Exeter Library of Things

Interesting article on the increasing number of borrowing and lending schemes around the country.

How rental ‘libraries of things’ have become the new way to save money From baby clothes to popcorn makers, borrowing items rather than buying them is a growing trend

Not a very exciting photo but something for us to get excited by! Just look at the range of ‘things’ on loan to our tribe of borrowers. Each one of our members is saving money and making an environmental impact at the same time. We just love it!

Embrace Borrowing and alternative gifting for

Why buy when you can borrow? Join the movement and explore your local library for a cost-effective way to burn through your reading list without buying new. Find your nearest library service: https://bit.ly/Devon-Libraries 📚

Check out Share Shed - A Library of Things, Exeter Library of Things or Exmouth Library of Things of things! One Library of Things user rented a staple gun for £1.50 to reupholster a footstool, turning it into a customised piece of furniture. Why buy when you can borrow useful items like a sewing machine? 🧵

If you've embraced the campaign and have birthdays coming up, fear not! Opt for shared experiences or thoughtful second-hand gifts. .
For those with green fingers, propagating plants is a wallet-friendly way to gift friends and neighbours. 🌿

Join the campaign at https://bit.ly/BuyNothingNewCampaigns and share your journey towards a more sustainable and mindful lifestyle.

And we’re back…Happy New Year to all our followers! We’re open 10-2 tomorrow for all your new year borrowing needs, come and find us above bakehouse on .

As a (very) small, community focussed organisation run entirely by volunteers, we rely on word of mouth and social media to help raise our profile. A little goes a long way!

Did you know, you can support local, small businesses without it costing you any money?

Sharing photos, videos and posts on social media or leaving reviews for great service can go a long way!

Economy, Enterprise, and Skills by Devon County Council Made in Devon

This weekend we are having a stand at the repair cafe. We will bring a selection of 'things', we can show you how our reservation and booking process works and you can see how it works.

hmmm....I'll reserve the chocolate fountain for the weekend and you can see how that works - just one of the many fun 'things' we have.

October 21st is the biggest day of the repair calendar! Celebrate with us on Saturday in Exeter at America Hall for Devon's biggest Repair Café! Bring your clothes, laptops, bikes, electrical and mechanical goods and furniture to be fixed and items to be sharpened by expert repairers. 🛠️

Or mark the day by holding an event in your area be it a Repair Café, Restart Party, a social, or something else! Any groups holding something repair related can add their event to the Repair Day Map 🗺️ so that everyone can get involved! 💚

Find the repair event map here: https://openrepair.org/international-repair-day/2023-events/

For information on local Repair Café’s check out the Devon repair map here: https://www.recycledevon.org/community-groups-map/

Recycle Devon

Absolutely love this picture we were sent by one of our members! Sarah and her family borrowed our bike trailer to use at a weekend festival. It has a detachable front wheel and push handle which means it can be used as a massive pushchair come festival trolley. Sarah says ‘The big wheels were great for the bumpy ground and it was ideal for the babies to nap in’ Love it!!

Don’t worry, it’s supposed to look like this! I bought this little bike for our summer camping holiday and it was so useful. Perfect for a morning surf check or trip to the supermarket. It will also fit in the boot of a small car! It’s now on the website and available to borrow for £8 a week.

Just a heads up, we’re closed on a few Bank Holiday weekends, the dates are noted above. This means you can borrow for 2 weeks and only pay for 1! Head to the website for membership sign ups and reservations www.exeterlot.org.uk

In the mood for a spot of spring cleaning? We’ve just listed these 2 donations from a couple of our amazing members! The Vax Platinum Power Max and the Rainbow Home Cleaning System are both available to reserve through our website now. exeterlot.org.uk

We’ve posted this image before but as it’s tomorrow it seems fitting to re-post 🌍 Using a library of things is an eco-friendly and sustainable way to reduce your environmental impact. A is a community-based lending system that allows you to borrow a variety of items you may need for a short period, instead of purchasing them yourself. This helps to reduce waste and conserve natural resources that would have been used in the production of new items. Using a LoT also promotes a more circular economy where resources are reused, which can reduce greenhouse gas emissions and other environmental impacts associated with the production process. By utilising a Library of Things, you can raise awareness about sustainable living practices and inspire others to take similar actions, contributing to a more environmentally conscious society.

We be lost without our amazing volunteers. We’re in today at the Volunteer Fair. Come and find us if you’d like more information on how to get involved with Exeter Library of Things!

Ding D**g! When we’re open our new doorbell lives next to the ground floor entrance door. If you need any assistance just give it a ring and one of our amazing volunteers will pop down to help.

It’s back! Our carpet cleaner had a bit of a malfunction but is now repaired and back in full working order. This is our most popular ‘thing’ by far and is available to reserve through our website exeterlot.org.uk

Happy New Year borrowers! We thought we’d share this re-imagining of Maslows Heirarchy of Needs by as our first post of 2023. “The Buyerarchy of Needs” is a helpful graphic can help differentiate between what you need and what you want, taking you through the steps of conscious consumption one tier at a time. The first level, using what you have, is the highest priority closely followed by borrowing. Whilst buying is the last level, after all other options have been exhausted.

We’re running another of our Power Tool skills workshops in conjunction with Co Create Exeter. Learn the basics of some of the tools you can access through our Booking is through the Co Create website cocreateexeter.co.uk. Also a reminder that we’re closed on the 24th and 31st so you’ll get 3 weeks for the price of 1 on anything you borrow from us this Saturday.

We love seeing people collecting stuff on a Saturday, even better when they come by cargo bike. collecting our apple press and scratter in preparation for an apple day with some neighbours. 🍎❤️🤙

We really need help finding a reputable accountant to work with. We also really need them to volunteer their services or at the least give us super cheap rates! If you think you could help us or might know someone who can then please get in touch.

Many of you will have met our amazing volunteer Ian, he helped out at ELoT most Saturdays and also spent time chatting to people about ELoT at this years Devon County Show. Unfortunately after a short illness Ian passed away peacefully last week. Ian was the very first person to answer our shout out for volunteers and had been involved with us from the start. He was a lovely man who will be missed greatly. Our thoughts are with his wife, family and friends. X

Thanks to and we’ve got a load of camping kit to add to the inventory. Single and double airbeds, 2 & 3 person pop up tents and a 4 person tunnel tent. We should have these checked and uploaded by next weekend so keep an eye on the website. Also just a reminder that we’re closed next weekend and open again on Sept 3rd.

It’s a bit hot innit? ☀️ We’ve just added a few new things to our inventory including this Ice Cream Maker. There’s still time to reserve it for collection from Sidwell St tomorrow for a week of home made ice creams!

exeterlot.org.uk/library

Ian, one of our amazing volunteers, spent the day at chatting to people about Libraries of Things, what they are and how they can help you save money and consume less. There are members of other LoTs there all weekend so if you’re passing the stand, call in and find out more. .devon

Out and about today picking up these beauties. Pillar Drill, Mitre Saw, Rotary Tool, Drain Rods and a Manual Tile Cutter. These will all be checked over, PAT tested where required and uploaded to the website ready for borrowing from next weekend. Don’t forget we’re open 10-2 tomorrow on above the come and say hi and find out what we’re all about

Our friends at Co Create Exeter are Crowdfunding for their wonderful Women in the Workshop course. Their aim is to provide the course to 100 women who have suffered abuse at some point in their life. The course will give participants the tools, the knowledge and the support to achieve simple DIY tasks around the home. Every donation helps, no matter how big or small so please donate, share and help spread the word.

https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/women-in-the-workshop?fbclid=IwAR2KCeHcNLmcL-aQ_6ANfBOXxUkAzTh8f2AC3-sXEwAtpO603l6qe4QmmaE

So one of our moth traps is being hired out for this glorious weekend from Exeter Library of Things! What a brilliant new social enterprise helping people borrow not buy!

Just a quick reminder that we’re closed over the Bank Holiday weekend so anything you borrow tomorrow you get use for 2 weeks and only pay for 1. Look out for our pop-up sign in the window of bakehouse on . Lots of garden tools available…pressure washers, strimmers, hedge trimmers, mowers, etc the list goes on. You can find all our ‘things’ on the website.

exeterlot.org.uk

We’ve been ‘looking into’ getting a telescope for a while now and have just added this Sky Watcher model to the Library inventory. It looks a bit complicated but comes with full instructions. As usual we’re open 10-2 tomorrow bakehouse and are running on the ground floor too. Come say hi and see what we’re all about 👋

exeterlot.org.uk

Exeter Library of Things updated their business hours.

Planning a Jubilee garden party? This 3m x 4.5m gazebo was damaged and destined for the tip. We ordered some spare parts and Ian fixed it so it’s now available to borrow. Ian is one of our amazing volunteers that give their time to help run ELoT, we couldn’t run the project without them. We’re not open over the Jubilee weekend so any things borrowed on May 28th can be kept for 2 weeks and returned on June 11th. And the best bit is you only pay for 1 week.

www.exeterlot.org.uk

Hard to reach bushes and shrubs getting out of control? We’ve got 2 extendable long reach loppers available to borrow, along with a whole host of other garden based goodies. Open on tomorrow from 10am to 2pm.