Studio Use & Hours

As a makerspace within a women’s college, we are committed to providing access to traditional craft technologies alongside digital fabrication tools because the latter would not exist without the former. Student leaders in our space foster a safe and welcoming studio environment while supporting peers in their imaginative pursuits.

Studio Design Partners

Our Prototyping Studio is led by Studio Design Partners (SDPs)—Smithies who embody all things making! They lead design projects, plan creative workshops for the campus, help maintain a safe and creative making environment, teach equipment use, and provide project support during open hours.

Come on in and say hello to the SDPs during their open hours! Look for them in a tie-dye apron.

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A group of about thirteen people pose on the porch steps of a light yellow building with columns labeled "25A". Every person is holding or wearing a handcrafted paper animal or decorative mask over their face. A banner on the right side of the building reads THE DESIGN THINKING INITIATIVE.

Open Hours

We are open when staffed in calendar below.

 

Our student staff, the Studio Design Partners (SDPs), are here to help you during their posted open hours. SDPs can help you learn how to use tools or equipment, get a tour of our space, or help you with your creative project.

 

Please note that we are closed during holidays and breaks. Access to the facility will not be available during these periods.

 

Open hours are subject to fluctuation and change based on staff availability. The calendar reflects our most up-to-date schedule. For questions, comments, or special accommodations, please contact our studio manager Forrest Hudes at fhudes@smith.edu.

The Design Thinking Initiative strives to make our facilities and services as accessible as possible, including for people with disabilities. We comply with ADA standards and provide reasonable accommodations, such as wheelchair accessibility. The Smith College website is holistically aligned with WCAG 2.1 AA standards.

As a makerspace, this is a dynamic, active place where creative projects are underway. While we do our best to keep it tidy, you can expect a visually busy environment. In this lively atmosphere, background music shifts in volume, the sounds of people collaborating, the use of tools, and the sounds of running machines fill the space.

We have a ramp to the entrance and an accessible single-use bathroom on the first floor. Our front door is approximately 35 inches wide, and the automatic door opens outward. Our main hallway is approximately 44.5 inches wide.

The DTI receives ample natural light throughout the day, but our overhead lighting is fluorescent. Please note that while our second floor is not accessible by a lift or an elevator, staff will be present to support and retrieve any needed items from the second floor during your visit.

All visitors, regardless of ability, are welcome to the DTI. If you need disability-related accommodations or have questions about physical access, please contact our staff at capenannex@smith.edu. 

Take a Tour with DTI

Workshops

For students interested in bringing a group to the DTI for a workshop or event, or teaching or hosting a workshop at the DTI, please contact our Prototyping Studio Manager, Forrest Hudes (fhudes@smith.edu) with your request.

In your e-mail, please include your proposed date/time, how many people you anticipate having in attendance, if you would want DTI staff support, and what materials you would expect to need from the DTI.

Alternatively, you are welcome to book a meeting with Forrest to discuss your idea and what the possibilities are for us to support you.

We cannot promise to be able to accommodate all requests. We ask that you please reach out with your request AT LEAST three weeks in advance of your proposed date.

If you are looking for a workshop kit to borrow for an event elsewhere on campus, please reach out to the Hillyer Art Library at HillInfo@smith.edu.

If you are looking for a space for a larger group and/or to meet outside of our open hours, consider the OSE Resource Room in the basement of the Campus Center.

Exterior view of Capen Annex

Things You Can Do

Explore Other Making Spaces

Explore other spaces where you can make things on campus via this interactive Smith Makers Map, made for and by Smithies.

Tool Checkout

A blank card that says "I am a proud participant in the DTI Tool Lending Library" with space for name, email, item, and checkout date.

Need a tool, supply, or material for a project? Want to keep working after DTI hours? Need to repair something on site? Want to craft in the comfort of your own room? We are so happy to be able to offer a wide range of tools and materials for loan from the DTI.

Tool Lending Library

Anyone in the Smith community is welcome to participate in our lending library. To do so please visit the DTI and find an SDP to help you get your official DTI Lending Library Card, and to ask any questions about how and what you can check out.

Things to Know & FAQ

Appointment calendar coming soon!

We are no longer giving out OneCard access to Capen Annex. The building is accessible during staffed hours. See the Open Hours calendar.

Most of the materials on display are free to use, If you are unsure please ask! Our materials are shared by everyone so please use materials responsibly and do not use more than you need.

We can’t support mass production and crafts meant to be sold. Please purchase your own materials and give priority to other uses of equipment.

We love material donations, especially:

  • Acrylic or other lasercuttable materials
  • Sewing supplies (thread, needles, unused fabric, scissors, etc)
  • Craft supplies (paint, glue, tape, wire, etc)
  • Tools
  • If you have a question about donating materials, please email us. 

We do not currently have a means of providing direct funding for student projects, but we might have some ideas for where/how to seek out funding. Schedule a time to meet with Emily Norton and discuss.

Our main tools are 3D printers, laser cutters, a vinyl cutter, a drill press, and sewing machines. You can check out the specifics on the Tutorials & Equipment page on our website. We also have the Adobe Creative Cloud, Rhino, and Corel Draw installed on our computers.

To borrow books, tools and supplies from DTI, you must check them out with a staff member. Checkouts are for one week and can be renewed with permission.

We have a color printer that is specifically for projects. If you are unsure whether the DTI is the correct resource for your printing needs, refer to the guidelines below:

  • Printing something for a club or org? Use SGA printing
  • Printing something for a project? Use DTI printing or other Smith printing.
  • Printing something for a class (like papers or readings)? Use Neilson, Seelye, Sabin-Reed, Ford, etc.

We have a Xyron Creative Station that adds a layer of adhesive to the back of any sheet of printed paper.

We also have a Silhouette Cameo 4 Vinyl Cutter for cutting out vector graphics onto single colored vinyl sticker. 

We do not have a sticker printer or allow sticker paper to be used with our copy printers. 

You can send your designs to Paradise Copies, our local print shop.

What We Can’t Do

We don't have equipment or set up to print graphics on t-shirts from a full color picture. We also don't have a robust screen printing set up to expose screens of your design. Here is an example of something we don't have equipment to produce.

Options Available at the DTI

(in the order of most time consuming to least time consuming)

What we do have is a vinyl cutter that can cut stickers so you can mask a screen to screen print one or two colors onto the shirt. Here is an example. We would have to make the screens to do this (possible, just takes some time)

We also have heat transfer vinyl, that you can use the vinyl cutter to cut out and iron on to your fabric. Here is an example. (silly narration) 

We also have rubber stamp making material if you want to individually carve out the shapes you want to print to use as stamps for your t-shirt. Example.

There's also lots of types of transfer paper that you can use the printer to print out and then iron on the fabric. Example. We don't have any of this at DTI though, you'd have to buy them. 

Yes, we have a projector in the classroom (downstairs, Room 101). The screen descends from the far window wall of the classroom and the projector remote control is generally kept on windowsill.

We are very limited in space at the DTI, so please do not store your projects on the work tables. There are project storage shelves in the classroom and at the top of the stairs.

Please label every project with your name, email address, date, and pickup date.

Projects can only be stored for a maximum of two weeks!

After the pickup date has passed, we will recirculate project materials into the space. So please come pick them up!

The DTI hosts many workshops throughout the year. Workshops depend on the time of year and what our Studio Design Partners are planning. Some examples include pumpkin carving, holiday gift making, repairs fair, and printmaking.

Find out when our workshops are happening by subscribing to our mailing list or by browsing the Smith Social Network.

Please fill out this workshop request form and we will get back to you!

Check out the Courses & Concentrations section of our website! 

So many ways! We encourage you to come in during open hours to work on a creative project, become an expert in our equipment, come to our workshops, or take a class here! Subscribe to our newsletter to keep updated with us. You can also join our Slack channel to be a voice in our community.

Great question! This depends on what you’re looking for. We suggest scheduling a time to meet with our director, Emily Norton to discuss your interests in design and making beyond Smith. Additionally, check out our Resources Beyond DTI page.

The studio is prioritized for Smith and not open for general community use, but equipment may be available for specific projects or collaborations.