Last week I came across something really awesome on Kickstarter: The Larscraft Maker’s Chest, A Lego and Toy Solution. It immediately attracted my attention, because I live in a house of Lego. I have Lego creations proudly displayed around my house, and the bottoms of my feet are equally scarred between d4’s and Lego pieces. I was all in.

Then I saw something that made this project even cooler. The Maker’s Chest was conceptualized by an eight year old boy! This indeed is a project after my own heart. Part of the reason I homeschool my son is so that we can be more involved with making things and so I can encourage him to make anything his imagination dreams up. I knew I had to catch up with this boy (and his very supportive dad) to learn more about his awesome project as well as his involvement with the Maker Movement.

Lars Gerding was eight years old when he came up with the idea for the Maker’s Chest. He said part of the problem he had while building with Legos was organization. He knew he had a certain piece, but couldn’t find it in his collection. So he started by separating the pieces by color. Of course, after the project was complete, he didn’t want to just dump them back in the bucket, so he knew he needed trays for them. And then he needed a place to keep his trays. So, the idea for the Maker’s Chest was born.

A lot of people come up with ideas. You find a more efficient way to organize your day, or you make a shelf that can hold all your books. Not everyone decides to bring their idea to Kickstarter, or even fully develop their ideas. I asked Lars what made him decide to take his idea public.

“I really want to go to my dad’s college after visiting it, and it is expensive,” he said. “I want to be able to afford it when I'm older and dad says creating new products is a great way to make money.”

And that, really, is a big part of what makes Kickstarter so awesome. Not every project on there is a success, but it is a way makers can share their projects with others and see just how feasible and marketable their ideas are. With the Maker’s Chest currently at $80,000 above the $15,000 goal, clearly this is something people want and find useful.