DIY

For the past few weeks I’ve become increasingly attracted to the whole idea of DIY (do-it-yourself) home projects. This can probably be attributed to several relatively recent occurrences in my life. One is that a very good friend of mine, an entrepreneur and woman in business, is the closest thing I’ve seen to a flower child in real life. We became close friends just after graduating University and I’ve actually become spellbound in what essentially is her entire value system. Anything she can make for herself she pretty much will – bread, clothes, costumes, decorations, recycling bins, wall hangings, you name it. I’m not saying that she doesn’t ever buy anything – it’s just really refreshing to hang out with someone who values self-sufficiency and the details of everything. Not to mention she’s great to do crafts with – she has everything!

Another probable reason for my new-found DIY appreciation is simply because it’s a stress reliever, it makes you feel like you’re accomplishing something yourself, it gives you a sense of purpose, and the things you create are one of a kind – something I’m also starting to value as I move forward in my career and in life. It’s strange because as soon as I could afford to buy things I needed and wanted, all I wanted to do was recede into more simple times, and to create. Mentally, I need to always feel busy and that I’m working towards something, and maybe taking on projects like this is filling that urgency in some small way. Who knows.

I suppose this goes hand in hand with my last post about flipping houses and renovating. When I found this article in a recent Globe and Mail, I thought that maybe I’m not the only one who seems to be interested in this whole DIY craft thing. Maybe other people my age feel the same way.

Several weeks ago I purchased a one-of-a-kind “DIY” Led Zeppelin halter top from EBay. The vendor that sold it to me makes hundreds of revamped sexy girly tops from various vintage pieces of clothing. As we are now in what feels like the maturity of the box-store life-cycle (see the past MissBiz article, "Shopping Our Way to the Unemployment Line”), consumers are reverting back to old ways in terms of purchasing, valuing what they buy, and looking for quality and preciousness in what they buy as well. Albeit, there are some pretty funky one-off outfits you can mix and match from stores like Target and Wal-Mart if you dig deep enough, but DIY and the mentality of embracing the unique and “from scratch” method is more than just looking the part, consumers, myself included, are striving to make DIY apart of their lifestyle. With other sociological and environmental factors thrown into the mix, such as global warming, advancing technology, and increased population, getting back to basics and staying close to home*made* is becoming more valued than ever, especially in our generation of kids who are truly feeling the affects of industrialization.

I’m sure people have felt the way I’m feeling for some time now, I just haven’t had the pleasure of being able to think much about it. Maybe I’m just feeling the outcome of working full-time and wanting to find more purpose to my life than my career (not that I don’t love it completely), but just wanting to explore other sides of myself now that I have the capability and time to do so, instead of writing non-stop papers and assignments till all hours of every night, and worrying about what else I should get involved with so I could land my dream job one day. Now that I’ve accomplished that, I’m interested in exploring the right side of my brain more. Seeing what I’m capable of creating.

I’ve just recently joined a local Stitch n’ Bitch type group here in Halifax, and I’ll post more updates on this topic as I get more feedback on it. I’m looking into starting a few new projects and picking up old ones as well. I will surely fill you in soon!

Biz Bizzy!