There was a time, a few centuries ago, when everything was done by hand. You planted seeds in the fields, tended to the crop, harvested it, milled the grains into flour, kneaded the dough and baked bread out of it. Every family did it. Similarly, you cut and dyed cloth and sewed it into a garment by hand.

Then the industrial revolution came in the 19th century, and mechanization began. Since then, machines have taken over much of our work, and everything is produced in industries at a fraction of its original cost (I read somewhere that in the 17th century, a shirt cost ~$200 to make, thus most people had only two sets of clothes for daily wear.) We have essentially become “deskilled”.

Since the vast majority of us have been systematically deskilled, we have come to appreciate those who can actually display some skill- ergo the rise of the DIY-er.

The internet is full of DIY projects- for your home, garden, kitchen, gifting etc.

You look at pinterest boards, and the artfully  photographed DIY projects inspire you to do something. After all, being creative is mentally stimulating and deeply satisfying.

You start dreaming. You are going to make your friends jealous by showing them how a nerdy girl like you can flex a DIY muscle to come up with amazing crafts.

With all these thoughts in mind, I head to the nearest craft store and start browsing through aisles of crafting supplies for various projects, some of them requiring nothing more than a six -year old level assembly to complete them.

Here’s what I notice-

1. Everything is very, very expensive.
2. Choices, choices (confusion, confusion)!
3. There are such detailed instructions for most projects that the finished product might still resemble an assembly-line product made in a factory.
4. What I have in mind is not quite there. 

Finally, I manage to buy some cardstock, colored pens, jewelry supplies, embroidery floss and cloth for my craft ideas. The bill is larger than weekly grocery purchase.

So I start with DIY jewelry. With some struggle, I manage to create some earrings and necklaces. I wear them the next day, they don’t look that great. While rushing down steps at the train station, my necklace falls apart and the beads scatter. By the time I reach my workplace, one earring is missing one bead.

Well, with repeated efforts, the durability improves to 2-3 wears.

(I have bought carefully curated  mass-produced jewelry pieces (during sales) for less than 10 dollars each that have lasted me years and garnered compliments.)

Then I start an embroidery project with great gusto. I used to be good at it when I was young.

Several months later, it lies forgotten. Hand embroidery takes time, and I have none.

Meanwhile, my cabinets are cluttered with half-used and unused craft supplies. 

Remember the third thing I bought? Now, it is easier to make DIY greeting cards, so I do end up completing that project. (I think this is the only one that is probably less expensive than buying printed holiday cards).

My DIY cards showcasing traditional henna patterns

Moral of the story:

1. DIY is expensive.
2. Durability is questionable.
3. DIY takes up a lot of time.
4. One DIY project is enough at a time.
5. I prefer to buy things from stores because I love my time and money.

(source- Pinterest)