Enjoy this emotionally charged photo of DTL1 - the very first tool we ever inventoried - a Makita circular saw. DTL1 has been checked out to 159 different people and has collected $265.75 worth of late fees in the almost 8 years it has been with us. I don't know whose terrible sharpied handwriting is on it, but it's good to see that a heavy finger on a teal spray can has marked our tools with careless abandon ever since day one.
Slim doesn't come close to measuring the chance that this tool should still be with us. At this point in every other timeline this saw's motor is seized, its plastic cracked, or metal shards from its own organs fill its casing. By now it should have been lent to a neighbor and never returned, bounced out of the back of a pickup truck on i-25, or thrown into a fire out of frustration during a project. But as fate would have it, DTL1 is still with us today, and it works pretty dang good.
Be Kind Bench Workshop - Building Recycled Bus Benches for Denver
James Warren builds bus benches out of recycled materials for the Denver Metro Area, and he just hosted his first Bench Bulling Workshop in our Community Workshop on 1/31! His group completed two benches that will allow people to take a load off while waiting for the bus.
“He saw a woman sitting in the dirt at a bus stop. So he began making benches.” -The Washington Post
James Warren is a mobility advocate in Denver who recognized one of the big issues with the transit system in the city: lack of bus stop amenities. Whether it be cover, trash disposal, or seating, bus stop amenities are crucial to the health and wellbeing of those who ride, as well as to making public transit a dignified experience. To that end, he's created benches for bus stops around the city, made from recycled materials, and is hosting the Be Kind Bench workshop to both teach the basics of woodworking as well as create new public amenities. Outfitting bus stops with benches will create a better public transit experience and shines a spotlight on where the city is failing, making this both a practical workshop and an act of advocacy.
James has been featured in the Washington Post and the Drew Barrymore Show. You can follow him on Instagram @J_M_Warren
Unfortunately, there are no Be Kind Bench Workshop scheduled at the moment, but if you’re interested in potential future workshops, you can reach out to James.
Brand New Class! Intro to Knitting // 3.8.23
Our First Intro to Knitting Class is Wednesday, March 8th // 5:30pm - 8pm
We’ve added another brand new class to our Fiber Arts Department: Intro to Knitting with Diana!
Learn the fundamentals of knitting while making a basic scarf that you can start in class and take home to finish. Become familiar with basic techniques including casting on, casting off, and basic knitting stitches. Understand the language of knitting patterns, get yarn and needle recommendations, and gain the confidence to continue your knitting journey. No experience required.
Knitting has become the new go to art for new brain development and relaxation of the 2020’s. These classes are conducted in a friendly and inviting manner and you will come away feeling like you’ve joined a community of artisans.
Teacher Bio: Diana has been knitting for over 50 years off and on. She now calls it her passion and loves teaching beginners through advanced.
Brand New Class! Drywall: Knowing Your Home Renovation Series
Our First Drywall Class will Be: Friday, March 10th // 5:30pm - 8:30pm
We’ve added another class to our Knowing Your Home Renovation Series, and this one is covers the exciting art of drywall! It will be another home improvement class with our hilarious and super knowledgeable resident home guy David Cooke. He will cover installing, repairing, patching, cutting, taping, mudding, and sanding sheetrock, as well as what tools from the Tool Library you’ll need to do it all yourself.
Five Easy Ways to Help the Denver Tool Library
We don’t all have time to be a regular volunteer and we aren’t all rich beyond our wildest dreams, so here’s five super easy ways to help us out (if you’re rich beyond your wildest dreams, skip this article and click here).
Way One: Amazon Smile
Look, we all know Amazon isn't great. We’re not trying to convince you to use Amazon if you don't already, BUT if you do, they have a program called Amazon Smile where we get a small percent of every one of your purchases. It's easy to sign up.
Make THIS your new bookmark for Amazon shopping. It’s Amazon SMILE which is important.
Sign in there with your regular account info and select a charity, which might I highly recommend the Denver Tool Library?
As long as you start shopping from that new bookmark, anything you buy makes Bezos have to shell out some fraction of some clams to the DTL. Yay.
Way TWO: King Soops
King Soopers has a program similar to Amazon where they kick a non-profit of your choice a small percent of all of your purchases. If you get groceries/ gas/ beer there on the reg, consider putting our name on your account.
Create an account at their website. It's quick - you can skip the little setup wizard that comes second if ya want.
Go to this Community Rewards page of your Account Dashboard and search for Denver Tool Library.
Click enroll. Easy peasy! Now a really mathematically obscure percentage of your spending will be donated to the DTL! Hoorah!
WAY THREE: LEAVE A 5 STAR REVIEW ON GOOGLE
Not into those shoppy choices of how to help? Leave us a Google review. It’s super helpful in convincing people who say “wtf is a tool library” that we are cool and they should take a chance and try us out.
WAY FOUR: TELL EVERYONE YOU KNOW THAT WE’RE AWESOME.
Tell your friends how much we’ve helped you! Tag us in stories about your project or just be that annoying "crypto bro" but instead of crypto talk about what a cool concept a tool library is.
WAY FIVE: SEND us a couple buckS.
And who can’t forget the last easy way to help - Venmoing us a few bucks @denvertoollibrary, or kicking a tax-deductible donation our way! For those who have the means, even a little money can go a long way in repairing/buying tools and subsizing memberships for people/orgs.
THANK YOU, YAY, GOOD JOB, WOOHOO!!
Updated: DTL Financial Assistance
We’ve made Financial Assistance for Tool Library Memberships and Classes easier to apply for than ever (Open Workshop Hours coming soon)!
We only have a small bit of funding at the moment, but we are always looking for grants and donors to contribute to our Financial Assistance Fund. As that fund grows, we will update these new pages to reflect who we can help and how much assistance people and organizations may able to receive.
If you would like to learn more about these programs, check out our updated Tool Library Financial Assistance page and our updated Classes Financial Assistance page.
Colorado Village Collaborative - Red Vest Day 2022
We are Raising Prices a Bit on 2/15. Lock In Our Current Prices Before Then!
It’s time for the DTL to raise some prices a bit to keep up with the times. Tool Library Memberships and Open Workshop Hours are going to be adjusted so we can continue to pay our staff fair wages and keep up with rising costs (see below). Classes will stay the same.
The good news is, the increase for a Standard Individual Membership is only an extra $2.50 per month (is that even a cup of coffee anymore?). Hopefully that’s a small impact on your end,* and it adds up to a big impact on ours. With this extra income we'll be able to do a lot to keep the DTL community strong, including....
Increase wages for the librarians and shop monitors you know and love.
Hire skilled staff to repair/maintain our heavily used tool inventory.
Keep up with this year’s rent increase, plus the rising cost of utilities, tools, and supplies.
Continue providing discounted and free memberships for low income folks and local organizations doing important work in our community.
*If these new prices are a strain to your economic situation, you can apply for Financial Assistance on our website.
You can also lock in our current prices if you’d like! From now till FEBRUARY 15th, you can buy a Tool Library Membership or buy an Open Workshop Punch Card at 2022 prices and redeem when you’re ready. If you have a current membership, we can add a full year to your current expiration date. Feel free to reply to this email if you have any questions about it!
As of February 15th, our new pricing will be…
TOOL LIBRARY MEMBERSHIPS
Standard Individual Membership: $150
GOLD Individual Membership: $250
Standard Household Membership: $200
GOLD Household Membership: $300
One Time Checkout: $40
Group Membership: $400
Group Membership GOLD: $600
*If you're a local nonprofit doing good work with a small budget, you can choose to apply to our Rad Orgz Membership Fund before you purchase!
Open Workshop Hours
Open Workshop 10 Hours Punch Card: $165
Open Workshop Hourly - Members: $19/h
Open Workshop Hourly - Non-Members: $22/h
*Your current punch card will still work through 2023
2022 Impact - We've Saved Members $$$!
Well the math isn’t the BEST, but with about 10,000 tools checked out of the library in 2022 we estimate we’ve saved Denver Tool Library members about half a million dollars over the year! That’s not only a ton of money back in our members’ pockets, but it’s a lot fewer unused tools eventually ending up in the landfill, it’s a lot more home repairs made possible that otherwise would have been unaffordable, and it’s the ability for some members to pursue creative endeavors that they otherwise couldn’t.
We’re stoked y’all allowed us to make such a big impact in our community. Thanks for such a good year, and cheers to many more!
Brand New Class! Power Tool Petting Zoo: Women and LGBTQ folks
Power Tool Petting Zoo: Women and LGBTQ folks // 2.18.23
Reclaim the woodshop! In this class we invite women, gender-expansive, and LGBTQ folks to get comfy with drills, saws, nail guns, and more in a supportive, hands-on environment. If you have ever wanted to take a demolition hammer to the cis-hetero patriarchy, but nobody told you how to turn the thing on, this class is for you!
With a spirit of low-stakes experimentation and camaraderie, we will explore hands-on opportunities with a variety of beginner-friendly tools that may include power drills, impact drivers, scroll saws, jig saws, band saws, miter saws, power sanders, and a few varieties of nail guns. No question is too basic, bring them all. You’ll walk away with the confidence to safely tackle and trouble-shoot a variety of projects, and maybe even make a few friends to help you make your DIY dreams a reality.
About Your Instructor: Dani (they/them or she/her) has been DIYing since their teenage years, when their mom taught them how to safely use her miter saw in the family living room. Dani spent nearly a decade working as a landscape contractor, has built two small backyard homes (a yurt and a 12x8 tiny home on wheels), and since moving to Denver has enjoyed learning to build furniture at DTL. They are excited to share the liberated feeling that comes with the tool know-how to build the thing you want, how you want it.
Happy New Year & Thank You So Much!
THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR AN AMAZING 2022! We’ve come a LONG way since those exceptionally dark days of the pandemic when we, like so many other non-profits and small businesses, weren’t sure if we were going to make it. Thanks to all y’all who donated, bought memberships, took classes, came by the shop to drop off a 6 pack, and did anything else to support us big or small. Because of you we’re back on our feet and super energetic for a great new year. Looming recession and global collapse be damned - it’s going to be a fantastic 2023!
So, now that it’s a brand new year, what are your resolutions? Here's some very biased ideas: learn a new skill, fix up that old bathroom, be more creative. But who can help you accomplish such feats in 2023? Welllll wouldn't you know!
Sign up for a class, get yourself a tool library membership, and buy yourself some open workshop hours. This year is your year - you're gonna do great!
