Dabble Maker Space offers ‘gym membership for creative people’

If you have a passion for creating crafts or want to learn, a new business has opened in Chatham that is “like a gym membership for creative people.”

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Rachel Jacobson is owner of Dabble Maker Space Inc., which she co-founded with Stacey McKellar, located at 405 Riverview Dr., unit 102.

“We found that there’s a lot of people. . . who have a tendency to go all-in on an activity and spend way too much and then never use it again,” Jacobson said, when asked about the gym membership concept.

The business not only provides a space to make creations, but access to the necessary tools, including a Cricut Maker, 3-D printer and laser cutter, along with spinning wheels and sewing machines.

McKellar said serious crafters have a Cricut Maker, but as far as craft tools go it is a more expensive one.

“If you’ve heard about a Cricut and you’re curious, we’re going to have a beginner’s 101 cricket (class) . . . so people can try it,” she added.

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There is also a variety of uses for the 3-D printer.

“For people who do D and D (Dungeons and Dragons) they could create their own character, 3-D print it and then they could come and paint their character here,” McKellar said.

The printer also be used to print replacement parts for craft tools as well as adaptive devices to help people with disabilities hold a paint brush or support their arm while drawing, Jacobson said.

Dabble Maker Space offers two levels of membership. The first tier is for people who have their own tools, but need space to create, which costs $30 a month.

For $50 a month, members have access to the space as well as the tools. However, there is an extra charge for technology such as the 3-D printer and laser cutter.

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There will also be workshops taught by makers, which will be open to everyone, Jacobson said. There has been interest shown by teachers and other organizations to have Dabble Maker Space go into a classroom or club to do a workshop.

Jacobson has noticed a trend among the younger generation “to go back to hands-on activities, less Internet. I think there’s been a post-pandemic drive to kind of come together again to connect.”

McKellar added, “This up-rise in crafting also has a business element.”

With inflation and higher interest rates making budgets tight, some people are looking to use their crafting skills for profit, she said.

“I have definitely seen an uptick in people popping up with new businesses,” said McKellar, who is a resident maker at Dabble Maker Space with her business Cutie Patootie Studios.

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“So, that is another sector we want to help,” she said, adding entrepreneurs can join to access equipment to help get their business started.

Dabble Maker Space is supporting makers whom they invite to do workshops.

A maker, McKellar knows how often they are asked for donations of supplies and their time, and even to rent space to do a workshop.

“When we run a workshop, Dabble pays the makers for their time and their supplies, so there’s less risk for the makers to take on to teach that workshop,” she said.

More information about the new business is available online at www.dabblemakerspace.com.

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