One of the things that kept me sane during the lock down is my DIYs. A lot of people think DIY is about saving money and making things on your own. Its not! DIY is a lifestyle, its therapy, its a kind of meditation that has more benefits than one. A person who can use their hands and create something or give something a makeover can never remain depressed or sad. There is always some idea brewing or something that you want to try your hands on.
Today, I am sharing with you five tools that one can use to create DIY projects at home. These tools are easy to use, needs little practice and can help do several DIYs on your own around the house. And thanks to Amazon, all of these machines are available at good discounts on the platform and you dont need to go searching in the market to buy them. Here I am showing you what I have and also linking to some options that you can look at on Amazon. So here goes.
1. Drilling Machine and drill bits
A basic drilling machine is needed in every house. I manage to put up paintings and gallery walls on my own without having to call a carpenter or handyman to do the job. You can buy a basic drilling machine and a set of drill bits to drill different thickness of holes. The machine can be used to drill into the wall, wood, metal and any other material with just changing the drill bit.
I got my first drill machine (a non branded one from the tools market) way back in 2006 or 2007. I have been using it since then and it hasn’t gone for servicing or shut down on me even once. My most used drill bit is the masonry drill bit and the tip can wear out after a few hundred drills. When you feel that you have to apply a lot of pressure to drill through is when you need to change the drill bit. A set like the one below takes care of all drilling bits, you can also buy individual bits from the hardware store or Amazon.I have two Bosch heavy duty machines that the design studio workers use for projects.
P.s. You need to have the drill bit exactly at 90 degrees to the wall. Else there is a chance that you are drilling into the wall at an angle and you can break your drill bit while its in use which can be a safety hazard.
2. Staple Gun
This is one of my favorite tools. This is used to upholster, attach fabric to a wooden base or frame. A regular stationary stapler wraps the staple ends around, this one renders it straight. Non electric, you just need to hold steady and press down to shoot a staple into anything. I can change the upholstery of my dining chair in less than ten minutes using a staple gun.
Traditionally nails were used to secure fabric to wood and that took like a crazy amount of time. A staple gun reduces the time by at least one tenth. You can create so much with this one little tool. I also use it to attach a satin ribbon loop behind a wooden art piece that doesn’t come with a provision to hang on the wall.
I have not used any other brand staple gun so I cant recommend any other, I have a Kangaro for 10 years and this works perfect with no issues.
P.S Keep away from children, not something you want kids to meddle with or even hold. The staple renders with force and can fly if not properly used.
3. Electric Sander
Sanding is one of the most boring jobs of all times I feel. While you have no choice but to hand sand small gaps and tiny pieces, if you are into up-cycling large pieces of furniture, an electric sander is a boon. Flat surfaces and table tops can be sanded smooth in a matter of minutes. Also works best when you want to get a distress look after painting, it gets the job done a lot faster.
The sand paper rolls are available with any local hardware stores. You can also use regular sand paper sheet and cut it to size and attach it to the sander. (I have a basic Dongcheng sander, have linked it below, works perfectly good. I am also linking to a Bosch sander
P.s The numbers of the sand paper indicate the grit or roughness. The lesser the number, the more grainy and rough the sandpaper. If you just want to remove the finish on a surface which is fairly smooth, use a 220 grit sandpaper. If your surface is very rough then use a lower number sheet and gradually increase to get a smooth surface, i.e sand with 100 grit, then 180 and then 220.
4. Circular Saw / Cutting machine
This one is for those hard core DIY buffs who want to cut large sheets of plywood, cut metal and stone. All you need to do is have different saw blades for different material. You cannot cut metal with a wood cutting blade, you cannot cut stone with a metal cutting blade. There is a specific blade for each material and works best when used for its purpose.
I have the Bosch professional one, I dont use it so much for DIY, very occasionally, but we use it on site very extensively.
5. A jig Saw
This is my current hot favorite.Recently you guys saw me make a wooden Angel using this machine. It works best for cutting shapes out of wood. Needs a wee bit of practice to navigate the blade around, but once you do, its a pleasure to use. You can do whatever you please with this machine.
This is a regular jigsaw and not the pendulum jig saw. The one I have is a non branded one and isnt listed on Amazon, linking to two good brands at affordable prices here.
Hope you found this useful. Let me know if you guys picked up any power tool recently and tried a cool new DIY. I am currently working on making a console table with one sheet of MDF, stay tuned on my insta stories to know more.
P.s. This post is not sponsored by Amazon or Bosch or any other brand.
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