Tag sustainability

Community members repair clothing on sewing machines at the Miller Branch of HCLS.

Fix it at the Repair Café

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A volunteer fixer teaches community members about tool repair.

By Erica C.

Saturday, November 8 | 1 – 4 pm 
HCLS Miller Branch  

Does your shirt have a hole? Is your lamp broken? Does something on your bike need to be repaired? Instead of throwing away your broken items, bring them to a Repair Café at the library to be fixed!  

Repair Cafés are free events that are all about repairing broken household items. Our community of fixers with repair skills in all kinds of fields volunteer to bring broken items back to life and will demonstrate how it is done. Be a part of a worldwide movement to preserve repair skills and promote sustainability!  

We live in a world of consumption, leading to an incredible amount of waste collectively. By learning invaluable repair skills, we can shift from a community that is wasteful to a community that is sustainable. Things can be used for longer and won’t have to be sent to the landfill. This leads to less raw material usage and energy consumption than is required to manufacture new products. And overall, less junk! 

Reduce waste, save money, build new skills, and help us foster community and a sense of shared learning.

The most common items the Repair Café can repair are lamps, vacuums, clocks, kitchen appliances (blender / toaster / stand mixer / etc.), and small clothing mends. Other categories of repairs include furniture, jewelry, power tools, small electric appliances, toys, and tool sharpening.  

Community members repair clothing on sewing machines at the Miller Branch of HCLS.

Do you have repair skills in a particular category and want to volunteer at an upcoming event? You do not have to be an expert! You can be paired with someone who is more experienced. Email transitionhoco@gmail.com to inquire.

To ensure we have the right supplies and volunteers available to fix your item, please submit what you plan to bring to the event here: https://app.smartsheet.com/b/form/bfd9ac7d234447138eeb75df4e95a8c8 

Erica C. is in her dream role as the Enchanted Garden Instructor at HCLS Miller Branch. When she’s not tending to the garden, you can find her cycling along the C & O Canal, experimenting with new recipes from around the world, or curled up with tea and a good read.

The image shows four pairs of brightly colored drop earrings suspended in midair from silver hooks, against a hazy pink background.

Upcycling and Sustainability with The Clarksville Youth Care Group

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The image shows two handmade wrapped packages with beaded drop earring of green, beige, and blue, above a bracelet with the same colors of beads.

By Nancy T.

The Clarksville Youth Care Group (CYCG), a student-run nonprofit in Howard County, is showcasing creative artwork made from recycled household items by talented local students. The display will run through the end of February in the display cases at HCLS Miller Branch. With support from a Howard County Youth Engagement Programming (YEP) Grant, CYCG has been actively promoting environmental sustainability, indoor composting, and upcycling throughout the county.

The display features more than 70 pieces of artwork crafted from everyday recycled materials, such as toilet paper rolls, egg cartons, eggshells, milk cartons, glass bottles, cans, scrap paper, paper cups, socks, sunflower seed shells, fruit nets, and more. Students have transformed glass bottles into vases or night lights, repurposed egg cartons and toilet paper rolls into animal sculptures and flowers, turned milk cartons into desk organizers, and fashioned scrap paper into jewelry. Old socks have even been upcycled into pumpkins!

The image shows four pairs of brightly colored drop earrings suspended in midair from silver hooks, against a hazy pink background.

Upcycling has become an increasingly popular part of the sustainability movement, allowing people to transform waste into new products while reducing environmental impact. This creative display hopes to inspire more people to explore upcycling, showing that all it takes is a little imagination and perseverance to create something beautiful. 

CYCG President and Co-Founder Amanda Wang expressed her appreciation for Howard County Library System for the opportunity to share student-created upcycled artwork. Amanda said, “We hope to inspire more people to start upcycling, which is easy and fun with just a little bit of imagination and creativity.”

The image shows papercrafted mini-parasols in shades of red and yellow, above three bracelets, one gift-wrapped package, and four cards which each have a set of drop earrings attached to them.

To complement the display, HCLS, in partnership with CYCG, is hosting a hands-on Upcycled Art class on Saturday, February 22 from 2:30–4:00 PM at HCLS Miller Branch.

Join us for this exciting workshop where we explore the art of upcycling through creative paper projects. Learn how to repurpose old magazines, gift wrap, and newspapers into stylish bracelets, earrings, and home décor. All materials will be provided—just bring your imagination!

Nancy T. is an instructor and research specialist and the display coordinator at Miller Branch. When she’s not in the branch, you’ll find her in the swimming pool, sitting with her cat, or out walking in the fresh air.