I love Northampton, have I mentioned this before? There are so many reasons why, but, today I am thinking about all of my Northampton D-I-Y people. One friend of mine makes moth eaten sweaters into adorable 
arm/hand warmers (pardon the blurry image). And I got to be the lucky recipient of a pair at Christmas this year! Another friend buys earrings at Target (for instance) for a fancy event, and then buys extra bling from the bead store in town to add to the earrings - making them more fabulous than they ever knew they could be!
I love how crafty my friends are. It is inspiring to me. However, nothing bowls me over like the people who are able to D-I-Y their homes, and have them come out looking as good or better as if the work had been done by a professional contractor.
I was having dinner the other night with dear friends of mine, who also happen to be clients. They bought their home just over a year ago. They have spent this year scraping off wallpaper, glue, carpeting, etc. They have painted every room, they demo'd the basement themselves (which had some dampness) to prep it for mitigation and a new and improved pimped-out finished basement (as yet undone). They are speaking to a friend who teaches wood-working classes about having his students build cabinets for their kitchen, down the road. Of course, they are the god and goddess of entertainment and cooking, so I shouldn't be surprised - but I was wowed by what they have done all on their own.
This image doesn't quite do it the justice it deserves. Just imagine the "before" picture - ugly wallpaper, floors marred by old carpeting glue, an unattractive light fixture. To me, this room now exudes warmth, color and coziness.
Lastly, I have been following a blog written by clients of mine who purchased their home this past spring. This is their first home and it really needed some elbow grease to bring it up to snuff! They have done absolutely everything by themselves - and the house looks great! They made need to rethink their career choices and create a new HGTV show! They were able to see the diamond-in-the-rough and make it shine. Not everyone has that vision.
I like to assuage my feelings of inadequacy about the lack of D-I-Y that I, personally, have accomplished by reminding myself of the fact that I didn't really own a house until I had small children taking up most of my time. There are pictures of me painting my son's room while pregnant! And there are those curtains I once sewed for both kids bedrooms all those years ago. See?
Happy D-I-Y-ing!
Looking for a new home you can go D-I-Y crazy with? Check out open houses in our area and let your imagination run wild.