Photos: Things get fixed at the Repair Cafe

Jessica Ferree gleefully poses with a “Fixed!” sign after her broken toaster was repaired by a volunteer at the monthly Repair Cafe event at a church in Pasadena.   (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Joanne Siegel logs repair and exchange activity at the Repair Cafe. Anyone with things in need of TLC is welcome to show up at the free monthly event.  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Volunteer barber Don Warriner styles hair for seamstress volunteer Jennifer Michaud at the Repair Cafe. Volunteers with a range of skills do their best to get items back in working order.   (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Therese Brummel is the organizer of Pasadena’s Repair Cafe, part of a growing movement in the U.S. and elsewhere that seeks to find ways to live independent of the traditional economy.  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Jet Propulsion Laboratory computer scientist Michael Starch listens to a broken knife sharpener as he volunteers at the Repair Cafe. The event’s organizer says a lot of her fix-it people work at high-powered places like JPL.   (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Jean Prinz scoops homegrown worms to give away at the Repair Cafe. Prinz grows the worms in homemade compost bins, using newspapers, soil and food waste.  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Volunteer repairman Tom Rome looks over a broken blender brought to him by Violeta Galindo at the Repair Cafe. The photo was taken from behind the curtain of the main stage inside the Pasadena church’s hall.   (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)