Why DIY Projects Are Not Worth It15 min read

There was a time when I was freakingly obsessed with DIYs and used to spend hours hunting for creative ideas all over Youtube and Pinterest (these social media being the target hotspots for all kinds of DIY lovers out there!).

But… BUT! There’s a catch.

These DIY projects, however exciting, might not always be as time-saving and pocket-friendly as they might seem if you look at them superficially.

Over years (read: a decade) of trying and testing various DIYs as a crafting enthusiast, what I have begun to cotton on is that most of the time, these DIYs aren’t worth it. And let me tell you why.

Most often than not, these Do-it-Yourself projects end up exhausting you both mentally and physically while also pinching your pocket. It might seem like you’re saving money by creating something at home, but it isn’t always the case. The various materials you need to purchase before getting started on that one project can end up costing you more than the store-bought replica of that DIY you had been meaning to create. What’s more, you also compromise on the quality that you would otherwise get from a non-DIY product or machine or factory-made product!

So, while you got the gist of what I was intending to convey to you in the above paragraphs, let’s condense them into some crisp pointers.

Here are all the reasons I don’t like DIYing after years of being a Crafting Enthusiast:

1.You will have to take out some of your precious time and put in all your effort, hard work, and devotion into making a DIY project a success, WHILE also bearing a pinch on your pocket.

^{….said every unsuccessful DIYer to their DIY. 😛}

2. The end result wouldn’t always be as you have expected because let me guess, you aren’t a professional DIYer! (Or, maybe you’re, Idk).

But assuming for a vast majority of us who aren’t professionals, it will take lots of trial and error and TIME to get good at it. Don’t expect super amazing results in the first go!

3. Additionally, depending on the materials that you use, DIYs usually don’t stay in their good original shape in the long haul. If it is made of materials like paper then it can easily collect dust and grime over time that can be hard to get rid of (err, bad news, you can’t use water on them!). And, it can also be squashed with just one thump.

Even those raw wooden slices that are getting so popular as a medium to paint on, at times, can be difficult to keep as they are more likely to get moldy if not sealed with a protectant.

So, the crux of this point is, your work doesn’t end after you have completed your DIY because now you would want your craft to stay intact for a long period of time (who would want their creation to live a short life and then die?)

…And to do that, you would need more materials which would lead to more spending! So all in all, DIYing can put you in constant need of things that will require you to go to a store and empty your pockets full of money.

^{Yeah, DIYing is a Vicious cycle…and A TRAP!}

4. Not to get you disheartened, but you really cannot get the same quality by DIYing as you can get from a store-bought product. Furthermore, you might also be under pressure to finish your project if it is a particularly time-taking one.

5. If you earn then you would actually understand that it’s so much better to invest your time in your job that will get you money than to invest that time in making DIY projects that can potentially make you lose money.

6. Some DIYs can cause potential health hazards while some can even force you to take a trip to a doctor. I will elaborate on this point citing my own example after this list ends.

7. And, one more important thing some people miss to take into account is the time, energy, and efforts (sometimes, also petrol. Or diesel, if that’s what you use in your vehicle) that gets drained in procuring materials for the DIY, which, in turn, can cause you to undergo more stress.

And, what’s worse is the need to hunt down several shops just to find the one material that you need but is not readily available.

One more possibility could be that you might end up buying a large quantity of material just because it’s cheaper than buying its smaller quantity… but then you end up not finishing it up, and the product officially becomes a waste that’s weighing heavy on your mind and also in your room.

Let’s take my own examples:

The first one up here is a “Scary Resin Story.”

It was during the initial months of our first COVID lockdowns in 2020, I was seeing a surge in the popularity of Resin and the plethora of handmade products people made out of it. Almost every artist I used to follow on Social Media seemed to be in a deep love affair with Resin. So, naturally, I got swayed away seeing all the unending hype and put an order for Resin and a silicone coaster mould on Amazon.

Then, after binge-watching tons of resin tutorials for days, I got a video recommendation on YouTube that had something written in the title like “WARNING BEFORE YOU USE RESIN,” and I sat there, scratching my head, wondering what in the world could be there in Resin that could be so harmful. :/

Intrigued to know, I finally opened the video and got to a point where she said that she had been making Resin products to sell and mentioned how using Resin for a long time backfired on her and she ended up getting severely ill.

And upon hearing that I was…umm…what’s the perfect word for it?

SHIT SCARED!

Well, she also stated that Resin was a chemical, and that was something I didn’t know before I had placed that damn order which had already been delivered to me on the same day I chanced upon this video.

I will also leave a link to the video at the end of this post so that you guys can check it out.

So, anyway, I digress.

After getting the package delivered and knowing very well about the potential health hazards of using Resin, the so-called adventurous “me” wanted to try it out herself to know why it was bad when there were literally thousands of people were using it without getting any side effects.

And, here’s the account of my first physical encounter with resin, a mention of all the things that happened to me after using it:

1. Within a few hours of using Resin, I ended up getting breathing difficulties and a feeling of uneasiness in my chest. You can blame the overpowering chemical smell.

2. While making a canvas art, the messy Resin liquid seeped through the many layers of plastics and newspapers I had set up to inhibit it from getting on the floor.

And, as bad it could get, after drying, Resin also left a stain on the tiled floor that didn’t seem to go away even after using tons of cleaning products. I was so bummed that it ruined my floor that I ended up trying almost everything I could get my hands on to clean it up. Not giving up even after many failures, determined to get that stain off of the floor, I decided to hold a small search party on Google. I came across a website that said rubbing alcohol could be effective against removing resin residue. But, the problem was, I couldn’t just go to the drugstore and buy it because my family would get to know about the little disaster I had made in my room. So, I thought about it for a few minutes and suddenly something came into my mind that could help me in this dilemma–it was none other than our Pandemic Super Star–an alcohol-based hand sanitizer! Yes! a freakin’ HAND SANITISER was all it took to get me to get rid of those stubborn and nasty Resin stains!

…I even remember my mom asking about how the sanitizer bottle got emptied in just one day. 😛

3. Despite using gloves, that absolutely gross-feeling Resin stayed on my hands for a good one to two days, until I found out that alcohol (tch, tch: sanitizer) helped in removing it.

4. Annnnd, the end result was absolute shit. The resin had several bubbles popping up that didn’t go away even after using a hairdryer that I had to buy specifically for the purpose of making this Canvas Art. (I generally avoid using a hairdryer for drying my hair).

So, you can kinda see what I just told ya: DIYing is nothing but a vicious cycle of needing more and more materials just to create one! -_-

And, yet again, the same feeling of breathing difficulty and uneasiness occurred to me when I had used the Crackle Medium to create a crackle effect on leftover glass milk bottles.

Note– Even though I would never suggest anyone to use Resin, I would like to caution those who use it.

Caution!!!

IF YOU REALLY NEED/HAVE TO USE RESIN then PLEASE WEAR A MASK and A PAIR OF GLOVES and KEEP THE WORK AREA WELL VENTILATED!

^{Okay, so I’ve kinda learned my lesson the hard way, and I vow to NEVER use these EVER again. 😛}

The second one up here is the “Story of a Mirror.”

Approximately four to five years ago, I tried to create a Sunburst Mirror out of the heads of plastic spoons and a bottle of spray paint.

As y’all must have guessed by now that it was a terrible idea. Indeed a bad investment of my time, energy, and money.

Neither did I get any satisfaction after creating this nor I could use it as a decor piece in my home as the paint started chipping off from the spoons from day one.

^{This is the present state of the mirror.}

Notice how the spray paint looks uneven and blotchy on the spoons and is chipping off from its surface. Even the glue gun didn’t do a great job at keeping the spoons together for long. One can easily pull the spoons out of the board in one try.

Also, notice the sides of the mirror that does not look symmetrical even after giving my best to make them proportionate.

_______________

Okay, so let’s get into some of the math stuff and break down the costs of making this shoddy mirror that I never used anyway. 😛

1. MDF board- Rs. 700

2. Three to Five packets of high-quality Spoons- I don’t remember the exact amount but let’s assume the figure to be Rs. 300

3. Glue Gun and refill glue sticks- Rs. 500 (God knows how many times I’ve burned my fingers while hot glueing the spoons).

4. A can of Spray Pain- Rs. 250

5. A packet of pearls- Rs. 150

6. Mirror- Rs. 500

7. Tape – Rs. 50

So, the total price of making this comes down to Rs. 2,450 (that too considering the standard rates in 2016!).

Imagine, in this same amount, I could have bought an average quality sunburst mirror from a store and it would have still lasted me for a long time than this aesthetically unappealing piece of DIY (that functions more as a dust collector than as a mirror) lasted.

The third one up here is a “Sugar Syrup Story.”

I had tried making a makeshift hairspray out of sugar (yes, that edible sugar that we eat!) when I was probably 13 years old. AND GOD! It was such a DIY Fail! After spraying it, my hair ended up getting as stiff as coarse coir that nobody can sleep on.

I even remember making tinted lip balms from melted crayons once and trust me, it was worse than the worst lip balm that you can buy from the market, so, I had to throw ’em out eventually.

Note– I absolutely don’t trust DIYs for skincare/haircare/personal care/beauty/insert any category of your choice!

And the fourth and final is the “Clay Story.”

There was this one time I had tried making a golden rimmed clay bowl (I admit, I was fascinated by those cute clay bowl tutorials), and guess what? The clay, after drying, didn’t come off and got stuck on the molding bowl in such a way that I doubt even a superhero could separate them.

So, it has been years since the clay didn’t come off the bowl and I had no choice but to throw it out.

Note– Well, making clay bowls wouldn’t always be a fail if you do it right… (I definitely didn’t do this one correctly, lol). Nevertheless, I’m also done with making clay bowls–I would rather go out and buy white ceramic bowls instead of buying clays and then making bowls out of it. 😛

The Final Takeaway.

DIY isn’t always time and cost-efficient, especially if you aren’t a pro at it or aren’t making it in bulk. Additionally, you can get better quality of the same thing in the market that too, sometimes, at cheaper rates.

That being said, I don’t think that DIY is the main devil here.

DIY is great if you’re looking for a simple yet fun activity. It can help you grow as a creative individual if you aren’t too concerned about spending more money than intended WHILE ALSO allowing you to live in the satisfaction of creating something on your own.

But,

If you ask me if I would continue to DIY, then sadly, the answer would be no. I would like to spare myself from the pains of taking up a DIY project, and instead invest in something that’s more stable and solid and can potentially survive in for the long haul.

Creating, in general, isn’t always money-saving. Like, you know what, I spent around 40,000 INR just to equip myself with all the materials to create cute lil’ canvas paintings…But still, I’d rather prefer painting to DIY projects on any given day!

Additional Note– if you’re an acrylic or oil painter then don’t forget to varnish your paintings!

^{A meme that explains exactly how I see DIYs now. -_-}

So, do you now see how cost-effective DIYs can really be? (Yeah, that was sarcasm!).

In the end, the decision to DIY or not DIY is yours. Be wise and choose the best option considering the time, money, and efforts that you would require to put into doing something.

And, if you really want the satisfaction of creating without the major demerits of creating DIYs, then taking up hobbies like drawing, painting, cooking or knitting, etc. can be the way to go!

___

Are you a DIYer and like DIYing?

Please, let me know what you think about this post in the comments below!

Much Love,

Click here to see the Resin video I was talking about.

P.S. Please stay away from 5 Minute Crafts–nothing can be more misleading and illogical than this channel. And, even though I love Pinterest, it too can have misleading content at times.

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Aditi Deshpande

A law student by day and a blogger by night! Aditi finds solace in the world of art and literature. Her debut novel is publishing soon.

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