No late fees, either: Library of Things rents out tools, baking supplies for free

'It kinda gives a little more connection with your community,' said Daniel Sider while looking for a saw

Image | baking things

Caption: Just some of the baking supplies on offer at Library of Things YXE. (Guy Quenneville/CBC)

"There's some cake pans and pie pans. We've got a juicer, a quesadilla maker, a sandwich maker, a bread maker.
"We have camping things, coolers, a tent. We've got a hammock, I think. Some water jugs, and then some life-jackets.
"We got some lawnmowers. A waffle maker."
The contents of a foodie's bomb shelter? Nope — that's just Meg Dorwart cataloguing the varied offerings at Saskatoon's Library of Things.
The volunteer effort, launched five weeks ago, lends out useful but high-priced tools from the cozy basement of Saskatoon's The Better Good on Broadway Avenue.

Image | The Better Good in Saskatoon

Caption: The volunteer effort is open on Saturdays in the basement of The Better Good on Broadway Avenue. (Guy Quenneville/CBC)

All items donated

People can pop in on Saturdays from 12 to 5 p.m. CST to pick up an item and return it to the store on any of its business days.
"We're basically a library, but instead of books, we have a bunch of stuff to borrow and it's all for free," said Dorwart, the libray's coordinator.
"All of this has been donated by people in the community."

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Dorwart says the idea is to cut down on potential waste and offer people an economic alternative to buying new but rarely-used items.

'Connection with your community'

One of the citizens taking the library up on its offer Saturday — when the library held an open house — was Daniel Sider
He needed a saw.

Image | Daniel Sider with saw

Caption: Daniel Sider came seeking a saw for an art project. He wants to build a homemade lamp out of salvaged wood. (Guy Quenneville/CBC)

"I'm building a lamp out of salvaged materials and a piece of wood that I salvaged from up north," he said. "It's two and a half-inches thick so this should give me a rough cut. It won't be perfect, but it'll work well."
It wasn't his first time at the library.
"It's great. I think it's a community-based kind of concept and project and helps people that might not want to invest a $100 into whatever tool they might need for that 15-minute job, and it kinda gives a little more connection with your community and the people around you."
Items can be viewed and reserved on the library's website: libraryofthingsyxe.myturn.com(external link).
The best part?
There are no late fees, said Dorwart.