Janelle Powell and her husband went to their local library branch for an electric saw and grabbed a pasta maker while they were at it. <\/p>\n
The Markham, Ont., couple were contemplating buying the power tool for a one-off home reno project, but didn\u2019t think they would use it again. <\/p>\n
So to the library they went. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe were doing that checkout process (and) I noticed that they had a pasta maker,\u201d said Powell, who works in marketing and writes online about various \u201clife hacks\u201d on the side.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was like, \u2018Oh my gosh, I\u2019m borrowing this.’\u201d<\/p>\n
After two weeks whipping up ravioli and other pasta shapes, Powell asked herself whether she wanted to buy her own machine. <\/p>\n
It was fun, but she concluded \u201cprobably not.\u201d <\/p>\n
Libraries have far more to offer than books and hushed spaces. Sometimes you have to ask or dig around, but a library card can get you a wide array of tools, gadgets, resources and services at no cost. <\/p>\n
For littles<\/p>\n
From drop-in storytimes to play areas with a rotating selection of toys, libraries can be a haven for parents looking to save cash \u2014 and their sanity \u2014 as they try to keep their kids occupied. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe see some of the same families and children repeatedly every single day,\u201d said Barb Gillard, executive director of visitor experience at the Calgary Public Library. <\/p>\n
There are several early learning centres at branches across the city. One features a decommissioned fire engine where kids can push buttons to make the lights go, listen to recordings of pretend emergency calls and don mini firefighter gear. Another has a real-life helicopter. <\/p>\n
For Powell, checking out video games at the Markham library has been a better option than shelling out $80 a pop for new ones her nine-year-old quickly beats. <\/p>\n
The toy library has also been a godsend, allowing her to grab a bag for a week and rotate them out before her two-year-old loses interest. <\/p>\n
\u201cI wish I knew about it before I had my second son because you spend so much on toys and trying to entertain your kids and they get bored of them so quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n
For workers and job seekers<\/p>\n
The Vancouver Public Library has been seeing more people use its spaces for remote work post-pandemic, said director of information technology and collections Kay Cahill. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s no price of admission. You don\u2019t have to go and keep buying cups of coffee to feel like you can stay,\u201d she said, adding the library is also thinking about adding soundproof pods so people can take video calls in privacy. <\/p>\n
Libraries generally have plentiful power plugs, good wireless networks, meeting rooms and some free printing available.<\/p>\n
Computers available to borrow often come preloaded with software that would otherwise carry a hefty subscription price. <\/p>\n
For creators and art lovers <\/p>\n
Audio-visual equipment, recording suites, editing software and green-screen studios are some of the offerings your city\u2019s library may have.<\/p>\n
The Toronto Public Library has a dozen Digital Innovation Hubs spread across the city, with various software programs, specialized equipment and courses. A 3D printer can be used for a minimal fee. <\/p>\n
\u201cInstead of having to go out and buy something or pay for a service or a course, you now have the resources to potentially do it yourself,\u201d said Natalie Colaiacovo, the Toronto library\u2019s manager of innovation services. <\/p>\n
\u201cRecently I had a customer reach out to me who was experiencing homelessness and she mentioned that she was using our graphic design tablet and the software in the Digital Innovation Hub to help her achieve her goal of self-publishing a children\u2019s book.\u201d<\/p>\n
The North York branch has a fabrication studio with sewing machines, a serger, embroidery machine, heat press, vinyl cutter and button maker. The Vancouver library runs in-demand clothes-mending courses.<\/p>\n
Many libraries have musical instruments that can be checked out. <\/p>\n
\u201cIf you don\u2019t want to invest in the instrument, if you\u2019re not sure if it\u2019s something you\u2019re going to enjoy, you can borrow it for a short amount of time to try it out,\u201d said Gillard, in Calgary. <\/p>\n
The Vancouver library was flooded with interest the day it opened its instrument-lending program, recalled Cahill. <\/p>\n
\u201cLiterally everything went out except for one left-handed guitar,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
Some libraries have passes to local museums and other attractions. <\/p>\n
And of course, there are films available to stream through Kanopy, ebooks, audiobooks and magazines through Libby and thousands of newspapers from around the world through Press Reader.<\/p>\n
Powell figures she\u2019s saved thousands with her library card. <\/p>\n
She said she was deluged with comments after she posted a video chronicling her foray into pasta-making, incredulous that the machine could be borrowed from the library. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt just kind of dawned on me that most people don\u2019t realize the library allows you to borrow things beyond books,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s evolved so much past that.\u201d <\/p>\n
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 14, 2025.<\/p>\n
Lauren Krugel, The Canadian Press<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Janelle Powell and her husband went to their local library branch for an electric saw and grabbed a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":69189,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[353,49,48,75],"class_list":{"0":"post-69188","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-books","8":"tag-books","9":"tag-ca","10":"tag-canada","11":"tag-entertainment"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69188","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=69188"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69188\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/69189"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=69188"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=69188"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=69188"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}