For our electronics features in issues 110 and 111 of The Shed magazine we stepped away from a build project and instead head to a makers’ fair in Europe, this one in Belgium. Young and old were there, keen to display their electronic creations as well as to learn, share and to just enjoy fellow electronic sheddies’ skills.
“Compared to other more famous maker faires events across Europe – Brussels, Rome, Hanover, to mention just the most renowned – the Ghent Maker Faire is considered a minor event. However, it still played host to thousands of visitors and is well worth attending because of its very special character.
As you may have already read in the “News” in The Shed issue 109, the faire hosted the first European power tools racing along the lines of New Zealand and USA competitions. It was organised by the effervescent Henk Ryckaert, who was also the man behind the scenes for the power tools racing on the first day.”
Preserving the past
25 July 2024
It started with a teddy bear, then an American Greyhound bus, a wind-up Sherman tank and an aeroplane. Alastair Allan held on to his toys long after others would have put them aside. He’s still got them, along with several thousand other items that he has bought or acquired over the past 70 years or so. He declares he is holding on to the past for the future to tell the story of how people lived in North Otago as far back as 150 years ago.
