Indigo Hippo: Partner Feature
Cincinnati is quite the destination for creative reuse crafters. Most folks know that at Cincinnati Recycling & Reuse Hub we have a creative reuse space on our fourth floor that houses everything from 3 ring binders to crayons, glass blocks to carpet squares, and fabric and acrylic pieces. All of these are available for free to take away during our operating hours. For those looking more specifically for art supplies, we wanted to spotlight another organization which is just under 3 miles from The Hub, Indigo Hippo.
Indigo Hippo is located at 1334 Main Street in Over the Rhine. They are a non-profit Creative Reuse Center that offers pay-what-you-can pricing. This unique pricing strategy is part of their mission to make creativity more accessible for everyone. The materials in their shop will be marked by a color code that corresponds to a price range and materials start at just 5 cents!
Julia Lipovsky, current store manager described her working environment as “a magnet for artists, students, makers, teachers, problem solvers, and everyone in between. I am perpetually blown away by the generous donations we receive.” She’s moving on from her role at the end of the month but notes, “The most common thread between folks handing us their creative supplies? They want them to go to a good home with someone who will see the same value in the materials that they, or their loved ones, once did. And those are the people who walk through our doors each week: the people who look at a postcard, a doll mold, a thread spool, or a fabric scrap and think, 'I could make something with that.'”
Recently, Indigo Hippo was able to expand their mission of making art more accessible by offering a spot in the store called the Free Shelf. It’s their solution to dealing with an overabundance of certain materials, which after 7 years of collecting donations, is a necessary step in store maintenance. On The Free Shelf, you’ll find materials weighed, bagged, and tagged and customers can take them home for free. Indigo Hippo just asks that you bring your selections to the cashier so they can collect the tag and keep track of the impact the Free Shelf makes on our community.
Indigo Hippo accepts donations by appointment on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 12-5. They are open for shopping Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 12-6. For additional information, visit their website www.indigohippo.org or follow their Instagram: @indigohippo
Happy Creating!