Tool Donations & Rubber Duckies

We’re Always Accepting Donations of Power Tools! No More Hand Tools or Rubber Duckies at the Moment.

Latest Tool Donation: A few pounds of cut in half foam filled & glittered rubber duckies. Please stop donating these sorts of thing, they are too cute/weird and we literally can't say no. However, if you have power tools (especially sewing machines) in decent working condition you can drop them off during open hours. Please no hand tools at the moment - just like rubber ducks we have too many of those as well (you can donate your hand tools to @habitatdenverrestores). THANKS!

Give the Gift of MAKING STUFF!

We’re getting this out there early to try to save you from spending too much time racking your brain to come up with good gift ideas so you’re not getting your dad another $30 platter of fancy nuts (one year I got him fancy nuts and when I went to put it in my cart it said “you ordered this products two years ago." It turns out I had bought him the exact same thing for Christmas before. True story). Get someone something more useful than nuts! Consider a Tool Library Membership, Class Gift Bucks, or hours toward the Community Workshop.

HERE’S THE CHEAT SHEET OF DTL GIFT IDEAS:

Give an Annual Membership, Household Membership, or One Time Project Checkout

Purchase

Give some bucks that can be spent on any of our classes.

Purchase

Give a ten hour punch card to our Community Workshop.

Purchase

Metalsmithing: Two New Holiday Classes (and they're totally affordable.)

Holiday Star Garland Metalsmithing Class // 12.4.22

(only $65!)

Copper Pine Tree Ornament Metalsmithing Class // 12.11.22

(only $65!)

Metalsmithing is having two unique holiday classes soon and they’re super affordable! Holiday Star Garlands & Copper Pine Tree Ornaments. Don’t buy that cheap tacky plastic/paper stuff - make your own high quality copper & brass decorations that will last for every winter to come. These classes are one time only so sign up soon!

Know somebody who would really enjoy this class? Get them some Class Gift Bucks.

Block Printing on Paper: Holiday Edition! // 11.20.22

No dallying this year! Cross “cards for fam” off your list early because our one time special holiday block printing class is on 11.20.22. Make beautiful handmade cards for everyone you love and learn a 4,000 year old printmaking technique while you’re at it. Hallmark cards are lame and everyone knows it. Prove your love to your dad by making something instead! Check out Lucy’s work: @lholtsnider

Join Denver based printmaker Lucy Holtsnider to for a workshop to block print holiday cards! Over the five hours class we’ll practice drawing, carving, and printing a two-color reductive linoleum print by hand. No experience is required, and we’ll use non-toxic materials and a set of simple tools to make prints that are easy to recreate at home without a press. Drawings can be done freehand, or traced directly from a book or photograph. Participants should bring a sack lunch, close toed shoes, and 4 x 6” or smaller photo to make a drawing from.

Lucy Holtsnider is a printmaker and book designer based in Lakewood. In her fine art practice, she prints on a Vandercook SP-15 letterpress out of Zarapes Studios in Denver. As a designer, she designs book covers for self-published authors. Lucy currently teaches at Colorado College, and has taught courses at Yeshiva University, Marist College, and the University of California at Santa Barbara. LucyHoltsnider.com Instagram: @lholtsnider

Thanks Denver Community Fridges!

Shoutout to @denvercommunityfridges for using some of our tools to make more fridge shelters! This group has outdoor refrigerators all over the city that are accessible to anyone who needs a bite to eat. You can find out where these fridges are and how you can support their mission at denvercommunityfridges.com Thanks for your important work!

Denver Community Fridge is a mutual aid project aimed at combatting food insecurity and reducing food waste in the Denver Metro area, which is located on the stolen land of the Cheyenne, Arapahoe, and Ute. We are a prison-industrial complex (PIC) abolitionist group that works in alignment with the movement for Black liberation and restoration of Indigenous sovereignty.

We recognize that food insecurity is intimately linked to other forms of injustice and aim to work collaboratively with community members to meet people’s basic needs. We deeply believe that community work must be done collectively in order to be successful, so we encourage all members of our community to engage with the fridges in ways that feel restorative and supportive to them.

Let’s lend tools to more awesome orgs! Buy a Rad Orgs Membership and we will donate it to a group making a positive impact in our community. Checkout denvertoollibrary.org/sponsor for deets.

Closed Thanksgiving Weekend! Thurs, Nov 24th - Sun, Nov 27th

We’re closed Thanksgiving weekend Thurs, Nov 24th - Sun, Nov 27th! Get your tools early so you can get those weekend projects done. Get together with your friends/family/loved ones and name some things you’re grateful for. Don’t forget to initiate conflict with your relatives by bringing up the real history of the holiday and before rolling that into a casual convo about the midterms.

“From the time Europeans arrived on American shores, the frontier — the edge territory between white man’s civilization and the untamed natural world — became a shared space of vast, clashing differences that led the U.S. government to authorize over 1,500 wars, attacks and raids on Indians, the most of any country in the world against its indigenous people.” -History.com

Sewing Machine Basics: BIPOC & Immunocompromised Editions!

Our new teacher Jackie has listed two of her new Sewing Machine Basics classes to be suited especially for BIPOC and Immunocompromised people! BTW - If you have a sewing machine kicking around that you never use - PLEASE DONATE IT! You can drop it off during open hours. THANKS!

Sewing Machine Basics Class - KN95 MASK PROVIDED & REQUIRED // 12.5.22

Why is this class 'Mask & Vaccination Required'?

People who are immunocompromised have a reduced ability to fight infections and other diseases. Having a weakened immune system requires consistent attention and care to remain healthy, especially in public spaces. We want to provide a safe(r) place for our immunocompromised community to gather and create! To attend this class you must wear a mask for the entirety of the course and provide a photo of your COVID-19 vaccinations. For more resources visit: https://primaryimmune.org/

Sewing Machine Basics Class - BIPOC ONLY // 12.14.22

Why is this class 'BIPOC Only'?

Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) need spaces without White people. In mixed groups, BIPOC people are often put in the position of teaching White people and so do much more of the emotional labor. White people may benefit and learn from the discussions but BIPOC folks often leave exhausted. Historical racial trauma can be triggered more easily in a mixed group and our intention is to create a safe(r) space to create art, connection, and joy. To attend this class you must be a Black, Indigenous, or Person of Color. Visit these links for more resources on Affinity Groups - Why Do Them, White Supremecy Culture/Norms, and the Racial Equity Movement in Denver.

Brand New Class! Macramé Plant Hangers

Macramé Plant Hangers! First Classes…

Wednesday, December 7th // 5:30pm-8:30pm

Friday, December 16th // 5:30pm-8:30pm

Begin your macramé journey with Sineah! Learn fundamental patterns and bring home a beautiful plant hanger to liven up your living room, bedroom, or bathroom.

In 3 hours create a macramé plant hanger using 2-4 basic knots. A white 6" pot is included, otherwise you may bring your own planter for a custom fit. A plant is not included (I would recommend something in a 4-6" plastic pot with holes for drainage). You may bring a plant to class or finish on your own time.

We will go over sustainable shopping for materials, knot techniques and other macrame uses. This class is an opportunity to connect with your crafty community and go home with a finished product. We will push past the need for perfection and enjoy creation for the fun of it! Bring snacks, hydration needs and comfy shoes as we will likely be standing.

Sineah keeps her class sizes small to give everyone the help they need. Can't wait to see you in class!

Sineah has been teaching beginner woodworking classes at the Denver Tool Library since 2018. She grew up in Maine, constantly curious to do things independently. After moving to Denver in 2016, Sineah discovered the Tool Library and soon after began encouraging others to safely use tools and build things with their own hands. She started teaching friends in her own backyard until we opened up the workshop. She has taught stool/ plant stand, bookshelf, leaning shelf, cutting board workshops and more. Sineah will encourage you to creatively problem solve and by the end of class, will send you home with a project intended to impress your friends and yourself. Check out Sineah’s work at www.facebook.com/denverdiyworkshop or @DenverDIYWorkshop

Thanks Colorado Village Collaborative!

Colorado Village Collaborative @coloradovillagecollaborative borrowed some of our tools to build a community garden for their tiny home village Beloved Community Village. “This garden already provides a calm, healing space for our #tinyhomevillage residents & Elryia-Swansea neighbors but come next spring and summer, it'll burst with veggies, herbs & flowers.”

What is the Beloved Community Village? The community named Beloved Community Village consists of 24 temporary “tiny homes,” one staff office building and a community space with three bathrooms and a shared kitchen. The tiny homes are about 100 square feet each and contain electricity, heaters, fans and outlets but no water or sewer connections. Those connections are made in the common house, which helps to keep the project costs down and to build community among residents. The village is a temporary residential environment that serves as an alternative sheltering solution intended to create additional access points into the housing continuum for our neighbors who are experiencing homelessness. The village first launched in July 2017 and during the past three years has served 42 unique people, 16 of whom have graduated from the village into stable housing.

Check out @coloradovillagecollaborative or www.coloradovillagecollaborative.org to see how you can get involved!

Let’s lend tools to more awesome orgs like Colorado Village Collaborative! Buy a Rad Orgs Membership and we will donate it to a group making a positive impact in our community. Checkout denvertoollibrary.org/sponsor for deets.

Volunteer with the DTL!

There's a few spots left for tomorrow's Volunteer Orientation 10/26/22

Ever wanted to hangout with super cool people like us while also doing super cool stuff for your community? Want to talk shop with tool library members while you check them in and out, zone out and organize/wrench on tools, or help us with whatever you’re already good at like outreach, fundraising, grant writing, indoctrinating more volunteers and getting them to join us, etc?

Well you’re in luck! We still have a few spots left for our monthly volunteer orientation tomorrow 10/26/22 at 5:30pm. Just go to our Volunteer page, fill out the form, and we’ll get you all set up.