The Tualatin Public Library Makerspace turns five years old on Saturday, and the library is throwing a free party to mark the milestone.

The celebration runs 2–4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 24, at the library, 18878 S.W. Martinazzi Ave. Visitors can try out the workshop's equipment.

The first 50 people will receive a tote bag with a heat-transfer vinyl decoration to apply to it, and six others will win craft kits, according to Your Oregon News.

The 735-square-foot space opened in October 2021 with just 11 people waiting at the door.

Five years later, more than 3,600 unique visitors have walked in nearly 24,000 times.

Kit Lorelied, the STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and math) librarian who oversees the Makerspace, said visitors have created "everything from 3D-printed loom parts to popsicle-stick leprechaun traps."

The Tualatin City Council approved $425,000 in spring 2021 to convert space next to the teen room into a workshop for physical objects and digital media. The Tualatin Library Foundation also contributed, though the foundation's share was not disclosed.

Equipment has expanded steadily. The Makerspace now runs four 3D printers, up from the original set, and swapped its old Glowforge laser cutter for a more versatile xTool P2S, Lorelied said. The library also purchased a sublimation printer for customizing T-shirts, mugs and tumblers.

Art supplies remain the most-used items, followed by the 3D printers. Soap making ranks third in demand, so the Makerspace added candlemaking supplies because the process is similar, Lorelied said.

Paper quilling and stamp carving tools arrived through monthly project rotations.

Tualatin City Manager Sherilyn Lombos said the Makerspace gives people access to creative tools without spending hundreds of dollars.

She called it "a community gathering space that sparks creativity."

Lorelied, who was named Tualatin's 2022 Employee of the Year and a Pamplin Media Group 2022 Amazing Neighbor, started at the library as an on-call librarian in 2008 before becoming its first STEAM librarian in 2021, Valley Times reported.

Within a year of opening, the Makerspace logged more than 3,500 uses of its resources.

Upcoming community events:

  • Saturday, Oct. 24: Tualatin Library Makerspace fifth-anniversary celebration, 2–4 p.m., 18878 S.W. Martinazzi Ave.
  • Tuesday, Oct. 27: Tualatin e-bike coalition listening session (details)