Repair Fair Recap! May 17th, 2026

Repair Fair on May 17th, 2026 was SO much fun! Give the photos a scroll and see for yourself.

A ton of y'all showed up with your clothes, bicycles, appliances, jewelry, furniture and more. Many thanks to all of you who gave your beloved stuff a second life, and many thanks to our super handy volunteer fixers who kept that beloved stuff out of the landfill. 

Impact

• 61 attendees brought their beloved but broken items.

• 24 fixer and support volunteers generously shared their time and skills.

• 43 items out of 51 items were fixed and given a second life. That’s an 86% fix rate!

• 405kg of stuff was diverted from the landfill.

• Once again, lots of hot dawgs & cookies served!

Thanks to the folks of Farnham Repair Cafe, we are also able to get fun numbers carbon related numbers. Our repairs save the equivalent carbon emissions of:

• 14,121 miles of driving

• 20,734 miles of flying

• 2,125 showers

More Than Just Fixin’ Things

These events are about more than simply fixing stuff - they aim to challenge consumer throwaway culture and encourage resourcefulness and reuse. They help share practical skills and build confidence so our neighbors can take on their own projects. We hope that Repair Fairs show that a community can come together to fix, build, and create the things they need.

What's Next? Get Involved!

Weren’t able to make the event? Still have some broken stuff you don’t want to part with? Want to volunteer to help people fix and build things?

• Keep an eye on our weekly newsletter and social media for the next Repair Fair date

• Become a volunteer at the DTL - there are lots of ways to help, including repair fairs

• Fix your own stuff via a super affordable Tool Library Membership, Classes, and Open Workshop Hours

Thanks so much all - we hope to see you at the next one!

Thanks for 5 years of Block Printing, Lucy! (and welcome, Virginia!)

“Five years!! That’s how long l’ve been teaching block printing workshops at the @denvertoollibrary. Please enjoy a few of my favorite moments with the hundreds of students l’ve gotten to teach in that time (note there are a few videos from @landlibrary @cc_printshop and @manossagrados snuck in there too). Every class brought a new group of friendly, curious folks who stepped out of their comfort zones and spent five hours with me making something beautiful by hand. I don’t know of any moment of craft that more reliably produces a huge smile and sense of accomplishment than when a new printer pulls their first two-color print. I feel very lucky to have witnessed that magic so many times!

This summer I’m passing the torch to my good friend @vircheese. Virginia has many years of teaching experience and some big ideas for new print classes at DTL! If you’ve already taken a class there with me, keep an eye on DTL’s classes page for some new offerings in the coming months. Her first class is already sold out!

From the bottom of my heart, thank you to everyone who joined me for a workshop. I will really miss teaching at DTL, but I’m planning to use that time on applications and material experiments for turning my collages into large public art pieces. More soon! 💕Lucy”

THANK YOU FOR FIVE YEARS - WE’LL MISS YOU LUCY!

AND WELCOME TO THE TEAM, VIRGINIA!

About Your New Block Printing Teacher

Virginia is a Peruvian interdisciplinary artist and trained printmaker based in Denver, where she has lived since 2005. She moved to the United States in the early 2000s to study Visual Arts, discovering printmaking during her undergraduate years. Intrigued by its tactile process and layered possibilities, she was immediately drawn to the medium.

Rooted in printmaking, her practice explores the language of process, texture, and multiplicity. Her work emerges from a sustained engagement with the medium—its rhythms, physicality, and capacity for transformation. Through print, she continues to investigate the interplay between craft and expression, repetition and variation, cultivating an ongoing relationship with the discipline and its evolving forms.
Virginia is an experienced teacher of all printmaking techniques and loves spreading the ink.

Next Skill Share! Monday, June 8th. Register for Free

Next Skill Share will be Monday, June 8th 6pm - 7:30pm! Be sure to Register for Free before you go.

Interested in having chickens, starting your own veggie garden, or repairing jewelry? Check out our next skill share on Monday, June 8th at 6pm! Sarah, Tucker, Elana, and Lindsay will be sharing their expertise and good vibes at this grown-up show-and-tell. Free to attend, NA beverages provided!

What’s a Skill Share?

Skill Shares are free community events where anyone is welcome to meet and mingle with fellow members and tool librarians and learn more about what projects they are working on. Each event features a few short presentations from community members sharing their projects, lessons learned, and inspiration, followed by time to chat and connect over N/A beverages. No tool experience required!

Closed Sunday 5/24: Memorial Day

Tool Library Lending & Open Shop Hours will be closed Sunday, May 24th 2026 for Memorial Day so our librarians can play outside.

Classes will still run as scheduled. Checkout times will be extended so you can keep your tools a few extra days.

What Will You Learn in Hand-cut Dovetail Step Stools?

Our woodworking instructor David Shih of @moonrabbit.woodworker made this great vid going over his new Hand-cut Dovetail Step Stools class! If you’ve been waiting for this class to become available, we recently released more dates for August, September, and October.

Brand New Class! Sewing II: Custom Tops & Patterns

We have a brand new, two-part class! Sewing II: Custom Tops & Patterns w/ Briana. First dates are scheduled for mid-June, so be sure to sign up soon!

Ready to start designing and creating your own clothes? Over two separate sessions, this intermediate garment sewing class will cover the complete process of making a custom shirt. This course focuses on the fundamental techniques that serve as the foundation for sewing your entire wardrobe.

• ✂️In Session 1, you will focus on pattern cutting and fabric preparation.

• 🧵In Session 2, you will move to the sewing machine for garment construction.

Learning to sew your own clothes is a rewarding skill that allows you to create a better fit and your own unique style. Join this supportive beginner-friendly workshop, expand your handy DIY skillset, and connect with a community of fellow makers!

Happening So Soon! May 17 Repair Fair - Register for Free

Our next Repair Fair is May 17th 2-6pm and we’d love to see you there with your beautiful broken things! Be sure to register before you go. 🛠️

In addition to all the fixin’, Alexandria Jimenez @altheshredder will be giving a live upcycling demo! She’s an artist and entrepreneur who specializes in using secondhand materials, with a focus on textiles, paper goods, and embellishments. She’ll have unique items available for purchase from her secondhand shop, Runner Up @heyrunnerup.

What’s a Repair Fair?

Repair Fairs are free events where community members can bring broken everyday items, such as toasters, bicycles, pants, and more, for free repairs by local volunteer fixers. These fairs offer a chance to learn valuable repair skills, reduce waste, and connect with your neighbors. No repair experience is required as our volunteers will guide you through fixing the items you bring in (limit one item per person please!).

46 Memberships Funded! Thank You

Holy smokes, y'all! We set out to fund 100 memberships this April. We didn't quite hit 100, but 55 of you showed up anyway. With matching, that turned into $6,878, which is enough to fund 46 memberships for community members who applied for financial assistance.🎉

That’s a whole lot of people who can borrow tools, take a class, and use our workshop who couldn’t before.

And if you're like, "oh no wait, I was out returning video tapes and I totally forgot"... OF COURSE we will still accept your donations. The applications keep coming, and every bit helps us say yes to more of them.🫂

The DTL works because people like you show up for it - so thanks to all of y’all who did so for this one.

With love and sawdust,

The DTL Team ❤️

New Mending Circle Date! June 15th

Our next Mending Circle will be Monday, June 15th from 6pm - 9pm! Make sure to register for free before you go.

April Mending Circle recap:

• 🫂20+ attendees

• 🌟7 volunteers

• 👕36 pieces of clothing repaired

• 🎭1 skirt saved in time for a Shakespeare festival the next day

Mending Circles are bi-monthly community events where anyone is welcome to meet and mingle with fellow members while giving their damaged items a second life. Each event has volunteers ready to teach you the necessary techniques and practices so you can repair your items during the event and in the future. We provide the sewing machines and basic supplies, so just bring your items and any specific patches you might want. No sewing experience required!

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Thanks ⁨⁨@theamandabittner for showing off the shop!

Thank you ⁨⁨@theamandabittner⁩ for spreading the word about tool sharing and our Culinary Knives class! Honestly it’s the most legit looking video that’s come out of the DTL ever so we have to show it off.

Want to help support the DTL via virtual internet land? Tag us in a class you took, a project you built, or a weird tool you found. Or send a pic via this form and we’ll make your project famous for you (AND you’ll get $5 DTL bucks!).