Welcome to Tear Cap Workshops! We are a non-profit organization dedicated to unleashing creativity in Hiram, Maine.
Community at a former sawmill
Located in Hiram, Maine at the site of a former pine sawmill, Tear Cap Workshops is committed to promoting and enriching hands-on learning opportunities. We have an emerging hands-on workshop schedule and we lease workshop spaces to established artisans.
The former sawmill facility consists of 19 acres and 11 buildings. Many of these building are being repurposed as workshop spaces to rent for established artisans — from timberframing to guitarmaking. We also offer hands-on educational classes in traditional skills for any adult in the community to take part in. Our classes range from woodworking to stonewall building, bookbinding and basketry, as well as other hands-on craft based on local, natural materials. We also offer educational seminars and free public events.
Our goal is to make good use of a former industrial campus by building community through hands-on craft and education. We aim to offer a wealth of opportunities for anyone who wants to learn a new skill or needs the space to work on a creative project.
New Internship Possibility at Tear Cap!
We are searching for a new position at Tear Cap Workshops: a Garden Manager who will be responsible for the care and upkeep of the vegetable garden plot at the campus. The goal of the garden space is two-fold: to be an educational resource for the community and to provide fresh fruits and vegetables for some of our special events, to provide snacks (like snap peas or cherry tomatoes) for our classes, fresh cutting flowers for decorations as needed, and some special plants for special uses (like dyeing or eco printing.)
This is an unpaid internship position, but the person responsible for the position is entitled to 50% of the produce produced for their own use. Any extra produce, not immediately needed for a Tear Cap Workshops event, may either be sold to benefit Tear Cap Workshops or donated to a local food pantry. Tear Cap Workshops will also provide a $100 seed budget to get the garden going.
See more about the position here: https://tearcapworkshops.org/employment-and-internship-opportunities/
Tear Cap Workshops in the news…
We were so thrilled to be featured in Lake Living! Read the full article here.
A big thank you to our Business Sponsors whose support helps make Tear Cap Workshops’ mission possible!
With additional support from:
Blick Art Materials
Central Boiler
The Cote Corporation
First Light Wildlife Habitats
Hunting, Dearborn Division
Keiver-Willard Lumber Corporation
Repose Fire Logs
Norway Savings Bank has been a Tear Cap Workshops sponsor since 2018! In the photo above, Erin Nelson, right, manager of the Bridgton branch, presents a check to Sally Dunning, Tear Cap Workshops’ Board President, left, and Sarah Banks, Tear Cap Workshops’ Administrative Director, center.
Interested in getting more involved?
- Become a member by making a donation to Tear Cap Workshops. Your donation is tax-deducible: we can’t do any of this without member support! Please follow this link to get started, or click the button below:
- Contact us to find out more about volunteering, attending a facility tour, or just to get in touch! We look forward to hearing from you. Email us at info@tearcapworkshops.org
- Sign up for our next hands-on class, reserve a spot in our new Rent-a-Bench program at the Community Woodworking Shop. Or, for a long-term rental, please contact us to find out more about renting your own workshop space at Tear Cap.
- And don’t forget to sign up for our newsletters! Pictures, events, and exciting announcements await your inbox or your mailbox. Sign up for our e-newsletter, print newsletter or both!
E-newsletter sign-up:
See past issues in our archive here.
Sign up for our print newsletter!
Thank you for your support and interest!
Upcoming events, workshops and makerspace opportunities:
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Read more about our history and how Tear Cap Workshops came to be: