Why You Should Do It Yourself? Despite what you might think, the main reason people undertake household renovations or construction tasks themselves is not simply to save money (or at least it shouldn’t be). Though it is in many cases possible to save yourself a few bucks by whipping out your tool belt and fitting your new kitchen by yourself, many choose to undertake these projects themselves because of the satisfaction they know they’ll get when the project is done, to learn a new skill or (if you’re anything like me) they are simply a little compulsive and don’t trust anyone else. Let’s take a look at these reasons in a little more detail…
Cost-effective / Save Money OK, so as I said above, it is indeed possible to save a few bucks (or substantial amounts for that matter) by embarking on these projects yourself… let’s take a bookcase as an example, (in my mind) there are x3 ways you can add a bookshelf to your living space. You can go to any furniture store and buy a solid wood, hand-crafted, gold-leaf-treated, dipped in caramel, bookshelf that’s already assembled and have it delivered right to your living room. That’s it, done and dusted; you’ve got your shiny new bookcase. But you’ve spent an arm and a leg in the process. You can give a local carpenter a call and ask him to design and build you one especially. He’ll then come to your home, measure up, sketch a design, go away to source materials, part-build at his workshop, come to your home to fit/assemble and then hand you a whopping bill. Once again, boom, you’ve got yourself a smashing new bookcase… but no longer have a pension plan. Number 3 comes in two parts in my mind, the first option is to nip to ikea buy a generic flatpack bookcase before coming home to spend hours trying to translate the so-called instructions to assemble yourself, once complete you’ve got yourself a nice new bookcase and it hasn’t cost the Earth. OR - and this is without a doubt my favourite of the x3 options, you can actually take the time to DIY… Sketch what you want your design to look like, take some measurements, draw up a plan, get the materials yourself and actually get stuck in! This option is by far my favorite as not only have you got the shiny new bookcase you wanted, you have the satisfaction of knowing that it was your blood, sweat and tears that went into creating it, you’ve saved yourself a few bucks and you’ve learnt a new skill. The benefits really are three-fold.
Learn a new skill This brings me onto my next point… by doing it yourself you learn a new skill, and in today's competitive employment world, can you ever have too many? This reminds me of a little anecdote I’m going to share with you… A friend of mine, an IT professional, who spent his days sitting in front of his computer writing lines of code for computer programs, found himself in a similar situation to that which I’m sure you’re in now. He wanted to remodel his kitchen, and with a pretty decent job, it would have been no skin off his nose to pay a professional to design and fit. However, for whatever reason (perhaps one of those we’re talking about today), he opted to design and fit himself. A few weeks, a multitude of YouTube’s how-to videos, countless articles and a broken thumb later, he achieved what I would consider to be an absolutely stunning kitchen. His new-found passion for DIY did not stop there, he went on to remodel his bathroom and basement, redo his garden and even undertake DIY jobs for his family and friends. Now, this former IT professional, owns a prestigious household remodeling company, making him x3 times his IT salary. By taking the chance and opting to DIY, you expand your personal and professional horizons once again, I feel this truly is invaluable, especially if you begin learning at a young age. These skills can be taken, developed and utilized and potentially lead to incredibly fulfilling careers.
A Little Compulsiv OK, so as I mentioned above, I’m a little compulsive and find delegating tasks to others challenging… especially strangers. Please don’t misunderstand what I’m about to say… I know the world is full of incredibly talented and professional contractors, who will undertake your project and deliver exactly what you wanted and more. However, even with all the reviews and pictures in the world, you won’t truly know what to expect from your contractor, until he has actually begun. You hear terrifying stories of people who handover their life savings to contractors, only to be left with gaping holes in their roof, light switches that shock them every time they turn on a light or a toilet that showers you every time you flush. By undertaking your household renovations and DIY projects yourself, you don’t risk letting those dodgy fly-by-night contractors in your home.
OK, so there is no denying that you’re going to make mistakes, and could well end up with one of the problems mentioned above anyway, but you haven’t handed over bundles of cash for the pleasure. What’s more, it’s just another opportunity to learn! So there we have it, reasons to take a risk and take on your next household renovation project DIY style. If you’re about to embark on a renovation or DIY project, you’re going to need the right tools for the job. Head over to toolboxguide.com for up-to-date reviews on the various tools on the market along with some handy hints and tips to make your next project go off without a hitch. For more information visit at http://www.toolboxguide.com/