Repair Cafe The Gap

06/11/2026

Before Black Friday ⬛ there’s Green Saturday 💚

Have you heard of Black Friday? It originated in the USA, falling near the end of November on the day after Thanksgiving 🦃 and it marks the start of the Christmas shopping period. Stores offer heavily reduced prices on some items to entice customers to get a bargain, whether they needed the items or not!

Unfortunately, this tradition has been adopted in many other countries worldwide, including Australia. It’s the epitome of rampant consumerism 🤑 and the antithesis of the circular economy that Repair Cafes strive so hard to achieve!

If there’s an item you really need, Black Friday is an opportunity to get it for a great price and save yourself some money. BUT we encourage you to think twice before replacing an item you already own! Ask yourself – could this be repaired instead? 🤔

Repair Cafe The Gap's November workshop is on Saturday, 21st November, BEFORE Black Friday on the 27th. Why not bring any broken thing you’re planning to replace along, and see if we can fix it? 🤷‍♀️

Our skilled volunteers can mend all sorts of household items – kitchen appliances, electronics, computers, phones, clothes, toys, mowers, bikes, furniture, tools, jewellery… The list is extensive! And the best news is that it’s a free service! You only pay for parts, and hopefully a donation towards our costs 🙏

Don’t give in to corporate greed this November! Be a rebel – save your money, and the planet! 🌏

Bookings are preferred, and open 7am tomorrow, Saturday 7th November.

Toss it? No way! Repair Cafe is a community service where volunteer repairers fix your broken things! This not only saves you money, it keeps fixable...

05/11/2026

Have you seen the November issue of The Western Echo? Their cover story this issue is all about how to reduce our waste by repairing, repurposing and recycling. It highlights several local community groups (like us) and businesses all doing amazing work in the circular economy. Check it out!

Recycling tips - there are other options for some of your waste which are much kinder to our planet... National Recycling Week

20/10/2026

📊 The stats for our special October International Repair Day event are in!

👨‍🔧 18 repairers and assistants
🙋‍♀️ 7 support crew
👫 51 customers with items to repair
🛠 60 items brought in for repair
👏 40 items repaired or advice given (66.7%)
⏸ 2 items in progress
👎 18 items not fixable or referred to professionals
⚖️ 93.8 kg of items saved from potential landfill
🌫 883.6 kg of carbon emissions saved* (equivalent to driving an ICE car 5904.7 km, or roughly around Australia from Mackay to Perth!**)
😋 Lots of coffees, jaffles and sweet treats consumed!

Some bonus stats for International Repair Day!

✨ 3 special activities - Beaded Sun Catchers, Kintsugi and Sharpening workshops
✨23 workshop attendees
✨ 1 delicious celebration cake!

🎉 Huge thanks, as always, to all the volunteers, and to everyone who came along and at least tried to get their things fixed! Also, we really appreciate everyone who made a donation - all funds raised go towards paying for our rent, insurance and consumables.

🙏 Big thanks to our volunteers Ben and Sheryl for running the Sharpening workshop, and Danielle for the Beaded Sun Catcher workshop!

🙏 Special thanks also to Steven Toomey for donating the amazing cake and to Bush - Member for Cooper for hosting the Kintsugi workshop. We are very grateful to have the support of our local members.

Our next workshop is the last one for 2026! It will be on Saturday, 21st November.

Online bookings will open at 7am on Saturday, 7th November, via this link:
https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1439350?embed

Like our page and turn on notifications to stay up-to-date!

* CO² emissions saved calculated using this website:
https://frc.cfsd.org.uk/index.php/rc-carbon-calculator-quick

** Distance driven calculated using this website:
https://www.distance.to/

20/10/2026

20/10/2026

📣 And the winner is ....

On Saturday, we held a raffle to raise some funds - not for the Repair Cafe, but for one of our extended RC family.

Our long-term volunteer, Elizabeth, recently travelled to remote far north Western Australia to visit her daughter Chelsea (23), born and raised in The Gap, now a pilot based in Kununurra. Just two days after Elizabeth arrived, Chelsea was awoken in the early hours of the morning by an unusual noise. When she investigated, she discovered the house was on fire. Chelsea acted quickly, alerting the housemates and ensuring everyone escaped safely.

Chelsea and her housemates lost almost everything in the fire. Chelsea escaped in her pyjamas and fluffy slippers, with little more than her a work bag, phone and a birthday card for Elizabeth, whose birthday it happened to be that very day.

Chelsea and her housemates have since secured a new home and are slowly replacing the belongings lost in the fire. All funds raised through this raffle will go directly towards helping Chelsea and her housemates get back on their feet.

On behalf of Elizabeth, Chelsea and her housemates, a heartfelt thank-you to everyone who purchased raffle tickets or made a donation, and a huge thank-you to Cr Steven Toomey for donating the hamper 🫶

Congratulations to the winner - Matilda!

17/10/2026

What a day! 😅 We hope everyone who came along to our workshop today, on the tenth annual International Repair Day, enjoyed the experience. There are lots more photos and stats to come, but we just wanted to shout out a huge thank you to Cr Steven Toomey and Jonty Bush - Member for Cooper for their contributions, as well as all our amazing volunteers 🙏

Happy International Repair Day 🥳
Long live our stuff!

14/10/2026

‼️ Bookings close 8pm Thursday ‼️

Toss it? No way! There are still plenty of bookings available across many of the categories. Don't miss out!

https://www.trybooking.com/eventlist/repaircafethegap?embed

Toss it? No way! Repair Cafe is a community service where volunteer repairers fix your broken things! This not only saves you money, it keeps...

12/10/2026

Do you struggle to read your phone or tablet screen through the crazy cracks? Perhaps your battery no longer holds a charge, the charging port is loose and wobbly or the camera doesn't work? Our Mobile Phones and Tablets volunteer Nicole can help!

These types of repairs will generally require two visits. On the first visit, Nicole will diagnose the problem and compile a list of the parts required to fix it and where to get them. Then once you've purchased the parts, bring them along for a second visit to have them installed!

Bookings are still available for our workshop this Saturday, 17th October, via this link:
https://www.trybooking.com/au/event/1439350/tickets?sessionId=6130438§ionId=2955647

Bookings close 8pm Thursday, 15th October.

11/10/2026

Who loves a good sit down? 🙋‍♀️ It can get a bit uncomfortable if the cushy cover is worn or split, or the webbing has detached from the frame.

Never fear, our upholstery volunteer Eileen is back this month! She can do small repairs, such as replacing fabric and webbing. You'll need to supply your own replacement fabric, but if you're not sure what you need, book a spot under UPHOLSTERY and Eileen can take a look and advise what's required for next time.

Here's the link to book:
https://www.trybooking.com/au/event/1439350/tickets?sessionId=6130438§ionId=3085772

Bookings close at 8pm on Thursday, 15th October.

11/10/2026

With the warmer weather upon us and showers forecast this week, your mower, whipper snipper and mulcher are about to get busy. If they're not quite up to the task, our Small Motors volunteer Colin can get them roaring again!

Book them in to our workshop next Saturday, 17th October, under Small Motors. Bookings close at 8pm on Thursday, 15th October.

Here's the direct booking link:
https://www.trybooking.com/au/event/1439350/tickets?sessionId=6130438§ionId=2760276