IMN Content - Lifestyle and Consumer Content

The Days of the 'Handyman' Are Over As Females Embrace DIY in Full Force

Long gone are the days when women merely picked the pattern of the paper that graced the walls of their bedrooms and sat back whilst their partners worked up a DIY induced sweat!
Home - 14 September 2011   Download IconContent available for download:  
Audio | Interview with Julia Kendell| Login to Download

You are missing some Flash content that should appear here! Perhaps your browser cannot display it, or maybe it did not initialize correctly.

  News Hooks:

With DIY Week launching this Friday, latest research has revealed that only 10% of women said that they “wouldn’t know where to start” when tackling key DIY projects in the home. Women are now much more confident (40%) in projects such as changing light bulbs, constructing flat pack furniture, fitting a plug, putting up a shelf and painting.

Even with this growing confidence, many women still admit certain DIY projects are too much to handle, with less than 10% confident in tasks such as plastering, plumbing, wallpapering or converting. However the phrase ‘handy man’ seems more dated now than ever with women claiming they are happy to have a go at some of those like wallpapering or tiling that even men avoid.

With women becoming increasingly more interested in DIY, this September is the third year of the increasingly popular National Home Improvement Show, an opportunity to get inspired to start renovation projects and to build confidence in tasks that women of the previous generation might once have left to their male counterparts!

. Introduction:

With DIY Week launching this Friday, new research has revealed that women are becoming much more savvy when it comes to DIY. With 40% admitting they are more confident now when performing tasks like constructing flat pack furniture and many saying they are happy to “have a go” at more adventurous projects, it looks like the days where women rely on their husbands and partners are disappearing.

Joining us in the studio is Julia Kendell from DIY SOS and an Interiors Expert to offer women some top DIY and design tips.

. Suggested Questions:

What does the research reveal about women’s attitude to DIY in our area?

Why do women still avoid the larger jobs such as plastering?

Did you think this trend of women becoming more interested in DIY will continue?

What are your top tips for women interested in DIY?

Can you tell us more about The National Home Improvement Show and will you be there?

Where can our listeners find our more information?