For Day 12 of the Thirty Days of Gratitude, I am grateful for all the lessons I’ve learned DIYing. I thought I’d give you my top five today.
1. The Only Thing You Have to Fear Is Fear Itself.
I told the story once about how I went to buy an augur to unclog our toilet. I was nervous as I approached the plumbing department at Home Depot. Why? People buy augurs all the time. Silly. (Spoiler: Bought the augur and fixed the toilet. Nailed it.)
Don’t be afraid to do a DIY project. I mean, don’t start with a project like building a house. But start small and TRY. You will be surprised at what you can do. A little fear to start means a big feeling of accomplishment at the end.
The time when I pulled the nasty carpet off the stairs and installed a runner. Had I done this before? Nope. Don’t be afraid to try.
That being said, you should have a healthy little bit of fear when using power tools. And by “little bit,” I mean enough to ensure that you’ve read the manual of your tool, you are wearing the appropriate safety gear, and you are careful when using it. We want you to come back with all your fingers, after all.
2. Do It Right the First Time.
If you are going to DIY a project, do it right the first time. Even if it takes a lot longer than you thought, it will take much longer to do it wrong and then have to do it all over again.
As a corollary to this theory, know when to call in a pro. If you can’t get the job done right, find someone who can. There’s a certain contractor who will tell you that I’ve done this often.
3. Go with Your Gut.
My friend, Cynthia said that her high school biology teacher told her that, statistically, women should always go with their first instinct. Now, I’m not sure what “statistically” means exactly, but HE’S A SCIENTIST! It must be true.
For example, I found these lockers at the Atlanta Habitat for Humanity ReStore:
I painted them to go in my kids’ play area as toy storage. I got the paint on them, let it dry, and then freaked out. Maybe I should have painted the lockers white? Maybe black? Maybe they should go in my kitchen? Finally, the aforementioned Cynthia told me what her teacher had said and I took a deep breath. I was right to paint them for toy storage. Here’s what they look like now:
And I can’t wait to get them in place in our house.
Someone once said (I can’t remember who. A mind is a terrible thing to lose.) that the DIY thought process has several phases:
1. This project is awesome!
2. Maybe this isn’t as awesome as I thought.
3. This really is not awesome. Like the opposite of awesome.
4. Maybe it’s not so bad after all.
5. This project is awesome!
Trust your gut. Trust me.
4. If Something Isn’t Working, Stop and Think.
If something isn’t working in a DIY project, don’t just keep banging your head against the same brick wall. Take a step back and think about it. What could you do differently? What tool would make this project easier?
Remember the post where Dear Husband and I moved a shed down the hill? We couldn’t figure out how to move that large, cumbersome shed. I stopped trying to move it and took a step back. Breathing and thinking is a good thing. Finally I solved the problem.
Not a flattering picture, but the sweat shows you just how hard we’d been working at this before I came up with this solution.
5. To Thine Own Self Be True.
Yes, you can spend hours on Pinterest and blogs and find all the trends, and you can put them all in your house. But if your house doesn’t feel like your home, then where’s the good in that? Trends are fine, but don’t jump on a trend’s bandwagon if it’s not your style.
For example, I don’t like faux taxidermy. I don’t care if every design blogger and every design magazine says that you are a fool if you don’t have a fake deer head above your mantel. I’m not doing it.
Your home should be a reflection of you. Surround yourself with design that makes you feel warm and fuzzy and safe and happy.
What DIY lessons have you learned? Please let me know in the comments. What are you grateful for today?
A "recovering lawyer," I turned in my power suits for power tools and a life of DIY. I believe in merging old and new to make a house a home.
Lots of practical and encouraging tips here. I saw your lockers on fb, but glad I opened this article too! I SO AGREE with #5 … our home has to FEEL RIGHT to us. My Hubs is as dedicated to this as I am. Now that we’re a little older and have more time together, DIY is more often a team sport. It’s quicker, not so frustrating as doing things alone … and lots more fun.
Great post AND I can’t wait to see where those lockers are going in the new place 🙂
Thanks, Cheryl! I love “DIY is a team sport.” That is so true! Hopefully the lockers are getting put in their new spot today (I need help lifting them – they are REALLY heavy!). I’ll post when I do. Thank you!!!