Last Saturday, a good friend and I walked into Austin’s Recycled Reads bookstore, each with the unlikely goal of getting our pants hemmed. Rather, it would have been an unlikely goal, if the bookstore hadn’t been hosting a FixIt Clinic, where volunteers help members of the community learn to repair their own items. Past clinics have included bicycle and tool repair, and this past weekend’s focus was mending clothing.

My friend and I browsed the used bookstore while we each waited our turn,  enjoyed the in-store performance of four live harpists, and finally got to sit with our volunteers. Mine was a lovely, motherly type who took my garment out of my hands and chatted away for about fifteen minutes while she tackled the repair all by herself, and my friend made herself comfortable on the floor and hemmed her own pants with her volunteer’s guidance and supervision. We had a wonderful time, both with each other and participating in our vibrant, active community, and we each saved the $10 it would have cost to have the repair done at a tailor shop or drycleaner.

Clinics a, organizations and events that assist community members in doing their own repairs are not only frugal, but also eco-friendly: every item that can be repaired or refurbished is one less thing headed to the landfill. And it’s a terrific way to interact with your community and meet more like-minded people.  A quick online search led me to a Fixit Clinic Facebook page, which connects to clinics in many US cities, and similar programs such as the Fix-It Fair in Portland, Oregon, Bicycle Kitchen in Los Angeles,  and U-Fix-It Clinic in Boulder, CO.

If there isn’t a clinic in your community, you can always start one. Many such events are held at public libraries, and you don’t have to know how to fix things to be able to search out volunteers who do, and organize an event.

What do you have that needs fixing? What do you know how to fix that you could help others with?