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Congratulations to Paul from Berkshire, who was the lucky winner of our last competition for a Dulux Decorator Centre Decorating Kit. |
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And so on to our next competition, which gives you the chance of seeing the lovely Amanda Lamb (via the medium of a pair of tickets to the forthcoming ‘A Place in the Sun’ Live! exhibition).
For details on the easy peasy entry, click here. We’ve got three pairs of tickets to give away (each ticket is worth £10), so if you’ve had even a fleeting daydream of owning your own villa or pied-a-terre, this could be Step #1 in realising the dream!
We’ve got yet another competition for you too…keep reading… |
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Did you know that Scouts can earn themselves a DIY badge? And it’s no easy feat, by the sounds of things. Scouts need to prove they can:
- Use a range of hand tools safely
- Sand, prepare and paint a vertical surface (and obviously clean up afterwards)
- Be something of a carpenter and make a window box, bird box, letter rack or mug rack
This might sound easy, but recent reports revealed that up to 20% of men have never used a screwdriver! Best to start early, it seems!
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And now for something a little light-hearted:
- Venetian Blind = a visually impaired Italian
- Pile Driver = haemharroid solution
- Adjustable Riser = someone who can get up at any time of day
- Cornice = exclamation made loudly by labourers towards a passing female
- Efflorescence = a burst of expletives
- Mullion = a bad hair-do
- Spandrel = a lycra-wearing dog
For the real, sensible, definitions of these terms, visit our glossary pages. |
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Fah la la la laaaah, la la la lah! Erm, sorry, wrong season.
Now that our Summer seems to finally be upon us, you may be cramming some enjoyment of your garden into your spare time, and why not maximise that garden enjoyment by adding a deck?
A contemporary addition to any outdoor space that can hide a multitude of sins, such as a mossy area where grass just won’t grow, a simple deck is also easy to install and won’t cost the earth.
See our new decking section for an introduction.
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Bob the Builder? Schmob the Builder! Seems Disney thought Bob’s success could be reproduced for the US market, so meet Manny Garcia, a bilingual Latino handyman… Handy Manny! (yes, really).
We’re particularly amused by Manny’s talking tools, which include:
- Felipe – the Philips Head Screwdriver
- Turner – the Flathead Screwdriver
- Stretch – the Tape Measure
- Pat – the Claw Hammer
- Dusty – the Saw
Oh very droll!
If you have kids who you fancy training up to help you with your DIY, visit the Handy Manny website for some entertaining games and stuff.
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The good, the bad and the utterly useless! Help your local community to tell between them and avoid giving business to the cowboys; publish your feedback on the suppliers and tradesmen you’ve used in our directory and earn yourself one of our nifty limited edition mini-tape measure keyrings into the bargain! |
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If you can’t find the tradesmen you’re thinking of, please do just drop us a line at team@simplifydiy.com with as much detail on who you’re looking for and we’ll add them to our directory.
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Oh yes! Our friends at www.howto.tv have a Retro Garden Hand Tool Set to give away to one lucky reader who can e-mail us with the correct answer to the following question:
A wooden patio area is more commonly known as:
(we’re just checking that you were paying attention!).
HowTo.tv is a great site for all of us who have become ‘experts’ through watching all those TV programs on things like home improvement, survival in the wild and cookery…shame is, when you come to actually have a go yourself, you can’t quite remember what the TV presenter said.
The cunning thing about HowTo.tv is that you can download the videos to your mobile phone so you can watch them wherever, whenever. You can also put your money where your mouth is and upload videos of yourself demonstrating your expertise on any practical task… Reg Prescott of 1980s Kenny Everett fame need not apply, thank you! |
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Ever carried your stereo, connected to mains(!), into the bathroom while you have a good old soak?
Hmm…yes, so have I and it’s an interesting electrocution hazard at best. It’s no longer necessary to risk a spot of defibrillation however, with the invention of in-wall speakers.
These clever bits of kit are actually plastered into the wall or ceiling, where their vibrating elements pass the sound waves through the wall, dispersing an improved sound quality invisibly!
Because all the electrical elements are also hidden within the wall, these can be used in just about any situation, including the bathroom. Phew! |
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