Fix It! Residency at Per Diem

Overview

Since discovering Fix it!, a pop-up workshop where handy volunteers have a go at bringing broken household objects back to life, I have been asking myself what really needs fixing in the world. A creepy clown, the global financial crisis, free-to-air television content?

In the end I set off for Richmond's Per Diem cafe, where the initiative has settled in for a Saturday residency for the month, with something that everybody's busted a few times — a broken heart.

So how does one get over troubles of the heart, according to head fixers Erin Lewis-Fitzgerald and John Harland? 1. Get working on something constructive 2. Get on RSVP, stat — Lewis-Fitzgerald has worked on the RSVP profiles of nice single people before, if you ask sweetly enough it might happen again. 3. Crack out the vodka, sink into the couch and keep refreshing your ex's Facebook page (actually that one's mine and it's probably not advised).

Other than lovesick souls, the fixers have been busy trying to get more practical things working since opening on March 2. Boots, umbrellas, toasters, a shredder, pants and clocks have all experience reincarnation across the Fix It! workbench.

The inspiration for Fix It! comes from Amsterdam, a utopia where people get together to help repair each other's household objects for sustainability purposes and to pass on knowledge about how everyday things work. Looking at my shabby shirt, Lewis-Fitzgerald gently informs me of the best way to get missing buttons attached (stick a toothpick between the button and fabric to give it some space, then pull the pick out when you've finished sewing, FYI).

Harland, one of the group's regular fixers, thinks the idea appeals to the mechanic in all of us because, “People are just interested in how things work. Humans have evolved to solve problems together, but in many ways we're losing this. Fix It! is a way that we can keep learning from each other,” he says.

The fixers are keen to idle hands busy so get down there on any Saturday before March 23 with all the appliances, clothes and heartache you can carry.

Image via Fix It!