I spend at least a month on each of my commissioned maps, but that’s because cartography is my business. Sometimes I make little maps as gifts for friends and family, and I finish those in a few hours. It seems to me that mapmaking at this level would be a great hobby for those of you who love craft projects–you need a good focus for your map, but you don’t have to be a trained cartographer or an artist (let me remind you that I have neither a cartography nor an art degree). And you don’t need expensive materials–a pencil, a ruler, paper and source maps will do, though there are lots of clever and off-beat options. Interested? Kick off your new hobby with a free mapmaking workshop at the New York Public Library this Saturday, October 23 from 2-4 pm. Led by the library’s Geospatial Librarian Matt Knutzen and me, the event is part of an ongoing “Crafternoon” series hosted by rare book librarian Jessica Pigza (aka The Homemade Librarian) and Crafternoonauthor Maura Madden.