• Home
  • DIY
    • Accessories
    • Art
    • Drywall
    • Lighting
    • Flooring
    • Painting
    • Tools
    • Window treatments
    • Woodwork
  • Decor
    • Closet
    • Dining room
    • Guest bedroom
    • Hallway
    • Kitchen
    • Living room
    • Office
  • Life
    • Home ownership
    • Organization
  • Archives
  • Get the latest updates
  • FOLLOW ME ON PINTEREST!
  • Get your wall prep freebie!
    Social Icons
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Hello home, girl!

making a home on a tiny budget.

11/28/2022

DIY is not easy.

Most of the time, DIY is not easy, contrary to popular belief. Here’s why.

painting around the ceiling. DIY is not easy as seen in a 5 second TikTok video shows.

DIY is not easy.

When you view these quick, 30-60 second clips of various projects of various sizes, you may feel inspired. “Looks simple enough,” you tell yourself. You may read the description of the social media post to get a little more detail, but in the end, you decide to forage ahead.

DIY home projects are not easy. No matter what, the project always last longer than you expect. But the emotional payoff and savings are worthwhile. A lightbox reads "home project" in the middle of various tools needed for do it yourself renovation.

You buy all of the supplies that you saw in the description or in the video itself and choose a day. If you’re my sister, you call your sister and divulge your plans (LOL).

DIY is not easy. Adding a skim coat.

But when it’s time to start the project, you can tell immediately that this isn’t going as smoothly as when you saw it in the video. Frustration, wasted materials, and hours pass by an you begin to wave your white flag.

As a blogger and content creator, I am constantly strattling the line between being informational and entertaining.  Of course, the best content on the internet are BOTH. Many times, great content can often feel attainable.

Here on hellohomegirl.com, I aim to provide you information about common DIY projects of varying degrees of difficulties. Many of the projects I show are attainable enough for unskilled people to complete.

Nonetheless, I try to be honest with you guys about all details of a project and please hear me out — DIY is not easy (in general).

Let’s be real…

Not all DIY is created equally. Seriously — “DIY” itself is a misnomer! For example, DIY could refer to DIY renovation projects. Think removing popcorn ceilings.

It is not easy to remove popcorn ceilings, although my five second clip is quite satisfying to watch. But, to be honest, this is a 3 minute action condensed to 5 seconds. You know what else isn’t easy? The aftermath of removing those popcorn ceilings.

Unpainted popcorn ceiling texture debris lay on the ground.

Hours, days, and weeks were spent skim coating our ceilings after that fun, five second clip was posted. It was not easy.

Additionally, “DIY” could also refer to woodworking. That may be refinishing old furniture or even building something new. I refinished a rattan chair myself instead of taking it to a professional furniture refinisher.

But as you watch furniture videos and read blog posts, it may be worthwhile to ask an important question: When does a DIYer transition from novice to professional?

DIY can be easy (sometimes)

Gold frame with anthropologie print via Artfully walls. The art is red, blue, and pink with blue and white flowers on a coral ikat wallpaper

There ARE some easy DIY projects, but the majority are not. For example, my Anthropologie art swap is extremely easy. I showed my process to encourage folks to think outside the box for a chic look on a budget! In this case, DIY refers to a decor project.

Admittedly, this project is not a renovation project. This is a great place to start for people new to do it yourself projects of any kind.

That project was so easy, I got a disparaging comment on IG. However, this is a perfect example of how some do-it-yourself jobs are as easy as it looks. I share simple projects like this to inspire you to think outside the box.

Most DIY is not easy, but do it anyway.

A woman is skimming a textured wall to make it smooth.
A woman in smoothing a wall with joint compound and a drywall knife.

This is not to dissuade you from pursuing DIY projects. I’m just saying to assume that it will be hard. You aren’t a professional most likely, and that’s perfectly okay. Just go into a project with realistic expectations of yourself and a growth mindset.

Most likely, your foray in refinishing a beat up dresser will be imperfect. If a person who frequently refinishes furniture often takes 3 days to paint a dresser, plan in your mind it will take six! 

Conclusion

DIY is not easy, no matter what anyone says. A man sands wood with an orbital sander, surrounded by a drill, yellow and blue sandpaper, and sawdust.

Blogs and long form YouTube are worth checking out as they are more likely to show more reality of what can go wrong during a project. Here at Hello Home, Girl, you’ll get details and nuance about what can go wrong! This is not possible in a singular short TikTok video. 

DIY is not easy (at first). But it gets easier with practice. And sometimes, it doesn’t get any easier; your tolerance gets better. Just take those quick videos as entertainment.

Speaking of entertainment — come follow me on Pinterest! I have some great clips of entertainment yet informative DIY projects with detailed descriptions!

Sincerely,

Felicia.

Related

DIY, Home ownership

Posts you may like

  • The best primer for cigarette smoke in 2023

    The best primer for cigarette smoke in 2023

  • An Easy Way To Upgrade Curtain Rods

    An Easy Way To Upgrade Curtain Rods

  • How to make a ceiling fan look better

    How to make a ceiling fan look better

Want to know the next post?

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Previous Post
Next post

Primary Sidebar

Hi! I’m Felicia.
Welcome to hellohomegirl.com, my passion project about the musings of home decor, DIY, homeownership, and life. Here, you'll find helpful tips to creating your home with a lot of heart and a tiny budget.
Archives
  • October 2023
  • September 2023
  • August 2023
  • July 2023
  • June 2023
  • April 2023
  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • March 2021
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
Latest Grams

hello_home_girl

@oneroomchallenge week one: explaining my plan for @oneroomchallenge week one: explaining my plan for my half bath (including my limitations) on the blog. Link in bio!

In the comments, I want to know if you have a half bath in your home!

#halfbath #bathroomdesign #orcat
3 states, 2 shows, 1 unforgettable summer. Althou 3 states, 2 shows, 1 unforgettable summer.

Although it's still in the 90s here in Texas, summer's officially over. So I thought I'd bid adieu by looking back.

I'm so thankful for the places I visited, the people I met, and lessons I've learned.

Let me know one fun thing you did this summer!

#summer2023 #travel #goodbyesummer #hellofall
2 TOOLS WE USED TO GROUT: First, I used a float f 2 TOOLS WE USED TO GROUT:

First, I used a float for most of the #backsplash . But using the premixed #grout + the bevels made it hard to get between the tiles.

When it came to the edges, we used our fingers. It just worked better for us.

In conclusion, JUST USE WHAT WORKS. The grout instructions didn't say to use your fingers, but we did. 🤷🏾‍♀️

#kitchendesign

Are you an instructions follower or do you deviate?
I thought I'd share a #throwback of when I painted I thought I'd share a #throwback of when I painted the kitchen. A little tape #asmr for ya.

Do you use painter's tape or do you free hand?

#diyasmr #painterstape #diykitchen
If you're ever a guest in my home, just know that If you're ever a guest in my home, just know that I got you on all fronts -- no questions asked!

I hide things in plain sight often so that people don't need to feel embarrassed to ask for personal items.

Plus, storage in water closets can be kinda tricky. I got rid of my over the toilet storage cabinet and opted for floating shelves. The basket helps to add another bathroom storage solution to the room! (I got a new blog post about that topic...link in bio.)

Do you struggle with bathroom storage? LMK in the comments!

Also, do you have an auntie who cleans out your stash every time she visits? Or is that one just me? 🤭🤣

#bathroomdecor #bathroomideas #bathroomstyling #floatingshelves
My mom's plant is still alive some 2 years and 9 m My mom's plant is still alive some 2 years and 9 months later.

I decided it was bout time to put her plant in an attractive pot to hang there all cute and whatnot. It hasn't grown much in the last almost 3 years, but growth wasn't really the goal. 

The goal was just to keep it alive since many pieces of it were struggling at one time. To keep the pests from eating away at what was left.

I guess the plant has been imitating my life.

#grief #plants #plantsimitatinglife #houseplants
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Footer

About
  • Just a little about me…
Privacy
  • Privacy
Recent Posts
  • Half Bath Plans: One Room Challenge, Week 1
  • 3 Easy Solutions For Your Bathroom Cabinets & Storage Organization
  • How To Install Privacy Window Film (best way!)
  • Top 3 Amazon Prime Day Deals 2023 for home cleaning 
Hello home, girl! © 2023. Design by Kate.