[MattGrommes]

I think you're partly right about it being branding, and I don't think that's bad. It's okay to put a label on something to make it easier to communicate the differences. Hobbies can be many things but not all of them involve making stuff. So a Maker Faire couldn't be Hobby Faire, that's a different event. Craft Fairs tend not to involve things like electronics or say, fire or robotics. And if you can hook into the mystique, like you say, to bring more people in to make new stuff, fine by me.

I personally do cringe a bit at "Maker" the same way I cringe at using "creative" as a noun but it has value.