Idea - Plan - Go - Enjoy

Getting from that great idea, or that needed repair job, to that "Yeah I did that" moment can be filled with frustration, anxiety, worry, and sometimes a little healthy fear. You can't avoid those feelings, but you can take steps to minimize them.

My son, who's a talented DIYer is like the guy who plays the piano or guitar but can't read music. He says dad you plan too much and then compliments me on the work. Well, that's the engineer side of me coming out. I have to have a plan. It doesn't have to elaborate, or complicated but it does need to include some basic elements.

Everything starts with an idea. These days we get our ideas from TV, magazines, and social media. It's almost overwhelming. My ideas are born out of necessity, and I like to keep busy. I try to follow the same process for each project, but I never keep things to rigid, that would just get in the way. Some of my friends use notebooks, pads of paper, or drawing programs to capture their ideas and create their plan. I have used them all as well as a white board and a scrap piece of plywood. I use what feels right at the time for the size of the project. What you use is not as important as the how you use it. I always break the project down into 4 parts and I always write things out. 

The Idea

It's usually just a simple statement of what I want with a rough sketch maybe a photo or two as examples.

"Build a mud bench for the garage entry." 

Or "I need a bench like this for guest bathroom".

And your ideas are not set in stone, you might come back to your idea and change it several times as you consider size, cost, time, your skills, your tools, etc.

The Design

Now that rough sketch gets turned into a drawing you can work from. You may have found plans in a magazine or from a web site that you can customize to fit your need. You don't have to create a work of art; it just needs to have enough information so you can do the next steps. 

Materials and Tools

Time to make your shopping list. Include everything you can think of, even of items you already have on hand. Most of my materials come from the big box stores and a couple specialty stores. You can use their web sites to help select the materials you need.

The Build

Being the planner that I am I layout all my materials. I'll write on the packages, use painters' tape and post-it notes. You should also be mindful of the order you need to put things together. There's nothing worse than having to tear things apart because you forgot something. Consider how much space you need as well; can you build the project onsite or in the garage or basement? Can you move the materials or the project by yourself? 

Now before you move all the furniture, tear out a wall, start cutting wood, or digging a hole; check your design, double check your measurements, inventory your materials, and make sure you have the right PPE.

You're almost ready. If you bought any new tools learn how to use them safely and correctly. Also, every project is a skill learning experience. So, if you're going to be doing something you haven't done before or very often, Google It! 

Get started and clean up as you go!