If I Had a Hammer, I Wouldn’t Watch TV

Food Network Fan · 07-19-2008, 01:01 PM

If I Had a Hammer, I Wouldn’t Watch TV
New York Times - United States

SPADE bits. Nylock nuts. Oriented strand board. These are my new best friends, traveling companions on the long, winding, perfectly landscaped path that leads to the perfect renovation: the home where toilets flush with a whisper, wall colors subtly echo the muted weave in the sectional sofa, and a cultured-stone water feature bubbles in the backyard.
The path certainly seems endless if you sit, as I did, through a full day’s worth of programming on the DIY Network. This is the cable channel dedicated to the proposition that ordinary humans, with the proper motivation and instruction, can rewire a living room ceiling, install a gas fireplace by the outdoor pool or transform a boring bedroom into a “Parisian Retreat” for $230. There is no reason to stop, ever.
DIY — the initials stand for Do It Yourself — is part of Scripps Networks, the company behind the Food Network and HGTV, channels with a similar just-do-it philosophy. Introduced in 1999, DIY reaches nearly 50 million subscriber households and averages 2.5 million viewers a month with programs like “This Old House,” “Sweat Equity” and “From Junky to Funky.” All of them tap deep into the primal fear and the equally primal greed of homeowners, who secretly believe that their property is infested with fatal flaws but, with the right improvements, could turn out to be a gold mine

Food Network Fan · 07-19-2008, 01:03 PM

I love all those channels. But the only one that makes me think I can really do most of the stuff is the Food Network. Some of the things on DIY or HGTV I might attempt, but not the really big stuff. Not on my own anyway. My dad can do it all though.

BerryBaby · 07-19-2008, 06:08 PM

Daughter can do all of it. She had to learn how to use power tools in sculpting classes in college. One year all she really wanted for Christmas was a power drill! Now, she revamps furniture and is Ms. Fix-it. Besides that, she is fabulous seamstress and can cook like a pro. All around very creative...we are blessed and so are her friends. She makes them dinner.

ibcheft · 07-20-2008, 02:55 PM

Have you ever noticed though all the tools these people use and have, I probably could do most of it if I was set up with all those tools, but to buy or rent all those tools and then your time and material, it is as cheap to hire some one that already has the skill and all those tools for the job. Or even better call the network and say come do mine would you, and do a show about it.