Repair Cafe RVA

05/11/2026

We're delighted to announce that we'll be at the Richmond Main Library this month! Bring us your favorite broken things as usual: appliances/electronics, textiles, jewelry, furniture, and sewing machines! We'll keep you updated as we'll hopefully add one or two more categories.

In this post, I'd also like to give a huge thank-you to who has been our incredible graphic designer from the beginning and is now stepping down. She designed our mascots and our brand guide and even jumped in to volunteer at our first events when we were still figuring everything out. Thank you, Anya, we appreciate you!!!

Image description: on a pale orange background with a sunshine and clouds, stand two of our mascots, a smiling glue bottle and a smiling wrench. The text reads "repair cafe rva guess what? it's time for: MAY REPAIR CAFE 101 E Franklin St Here's the important stuff: Richmond Main Library Sunday, May 31 1:30-4:30pm (last call for joining repair line is 4 pm) We will repair appliances, electronics, textiles, and more..."

04/22/2026

Happy Earth Day 🌍🌏🌎
To all of us earthlings
However you celebrate
Thanks for taking care of our planet
And thanks for taking care of each other
🧡💜 From your local Repair Café

Photos by

Video description: slideshow of event photos including people completing repairs together and building community with the above text

04/10/2026

🌍 Happy Earth Month 🌎

Check out these lovely February photos by the lovely

Please let me know if I missed you and you'd like to be tagged :)

Image descriptions:
Slide 1: from the end of a long table where repairs are happening, you can see people on either side and the clothing swap in the background
Slide 2: two people pose with tables of clothing for swapping and a striped changing tent in the background
Slide 3: one of our adhesive experts works on repairing a lime green chair while another adhesive expert observes
Slide 4: two volunteers collaborate on repairing a neat sling-style chair
Slide 5: a smiling visitor holds up a newly mended pair of pants
Slide 6: four people examine a torn jacket cuff
Slide 7: a person holds up and examines a woven blanket with a purple stripe
Slide 8: a person peruses the free clothing swap rack
Slide 9: two people sit and chat in the waiting area
Slide 10: an appliance expert examines an electric fan
Slide 11: a person has their arm through the back of a wooden chair to carry it on their shoulder
Slide 12: two appliance experts disassemble the electric fan
Slide 13: a textile expert hand-sews the ripped denim jacket cuff
Slide 14: a visitor holds up a mended shirt
Slide 15: a sewing machine expert demonstrates with a piece of a sewing machine while a guest observes
Slide 16: two visitors admire the repaired denim jacket cuff

03/16/2026

For our March event, we're bringing the whole Repair Cafe to Big Trans Fest - come join us and bring your favorite broken thing :)

Image description:
slide 1: color scheme is pastel pink and pastel blue with a screwdriver and wrench in the background. text reads: "repair cafe toss it? no way! Join us for Big Trans Fest March 28th 1pm-6pm 1000 Blanton Ave This event is FREE for everyone. First Come, First Served. We will repair appliances, bikes, electronics, furniture, jewelry, textiles, toys, and more!"
slide 2: color scheme is also blue and pink with two carabiners and text reads "Big Trans Fest a special artists market & event to celebrate international trans day of visibility w/ dj wwommxnn * nbphobic and performances by local performers and drag artists Saturday 3/28 1-6pm Carillon Lawn, 1300 Blanton Ave and First UU, 1000 Blanton Ave Richmond VA"

02/27/2026

Thank you .between.friends for making and giving us the perfect birthday cake 🎂 it was so beautiful and delicious, many rave reviews from our volunteers and cafe visitors!

Together we've saved 2,700 lb and counting from the landfill (315 lb at this event alone)

All photos by Antonio Guarniere 📸

Image descriptions:
slide 1: a beautiful olive oil sheet cake with strawberries and maple buttercream with swirls of red frosting and yellow flower petals sprinkled on top with a sign in the background that reads Cake Between Friends with the logo of a cute cat wearing a chef hat
slide 2: close-up of four hands holding and using a multimeter
slide 3: several people sit across from each other at a table with a green glass desk lamp and other objects to be repaired
slide 4: same as slide 3 but with different people and different objects such as a stand mixer
slide 5: two people work on textile repairs, one uses a sewing machine and the other sews by hand
slide 6: five people sit around a table, some are in conversation and others are focused on repairs
slide 7: two people face each other with a sewing machine in between them
slide 8: four people surround a sewing machine on a table, one person is working on a crossword puzzle
slide 9: a close-up of a soldering iron with an orange base
slide 10: three people work on repairing a small orange cat-shaped appliance together

02/16/2026

Thank you to every single one of you who joined us on Valentine's Day- volunteers, visitors, clothing swappers, and curious observers

Thank you to for kindly lending us their beautiful, welcoming space again

Please stay tuned for more event photos, including our incredible birthday cake 🎂

All photos by Risa Gomez 📸

Image descriptions:
slide 1: a volunteer repair expert fixes a lime green chair
slide 2: another volunteer repair expert sews a brown leather chair
slide 3: a volunteer repair expert demonstrates the repair of a garden fountain to a visitor
slide 4: in the foreground, two people on either side of a table examine a piece of clothing; people in the background look on or work on other textile repairs
slide 5: at the registration table with brightly colored tablecloths, two volunteers wait to greet the next visitors
slide 6: a lime-green chair separated from its monkey-patterned seat cushion patiently holds its registration sheet and awaits its repair; the chair has a sign that says "Repair Cafe"
slide 7: a volunteer repair expert holds an aged and well-loved Jack Pumpkinhead book

02/12/2026

Watch this to learn more about how clothing can become a circular economy:

How circular fashion is closing the loop on waste VPM | By Debbie Mickle Published July 24, 2025 at 3:31 PM EDT Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Screenshot / VPMHost Natalie Hodge explores the environmental and social impact of the fashion industry in episode three of VPM’s Zero Waste series. Glo...

02/01/2026

We've rescheduled our birthday party for February 14, yes that's Valentine's Day :) We'll still have a clothing swap, and though we can't guarantee to mend broken hearts, we'll still repair as many things as we can. If you want to participate, we're still looking for more volunteers - please comment or message us if you're interested!

Because it'll be on Valentine's Day, we shifted the schedule earlier and we may have some cute heart crafts to share. But you can also expect the usual friendly people, free repairs, wheelchair-accessible venue, air cleaners, free masks, and free refreshments you've come to expect at our events. We hope to see you there 🧡💜

Image descrition: our cute smiling glue bottle and wrench mascots hold balloons with hearts in front of a banner that reads: "Repair Cafe RVA's 1st Birthday!" Text in a heart below reads: "109 W 15th St Here's the important stuff: Studio Two Three Saturday, February 14, 11am-2pm (last call for joining repair line is 1:30pm) FREE CLOTHING SWAP! We will repair appliances electronics textiles ...and more!"

01/22/2026

Due to the heavy snow predicted this weekend, we've made the tough call to cancel Sunday's event. We're so sad about it, but want everyone to stay safe. We're making this call before the first flake falls in the hope that everyone finds out about the cancellation. Please spread the word, check on your neighbors, and stay tuned for the next Repair Cafe coming soon!

Image description: a purple banner reads "cancelled due to snow" and little snowflakes, all on top of the graphic for our January 25 event.

01/18/2026

Update: We'll be repairing appliances, bikes, electronics, furniture, jewelry, sewing machines, textiles, toys, and more! Have something specific you want to bring? Feel free to ask in the comments

Our beautiful graphics are by the inimitable, undeniably human, so much better than AI

Image descriptions:
slide 1: text reads "let's repair: appliances & electronics" with drawings of a circuit board, cord, battery, capacitor, and more
slide 2: text reads "let's repair: bikes" with drawings of a bike and a trike
slide 3: text reads "let's repair: textiles" with drawings of a scarf, pants, and a pillow
slide 4: text reads: "let's repair: books & toys" with drawings of a chicka chicka boom boom book, a robot, an orca plushie, blocks, and a slinky
slide 5: text reads "let's repair: jewelry" with drawings of a watch, a locket, a bracelet, and earrings
slide 6: text reads: "let's repair: furniture" with drawings of a table, a chair, and a side table with a vase of flowers
slide 7: our cute smiling glue bottle and wrench mascots hold balloons in front of a banner that reads: "Repair Cafe RVA's 1st Birthday!" Text below reads: "109 W 15th St Here's the important stuff: Studio Two Three Sunday, January 25 1-4pm (last call for joining repair line is 3:30pm) FREE CLOTHING SWAP! We will repair appliances electronics textiles ...and more!"

01/15/2026

Come join us back at on January 25 :)
In the meantime, please enjoy these beautiful photos by Holly Myers from August.
Make sure to gather your favorite broken thing along with its instruction manual and any spare parts!

slide 1: many people face each other across a long blue table with lots of favorite broken things on the table in various stages of being repaired
slide 2: two people wearing masks sit on a low stage facing each other with their heads bowed over a colorful garment
slide 3: a visitor wearing a mask holds up her newly repaired pendant
slide 4: a smiling volunteer operates a newly repaired frog marionette puppet while another smiling volunteer shows her hand as if to say "ta-da!"
slide 5: two people wearing masks hold a pair of colorful pants together
slide 6: a volunteer uses a sewing machine to mend a shirt while a visitor watches
slide 7: three people wearing masks stand and talk to each other while one holds a garment to repair
slide 8: two people crouch/kneel on the floor while examining an electric lawnmower
slide 9: two people face each other with a sewing machine between them and lots of folks in the background are working together on repairs as well
slide 10: smiling repair cafe visitor holds a newly repaired vintage nightlight with a moon cutout
slide 11: two volunteers and a visitor examine an electric kettle together
slide 12: a volunteer works on a textile mend with a sewing machine in the background
slide 13: a volunteer repair expert works on repairing a pink disassembled boombox
slide 14: another volunteer works on repairing a nightlight with a wall plug while explaining to the visitor
slide 15: a visitor smiles while a volunteer works on repairing a food processor