Borrowing tools from the Library of Things

This project is no longer running.

Have you seen the Library of Things at the Greener Kirkcaldy High Street Hub? Loads of garden and DIY tools you can borrow like you would a book from a library. But the best thing? It’s free!

I have some leftover tiles that I have been wanting to break up and turn into a mosaic for a while. I didn’t want to purchase equipment to do this as I knew I would only use it once and then it would end up in the back of one of my cupboards! So when I heard about the Library of Things, I took the opportunity to borrow a pick axe and a chisel. It was really easy to borrow – I just called into the Hub, joined as a member (for free) and took the tools away in the same day. They made the job so much easier!

So how can you borrow tools? Call into the High Street Hub, 254a High Street, Kirkcaldy, Wednesday to Saturday 10am – 4pm, fill in a simple form and bring 2 forms of ID,1 photographic and 1 proof of address. And off you go with your tools – you can borrow them for a week at a time.

Take a look at the range of tools you can borrow:
– DIY tools
– Gardening tools

For more information, or to request to borrow something, email Kitty on kitty@greenerkirkcaldy.org.uk. Greener Kirkcaldy also accept donations. Find out more about donating tools here.

Gardening tools from the Library of Things

It’s that time of year when you spend a lot of time in your garden. But what happens when you have something that needs to be done, but you do not have the right tool for the job? Most of the time, we end up buying tools to do a specific job, then we leave them at the back of the garage or shed and never use them again. This is wasting money, and resources.

An alternative thing you can do is call in at the Greener Kirkcaldy High Street Hub and borrow a tool from the range of gardening and DIY tools available in their Library of Things.

I borrowed a pair of garden shears and loppers to do some of the jobs that needed to be done in my garden.

I used the garden shears to trim the hedge in the front garden.

Before:

Here I am cutting the hedge:

After:

Next, there were some branches overhanging the path at the side of the house that needed trimming. I used the loppers for this.

Before:

The loppers did the job easily and, before long, I had cut off all of the branches that were in the way.

After:

The last thing that needed trimming was a bush in my back garden. I needed to use both the shears and the loppers as, while most of the branches were easy to cut, some of them were too big.

Before:

After:

I will be returning the shears and the loppers to the High Street Hub soon and seeing what else I can borrow to improve how my garden looks! What’s the point in buying something for a one-off job when we can borrow for free?