Remember that maker space I’m a cofounder of? Well, it’s in a bit of a spot. It’s been a joy to me to have been a part of something (and continue to be a part of it) that doesn’t need me. But now there is a need, though it is not the same sort as organizational structure.

Like other hacker/maker spaces around the world, Jigsaw is building a new, non-corporate model based on the strength of collaboration. We’re working together to build a world where anyone willing to share their time and money to learn, teach, or build can do so with a group of like-minded people. Jigsaw’s new space was specifically built  for us in Inscape, Seattle’s largest arts and culture enclave. It’s gorgeous, and its design was what our community decided upon.

And fantastic things are happening at Jigsaw. Our Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday nights are consistently filled with folks hacking and soldering and learning web development. Creative and curious people are coming to events like Dorkbot, Weird Science Salon, EverFree, and Mysterium.

However, our vibrant community and our vision are now in jeopardy. We are falling further and further behind on rent and other obligations, and our financial situation is simply not sustainable.

We need a “critical mass” of activities and membership to survive and grow. We need more people with keys—not just to pay rent, but also to keep the doors predictably open so that other people will come to the space.

If you share our commitment to creativity and thinking outside the box, if you, too, believe that “do it yourself” doesn’t have to mean “do it alone,” if you have enjoyed the interesting and diverse people and activities Jigsaw brings together, we urge you to consider helping in one of the following ways:

• Lapsed members — please set up recurring payments through our membership software page.
• Visitors, guests & other non-members — please join! Go to our membership page to get started.
• $15/month supporters — please become a keyed member and start a class or other event at Jigsaw.
• Current $100/month keyed members and $200/month desk members — encourage others to become keyed members or community builders. Also, please sign up to give a class or indicate on the calendar when you’ll be in so other people can share space and creativity with you.

For those with more time than money, we’ve created a new Community Builder membership. You can become a keyed member for only $50 a month in exchange for committing to staff the space for two 3-hour slots each month. More details on the Community Builder plan will be available soon.

People who sign up for a keyed membership get at least one vote (two for a desk membership) towards our next shiny acquisition:
• 3D Printer
• Nice hand and power tools
• Fancy lighting / nicer furniture