The Community EditionKWARTZLAB PROVIDES MEMBERS ACCESS TO INVALUABLE TOOLS
Hobbies can quickly become expensive, especially if it’s one that requires specialized tools like a laser cutter or full-size floor loom. But what if you did not have to buy those tools or find space in your basement for them?
That is the mission of Kwartzlab, a volunteer-led maker space located at 145 Bedford Rd. in Kitchener. Kwartzlab offers monthly memberships for $59 plus HST, which provides 24/7 access to the space’s wood, metal, textile, and pottery shops and tools.
Kwartzlab opened in 2009 inside the Boehmer Box building on Duke St., before moving to a space near Kent St. and Charles St.
Sarah Jones, Kwartzlab’s president, said the idea for the space came from a group of people who wanted to get together and build things.
“It was very much a hacker type of place, and some of those people are still members today,” Jones said.
“I used to have to tape every wooden corner because they would catch my sweater. Our metal, wood and welding shops would fit into one room here,” she said.
Kwartzlab moved the space on Bedford Rd. in 2019, and has taken over additional space since to add a textile area with looms and knitting machines. Today, it offers 9,000 square feet of space to its 230 members.
The membership base includes individuals and some small businesses. Jones said they have chosen to offer a single membership rate rather than a tier-based system.
“There’s a fundamental belief [that] we don’t want businesses to pay more and then suddenly feel like they have more privileges. We often get asked about student rates and things like that, but honestly, our rates are so much lower than any other maker space that it’s kind of hard to lower it any more,” Jones said.
In addition to memberships, Kwartzlab does offer rental spaces for members who need to store items onsite or for private workspaces.
“Membership pays for the lights on, and then studios end up paying for all the extra tools that we want to buy,” she said.
The general public can experience the Kwartzlab space at its Tuesday Open Nights, monthly mending and repair drop-ins, or at member-led workshops. At the Tuesday Open Nights, non-members can come to Kwartzlab and use general tools like sewing machines or hand drills. Specialized tools like the laser cutter or CNC machine are reserved for members.
“So, if you have something to sew and you want to just borrow a sewing machine, you could come in and do that. We’ve had in the past somebody who came in every Tuesday for two months and sewed a shirt,” Jones said.
As the space approaches its 20th anniversary and begins planning for its next chapter, Jones said accessibility is the top priority, whether that means staying on Bedford Rd. or finding somewhere new.
“That last move was chaotic. We lost members, we burned out the rest. We’re already planning ahead for how we manage it better this time,” Jones said.
Regardless of the space or the tools, Jones said what makes Kwartzlab work is the people and a willingness to try something new.
“Here it’s okay to not know everything. You can say, ‘I’ve never rewired an outlet, could somebody show me?’ And somebody will. I joke that we’re all weird around here. You just want the right kind of weird,” she said.
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Darcy Casselman
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