Curious about how designers think? Join us at MakeSpace North Park — a community makerspace and café — for a fast-paced, hands-on Design Jam where ideas move quickly from concept to prototype. In this collaborative session, participants will work in small groups to tackle a real design challenge: creating a simple plywood stool that could be used in our woodshop. The goal isn’t perfection — it’s experimentation, iteration, and learning by doing.

Guided by MakeSpace facilitators, participants will move through a condensed design process: brainstorming ideas, sketching concepts, building rough prototypes, testing them, and refining their designs. Materials may include cardboard, plywood, and basic woodworking supplies, along with maker tools available in the space.

No design experience is required. This event is open to anyone curious about making, problem-solving, and creative collaboration.

Come ready to think with your hands, try things that might not work, and see what happens when a room full of people starts designing together.

Participants are welcome to arrive early or stay afterward to continue the conversation in the café.

What to Expect
• A short introduction to design thinking and rapid prototyping
• A collaborative design challenge
• Hands-on building with simple materials and shop tools
• Rapid testing and iteration
• A final share-out of stool designs and prototypes

All materials provided.

MakeSpace is a nonprofit community workshop, fabrication lab, and neighbourhood café in Victoria’s North Park neighbourhood. They are prototyping a new kind of economic infrastructure: a place where people can learn, make, repair, and build creative livelihoods.The space supports everything from woodworking and digital fabrication to craft, repair, and design, alongside a welcoming café that serves as a daily gathering place for the creative community.