Local Resources
Because we work with a number of local organisations and our team is based in Lancaster District, we have created a map of local businesses and organisations offering services locally. If you would like to propose an addition, please contact us. If you have links to similar resource maps (or want to create your own!) we would happily add it to our resource section for others to find.
Refuse Waste Directory
With this map created by Victoria Frausin, we can search locally based on repair, care, and rescue options in order to refuse waste by keeping items in use longer.
Click on the icons to learn more about each option, or top right corner to expand the map for better use.
Local mending get togethers
Marsh Mending
4-6pm – First Wednesday of every month [during term time] at the Marsh Community Centre
Hosted by The Marsh Community Centre with Sewing Cafe Lancaster and Lancaster Steiner School.
Breathe new life into your clothes and save money. Bring along your mending no need to book. Free entry – materials, equipment and expertise available and great conversation.
Space2
6:30 – 8:30 pm – Every Wednesday
at the LAMM space in White Cross
Hosted by Lancaster and Morecambe Makers (LAMM). Wednesday evening is open to non-members to check out the space and access sewing machines, workshop, and other equipment to help repair all sorts of needs from textiles to tech, as well as support and knowledge from LAMM members.
Beer & Yarn
6:30 – 8:30 pm – First Tuesday of every month in Stonewell Tap, Lancaster.
Hosted by Sewing Cafe Lancaster meet up for some socialising while working on any handwork projects – from knitting and crocheting to mending and darning. If you need some materials and tools or assistance, there is always some on hand. The meet up is free, please purchase a drink from the bar to support them for hosting us!
Whether you’re interested in reading, listening to podcasts or watching a film, there are resources we’ve enjoyed and would recommend to others to learn more about waste and systems we live within. Don’t forget to check your library first, you can always request what isn’t in stock. Otherwise, try finding books through sharing/trading with friends or buying second-hand where possible!
We also co-host a monthly book/podcast club in Lancaster, if you’re interested in joining, please contact Rachel.
Recommended resources
Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
Written by a plant ecologist and member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, this is a fabulous book about how we can build healthier, more reciprocal relationships with the natural world. It’s not an understatement to say that this book changed my life by joining a whole series of dots and putting into words many things that were gnawing at my heart but I couldn’t communicate coherently. I love how the book is beautifully written and rooted in personal experience so it never feels like it’s preaching at you. She also has a beautiful speaking voice if you’re an audiobooks kind of person!
Discard Studies: Wasting, Systems, and Power by Max Liboiron and Josh Lepawsky
The first book we read for the ‘Unnamed Book Club’. Some people found it to be too academic and some people loved it. “Rather than focusing on waste and trash as the primary objects of study, discard studies looks at wider systems of waste and wasting to explore how some materials, practices, regions, and people are valued or devalued, becoming dominant or disposable. In this book, Max Liboiron and Josh Lepawsky argue that social, political, and economic systems maintain power by discarding certain people, places, and things.”
Crack Capitalism by John Holloway The second book read for ‘The Unnamed Book Club’ A groundbreaking guide to moving beyond capitalism, which shows that radical change can only come from exploiting ‘cracks’ in the system.
This was a welcome new discovery: an entire podcast all about reuse and repair, featuring some fab case studies of people, projects and businesses taking a holistic and creative approach to waste reduction. An added bonus for British listeners is that lots of the case studies come from the UK which makes it easy to translate the learning for anyone interested in creating similar projects here.
Upstream Podcast – How the North Plunders the South with Jason Hickle
Listening for the September 2024 ‘Unnamed Book Club’. Upstream podcast examines the systems that create the problems we face. This particular podcast examines how our ‘living standards’ have depleted the resources and wealth of the rest of the world. It’s a great way to approach understanding systems that have set the stage for waste colonialism as well.
Coming soon
Slow Factory Systems and Design Thinking
@hikaru_noguchi_design on Instagram. Other than the fabulous folk of Sewing Cafe Lancaster, this is the account that really inspired me about the possibilities of visible mending. Fabulous examples of stunning fixes that can be done on all kinds of garments. Enjoy!
@architectureofrepair is ‘making maintenance sexy’ and yes I do enjoy following for the sake that it’s a wonderful reminder that repair is an opportunity to do something creative and often the repair can create a whole new approach, look and/or life to the item needing it.
Ethical Consumer – “I love this especially for those occasions when I’m having to buy new or do something important like open a bank account. I can often get a bit overwhelmed by all the options and end up going into a research rabbit hole to try and find out which option is most ethical versus all the other things I need to consider. So I love that ECRA has basically done all this work for me, meaning I can just search their back issues for good brands to try!” – Beccy
Coming Soon