Library of Things

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Borrow useful Things for your home, projects and adventures.

11/05/2026

✨ WIN 2 tickets to The Old Ways: Yarn Stories, a special screening of short documentaries celebrating traditional textile crafts around the world, from Palestine's embroiderers to Japanese indigo dyers.

🪡 Plus don't miss the pre-screening repair cafe with and the

We're also giving the lucky winner £10 credit to spend on .of.things tools to help with your repairs, crafts and projects (think: sewing machines, staple guns, DIY tool kits, drills and more).

To win:

❤️ Like this post
🎦 Tag a pal you'd love to take along
💌 Subscribe to our newsletter before midnight on 12/05/26 and select 'Barbican' or 'City of London' as your nearest location.

These tickets were kindly gifted by the Barbican Cinema and the event is part of

The Ts and Cs

- Competition open to UK residents aged 18+
- Entry closes at 11:59pm on 12/05/26
- One winner will receive:
🍿 Two cinema tickets for The Old Ways: Yarn Tales
🎫£10 rental credit for Library of Things
- Winner will be selected at random from our City of London subscribers and contacted via Instagram or email
- If the winner does not respond within 24 hours another winner may be selected
- Prize is non-transferable and cannot be exchanged for cash
- This giveaway is not sponsored, endorsed or administered by Instagram
- By entering you agree to be subscribed to the Library of Things
- You must be free to attend the screening on 16 May at 4pm

Good luck! 🤞

08/05/2026

Episode 1 of Business (Un)usual is out now. 🙌

The first episode explores the question at the heart of Library of Things: do you really need to own it?

Perhaps today more than ever (!) we need stories of people, organisations and communities doing things differently and being honest about what it takes to break out of the 'business as usual' mould,

so this is our story 💜

🎧 Tune in wherever you listen to podcasts! Link in the usual place 👆

06/05/2026

Want to level up your DIY skills or master the sewing machine? Join us this Saturday at Barbican Library. It's FREE and all skill levels are welcome!

What's going on?

🛠️ Power tool demos, tips and tricks from
🪡 Learn sewing machine basics with of .
🌱 Bring seeds and plants to swap with your neighbours
🧰 Learn more about .of.things, the items available and get a 15% off code for your first booking

🎀 Plus a little ribbon cutting at midday to celebrate the opening of City of London Library of Things 🥳

See you there!

23/04/2026

Meet our first members! 👋

Just some of the lovely folk who decided they didn't need to go shopping for something they might only use for a one-off project. Instead they hit up the new Library of Things inside the Barbican Library 🙌

Our first City of London users have told us they've put shelves up, pressure washed patios and cut tiles, saving money, waste and storage space in the process!

But a special shout out has to go to Joseph in the first photo, who hired the drill, SDS drill, jigsaw AND hand sander to build a bookcase 💪

If you want to get more DIY-confident, would love to learn how to use a sewing machine or you're just trying to save money and buy less stuff then...

🎉 Come along to our launch event on Saturday 9th May, 11am-2pm

📍 Barbican Library, level 2 of the

You'll be able to try out the tools and get top tips from the pros. And in the spirit of circularity we'll also be hosting a plant and seed swap! 🌱

Let us know you're coming via the Eventbrite 👆

31/03/2026

London just got a new Library of Things - here's how to find it 🛠️🧰🪜🙌🎉

This video shows you how to get to the lockers, which are based inside Barbican Library, from the main entrance on Silk Street.

So next time you need a carpet cleaner, power tool, sewing machine, speaker (or something else) you know where to come!

✅ Renting saves you money, helps reduce wasteful single-use purchases and leads to a bunch of other positive actions like repair and upcycling.

👆Remember to book online first via our website.

Thanks to and and the CIL fund for helping us grow the rental movement here in London 💜

27/03/2026

Bookings are officially OPEN 🙌

We're delighted to say we're now open for reservations at our newest location City of London Library of Things.

Need something for a one-off job? From carpet cleaners to sewing machines (and lots more), you can book what you need in just a few clicks, use it and return it for your neighbours to use.

Perfect for any DIY, cleaning or creative home projects you might be planning over Easter.

👉 Scroll to see what's available
🔍 Book online at libraryofthings.co.uk
📍Collect from the lockers inside Barbican Library, Level 2 (collections open from Monday)

✅ It saves you money, saves you space at home, keeps useful things in circulation while keeping wasteful single use purchases at bay

💜 Know someone who lives or works in the City of London? Tag them below to help more people discover the service

20/03/2026

We can't quite believe that 10 years ago we were about to launch a community tool sharing hub out of a shipping container in a West Norwood carpark. Fast forward to today and we're about to open our 23rd London location inside the Barbican 🤯

We're so grateful to everyone who has been part of this journey. Trying to change behaviours, shift attitudes and build an alternative to the 'take, make and dispose' model of consumption was never going to be easy but it would have been near impossible without you all 🙌

And a special shout out to the latest partners to join the LoT family .de We hope this collaboration means even more people will discover the benefits of affordable, shared access to tools.

Next up: getting the Things in!

12/03/2026

💫 Win a DIY workshop and the tools to practice with

At LoT we try not to promote stuff you don't need, so instead of a classic 'win stuff for your home' kinda competition we're launching 'Skills not Stuff' giveaways.

Throughout spring, we're giving you the chance to win a spot on a popular DIY or repair workshop across the city.

First up is the brilliant in Southwark.

You could win a place on one of these workshops worth up to £225👇

🔧 DIY Drills in a Day
🧱 Tiling Basics

Then borrow the drills or tile cutter you need from .of.things to practice at home.

Attendees have said:

"I did a day’s DIY course here and it was amazing. Good for anyone who is a DIY dope. Can’t wait to be let loose with the drill!"

"Fun and confidence-building."

Enter here: https://www.instagram.com/p/DVyxpkogmp5/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

If you're not on our mailing list, subscribe here: https://participate.libraryofthings.co.uk/newslettersignup

DIY classes in London | DIY basics | how to use a drill | how to tile | DIY Workshops | Learn DIY | Beginner DIY | London workshops

06/03/2026

Would you swap retail therapy for repair therapy?

👉 Swipe to see all the things that swerved the dump because our members gave repair a go instead 💪

05/03/2026

Happy World Book Day! 📖
Today we're celebrating the spaces and people that nurture reading and the love of a good book: our libraries and librarians!

🙌 We now have sharing lockers in 12 libraries across London (with another on the way), so we asked our library colleagues to recommend a book connected to our service in some way. ➡️ Swipe to see what they picked 👀

Don't have a library card yet? Why not use today to become a library member AND a LoT member 💚

Big shout out to our library partners for embracing LoT and championing the movement to share, repair and care more ☺️

⚒️📚 You can pick up books alongside power tools, sewing machines, carpet cleaners and more from:

📍Barking Learning Centre 📍Canada Water Library 📍Dalston CLR James Library 📍Kentish Town Library 📍 Leytonstone Library 📍Morden Library📍 Pimlico Library 📍 Sutton Central Library 📍Swiss Cottage Library 📍 Upper Norwood Library Hub 📍The Library at Willesden Green 📍Woolwich Library

And Barbican Library on its way!🎉

Address

3Space International House, Canterbury Crescent
London

Website

http://www.libraryofthings.co.uk/

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