project

I found the EZ Jig to make this easier, but you can anchor the cord with tape and it's still pretty easy.

EZ Jig Bracelet Maker

How to Make a Survival Bracelet by REI

Vendor: S & S Worldwide, Oriental Trading

This is a collaborative craft activity. Students do need minimal training to use the pen, and I require them to be "certified" to participate. There are new kits coming out all the time, everything from Van Gogh to emojis. I've found mini sticker kits on Amazon that we started using this year--they are very do-able in a shorter amount of time.

The example used is a cat, but you could create just about anything with wire and needle nose pliers.

doitandhow.com/2018/03/18/wire-cat-bookmark/

Get the flat glass beads at the dollar store--I stock up everytime I see them. This uses a printout of the galaxies, mod podge, a magnet, and not much more.

popcraftart.com/2015/08/03/mini-galaxy-magnets-diy/