Sisters are DIY'ing it for themselves

My purchase of Nettie was something of a whirlwind affair.

From first sight, through to falling in love and then an accepted proposal took a few short weeks.

I'm really excited to work alongside my team of artisans to transform her into a really special seaside home.

But I've been wondering.  Why don't more women do the "harder" stuff involved in home renovation?  

By harder, I mean the kinds of jobs usually done by male do-it-yourselfers, like plastering, woodwork, tiling and mortaring.

Could I tackle some of these myself? And how would I tool myself up for anything that came my way?

I love being hands-on.  Plus I'd really like to conserve my budget to spend on some of the interior design work and the specification of Nettie's fittings like the terrazzo counter tops I've spied.

An example of the kind of thing I'm talking about is the removal of Nettie's tired external render.  

Not knowing what's behind that render could be an expensive question.  What if the stone is ugly?  What if there is no brick detailing as I hope?  What if the stone is beautiful, but the mortar is damp and crumbling.

And if I know anything about builders, it's this kind of "small" job that can lead to huge expense as the problem reveals itself.

So I took myself down to my favourite hardware store, EB Smith, in Shropshire, England to ask what essential tools I would need for the jobs I was intending to tackle; demolishing, tiling, plastering, mortaring, insulating and paneling.

Kind of like what I, as an amateur baker, would recommend a newbie get kitted up with so that they could bake essentials like bread, pastry and cakes.

What tools would be suitable for a woman or smaller person to use, bearing in mind the size of our hands and generally smaller stature.

Here are EB Smith's recommendations for tackling these not-so-basic DIY tasks:

Demolition tools

The very first job to tackle when renovating a home is to demolish and remove from site anything beyond repair, or which you do not wish to keep.  In Nettie's case, that downstairs loo and partition, the kitchen fittings and those areas of plaster that can't be saved.

You'll be able to see how I got on later in the Projects part of my site.

These tools are self explanatory.  

The key here is that they are all compact in size and not too heavy.   A large lump hammer, normally used in demolition, I deem too big for me to sensibly use.  We'll see how I get on.

Cutting tools

While I do have a regular saw that I use for cutting small bits of timber, I find this way too large for me to handle comfortably.  Plus using a manual saw is exhausting.

Andy at EB Smith recommended this nifty electric saw which should help me to cut wood in no time.  It's good and compact, and a world away from the heavy-duty jig or table saws that professionals use.  I'll need a workbench to steady anything I'm cutting.

The insulation saw has special blades that will cut easily through insulation sheets that I'm planning to insulate the attic. 

Finally, the mini saw is for cutting harder materials like metal.  It's nice and small - about 12 cm long.

Woodworking and drilling

After the house has been cleared, and the first fix electrics and plumbing are installed, the next job is generally to attend to the windows.  Aside from smaller tools like chisels, these are the woodworking tools I have been recommended.  

Nettie's windows are generally in OK shape; her door is adorable but will need an expert woodworker to restore her.  

These are some basic tools useful for working on smaller timber repair jobs like windows and furniture.  The electric screwdriver will be invaluable when it comes to the flatpack kitchen - saves doing everything by hand.

One of the most useful 15 minutes I ever spent was learning to use an electric drill.  YouTube is great for that.

I'll use the sander on larger bits of timber, and the floorboards.

Plastering and mortaring

I'm planning on learning to use lime mortar and lime plaster soon.  In the meantime, the blunt chisel will be for removing mortar from between the exterior stonework once the render is off, ready for the new mortar that I will work between the stones with a shaping trowel like this one.  

The mixing tool can be easily attached to my electric drill (or so I'm told) to mix small batches of mortar or lime plaster for patching.  This will avoid having to use a concrete mixer, or mix mortar or plaster by hand.

The trowel will be used to carry out repairs to the internal lime plaster.  I'll learn more about that on my lime plastering course coming up soon.

These I hope are self explanatory!  There is lead in the paintwork so the facemask will be essential.