Some of Pasadena’s most useful resources hide in plain sight. On East Washington Boulevard, Remainders Creative Reuse packs three of them into one building: a secondhand store for arts and crafts supplies, an upstairs creative space with art and sewing studios, and — the part most people don’t expect — a working recording studio. It is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and its stated mission is simple: provide low-cost materials and classes to the community in Pasadena and Altadena, and keep usable supplies out of landfills.
The store: treasures that change every week
The ground floor is a creative reuse store — think thrift store, but for art supplies. The shelves and bins hold an ever-changing assortment: fabric, yarn, paper, paint and brushes, beads and buttons, jewelry supplies, quilting and sewing materials, books, tools, decorations and vintage finds. Everything is donated, so no two visits are the same, and prices run at a fraction of retail — recent coverage of the store put the flow at roughly 10,000 pounds of donated materials a month, including bolts of fabric left over from movie productions.
The store is open Wednesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. (closed Mondays and Tuesdays).
Upstairs: the Creative Space
Above the store sits the Creative Space, where Remainders offers classes, events and open studio time for people working on their own projects. It includes a large art studio with tools and supplies, a sewing studio with machines, tables and tools, an art gallery (Gallery 787), a reference library, and a stage used for concerts and performances. Around the back of the building there is also a dance studio hosting fitness and movement classes, including capoeira.
One practical note: the upstairs floor is not ADA accessible, per the city’s ArtNight listing for the venue.
Yes, a recording studio
The upstairs lineup also includes a recording studio built for audio and music production: a treated room for tracking, a separate control room, plenty of gear, and experienced audio engineers on hand to help. Remainders pitches it for recording music, podcasts, vocals, voiceovers and more. Sessions are arranged by request — the booking form on the studio’s page asks what you want to record, whether you need an engineer, how many hours you expect to need, and, for music projects, a link to a demo (even a phone recording will do).
For bands, podcasters and voice artists in Pasadena and Altadena, it is a notably accessible option: a real tracking room and control room inside a nonprofit community arts space, rather than a commercial studio across town.
Classes: 40-plus a month, and they fill up
Remainders says it adds over 40 new classes and several new events each month, with the new schedule dropping on the first of the month. The current calendar runs from Beginner Sewing and Beginning Embroidery to book binding, small-loom weaving, wire sculpture, sashiko stitching, modern mending, Dremel and wood-burning workshops, kids’ hand and machine sewing, and meetups like Analog Hangouts and the Needlework Meetup. Most classes run $20 to $35, and many sell out — checking the calendar early in the month is the way to get a spot.
Donate, volunteer, visit
The whole operation runs on donations. The Donation Center is at the rear of the building and accepts donations Wednesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. You can drop off up to one bin (16″×24″×14″) or an armload without an appointment; larger donations — up to a carload — need an appointment booked through the website. Donations are tax-deductible, and receipts are available on request. Volunteers are welcome too; the store asks prospective volunteers to write to remainders.schedule@gmail.com.
Coming up: the Holiday Maker Market is Saturday, December 5, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. — free to attend, with local makers selling knitting, sewing, ceramics, jewelry, zines, prints and more (vendor tables are $40 for a four-foot table). Note the holiday schedule: Remainders is closed November 25–26 for Thanksgiving, and again December 21 through January 1. One parking warning from the store itself: there is no customer or class parking in the lot behind the building between 10 a.m. and 9 p.m. — those spaces are for staff and volunteers, so plan on street parking.
Remainders Creative Reuse
787 E. Washington Blvd., Suite 101, Pasadena, CA 91104
(626) 529-5014
Store: Wednesday–Sunday, 10 a.m.–6 p.m. · Donations: Wednesday–Sunday, 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
remainders.org · Class calendar · Recording studio
Sources: Remainders Creative Reuse (remainders.org — store, Creative Space, recording studio, classes and donation pages, and the store’s email newsletter); Secret Los Angeles; City of Pasadena ArtNight partner listing.
