Dear fediverse,
what is the best resource of do's and dont's for setting up a #repaircafe ?
I guess not what I do with my own repairs : 40 boxes with half broken stuff from other people, waiting to find that single crucial part, schematic, or plans to fix it with a 3d printed part (to be designed and printed), actually converting my place in a #dumpsterdive without divers.
Neither desoldering all weird parts because weird parts are difficult to get...
#electronics #ewaste (...)
#California: Need Help Fixing Your Broken Stuff? Volunteers at the #HumboldtCounty #RepairCafé in #ArcataCA Will (Most Likely) Fix It for Free!
by Isabella Vanderheiden / Wednesday, March 26
"You know that broken lamp that’s been sitting in the corner of your garage for the last decade? You know, the one with the busted pull chain and persnickety cord your college roommate gave you? Yeah, that one. Do you think it might be time to get that thing fixed?
"What if I told you there is a place you can go to have your lamps rewired, your vintage denim mended, your bicycle tires patched, your weed wackers restrung and your great-grandmother’s heirloom necklace soldered — all for free?
"Sounds too good to be true, right? Not so! On Sunday, April 6, volunteers and staff with Arcata’s Recreation Division will host the first Humboldt Repair Café, a free event at the Arcata Community Center where people can take their broken stuff (electronics, clothing, jewelry, furniture, crockery, small appliances, etc.) to be repaired by local fixers. If you can carry it, chances are, they can fix it.
"'The rule is it has to be small enough that you can carry it in by yourself,' volunteer coordinator Wendy Ring told the Outpost. 'We won’t be able to take in refrigerators and things like that. We’ll have a retired electrician to work with smaller electrical appliances. We also have some IT specialists to help people with their computers. We have experts at putting fancy patches on clothes and another person for bicycle repairs. This is our first Repair Café, but we have quite a variety of people!'
"The upcoming event is part of an international movement, which originated in Amsterdam in 2009, to combat '#ThrowawayCulture,' promote #sustainability and teach people practical repair skills. 'We just bring our skills and fix stuff together,' Ring said.
"'The Repair Café movement is trying to change consumer culture and say, ‘No, we can’t just throw things away because they don’t just disappear,’ she continued. 'This is a way of making the things that we have last longer and teaching people how to fix things by watching our volunteers as they’re doing repairs. It’s also community building, which is something that we really need right now.'
"While the event is free, volunteers may request a donation if they need extra materials for repair. In some cases, it may take volunteers a little longer to diagnose the issue and get the parts needed for the fix.
"'If we don’t have the part on hand, we may ask you to come back next month,' Ring said, adding that she hopes to host the event once a month. 'Sometimes, it’s going to be a multi-step repair. We do have some people who have 3D printers who will be able to make parts for people. … We’ll also have little handbells around, and when a repair is made, we’ll ring the bell and have a mini celebration.'
"Asked what she would be taking to the Repair Café, Ring said she has a Kindle that needs fixing, some clothes her dog has chewed on and a jacket with a broken zipper. 'I put a collection of beautiful beach pebbles in my jacket pocket, and I’ve never been able to unzip it,' she said. 'That was a year ago. I can sew a little bit, but I can’t do zippers!'
"Cullen Groom, recreation supervisor for the City of Arcata’s environmental services department, is helping to support the program on behalf of the city, which is allowing the Repair Café to use the community center’s senior room free of charge."
FMI: https://lostcoastoutpost.com/2025/mar/26/repair-cafe/
#RepairCafesCalifornia #SolarPunkSunday #RepairCafes #RepairReuseRecycle #BuildingCommunity
Telford #RepairCafe moves around venues in the broader Telford area, and it was at Sutton Hill's "Hub on the Hill" today, 10AM to 2PM. I had a decent success rate today - 3 out of 3 repairs were successful: A slow cooker with the crock stuck in the body - a right pain to get it out, but persistence and a bit of lateral thinking overcame; a laptop that wouldn't stay on - turned out that the screws holding one of the screen hinges on had all worked loose, which was resulting in the screen cable being pulled out of its socket; and an anklet that needed putting back together, requiring a tiny dot of epoxy glue. Overall, we had about 10 repairers and looked at about 30 items. We were joined by a new repairer, who has previously brought items to be fixed, and also visited by a lovely young lad of about 6 years old, who went round (with his dad, who brought in the aforementioned laptop) asking the repairers about things they were repairing, and how they were working out what was wrong, and how they were doing repairs.
@amineca : in the village (*) I live in, there's a repair cafe every second wednesday of the month.
(*) With the only "pyramid" in NL: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyramid_of_Austerlitz
I joined the repair people this month for the first time, and was happy to do some fixing.
I met a number of very kind people, and it is unbelievably rewarding to help people and see how that cheers them up - even if their problems are kind of silly.
I'll definitely be present again in one and a half weeks time!
This 66 year old teddy was brought in to us missing a leg and looking very well loved.
The owner has had it since she was a child and it's been sewn up many times by her and her nanny over the years.
Fortunately Ann worked her magic and reattached the leg, so here's to 66 more years of love 
️.
Must say there is something beautiful and healing about seeing a bunch of strangers in a #repairCafe helping each other fix their rice cookers, format their laptops, sew their teddy bears, patch up their clothes, figure out ways to solve problems with what they've got right there and each other.
Highly recommended activity to restore faith in ordinary people when we see so much cruelty from the top.
I also learned that there are #repairCafe events all over the country, visit one and get someone to help you fix your broken thing.
Or go and help fix broken things, if you have the skills.
Or just hang out with them.
Here is their calendar.
https://www.repaircafeaotearoa.co.nz/calendar
I went to a #repairCafe today and got my ebike charger fixed for at least another 4 years of daily usage (I hope). 
Repairing things is good for the earth, for our pockets and for society in general.
The NZ Parliament is looking at a bill about this. 
Please make a submission so repairing becomes the standard and we keep things out of the landfill for as long as possible.
Deadline is April 3rd.
https://www.repairnetworkaotearoa.org.nz/right-to-repair-bill
Êtes-vous propriétaire d'un atelier de réparation ?
Je cherche à entrer en contact et à en savoir plus sur vos plus grands défis. Si vous êtes passionné par votre métier et désireux de changement, j'aimerais beaucoup avoir de vos nouvelles !
Are you a repair shop owner?
I'm looking to connect and learn about your biggest challenges. If you're passionate about your profession and are hungry for change, I would very much like to hear from you!
#RepairIndustry #RightToRepair #RepairCafes #repair #RighttoRepairEurope #repaircafe
---
The work is ever evolving, and now I'm doing code as well, but here's some preliminary icons for a project that I've been working with under @kleb for some time now, that uses the open repair data standard, aiming to help the repair industry.
https://standard.openrepair.org/
These icons may end up not being used, but it's the most involved I've been at building up a style in recent memory.
I'll show more as time goes on, as this is my main focus for awhile!
#NewburyportMA: They can fix it: Annual spring #RepairCafe returning soon
By Jim Sullivan | Mar 20, 2025
NEWBURYPORT — "Folks hoping to get their bicycles fixed, their garden tools sharpened or even their house lamps mended should visit the Newburyport Senior/Community Center on Saturday, April 5, for the Time Trade Network of Greater Newburyport’s annual spring Repair Café.
"Taking place between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., the free event features over 30 local volunteers adept at tinkering with small appliances, textiles, jewelry, bikes, small wooden items and even mechanical clocks.
"Knife sharpening, as well as garden hand tool sharpening along with some expert advice on chair caning will also be offered.
"'We want to encourage people to have their items repaired instead of putting them into the waste stream,' event organizer Elizabeth Marcus said. 'They can also get to see just how easy and fun it can sometimes be.'
"The #TimeTradeNetwork of Greater Newburyport is a group of local volunteers willing and eager to share their knowledge as well as talents with one another.
At the Repair Café, people can bring up to three small, clean items then watch while each is repaired on the spot."
Archived version:
https://archive.ph/aSRM8#
#SolarPunkSunday #BuildingCommunity #RightToRepair #ReuseRepairRecycle #MassachusettsRepairCafes #TimeDollarNetwork #TimeDollars #TimeBanks #RepairCafeNewburyport
#BoreDa bawb. Dim #CaffiTrwsio heddiw, felly, beth i wneud? Dim syniad. Efallai gweithio yn yr ardd, neu yn y tŷ, neu gwnio, neu ymlacio. Dewisiadau, dewisiadau.
#GoodMorning everyone. No #RepairCafe today, so what to do? No idea. Maybe working in the garden, or in the house, or sewing, or relaxing. Choices, choices.
