Women in DIY

There is a little exclusively pleasing about sanding down a surface to excellence, assembling furniture or putting up a set of shelves our self. Makeover programmes on television have tapped into this hunger for home improvement, and increasingly women are doing the jobs themselves.

According to a current survey of 1,600 Argos customers in UK, over a 70per cent of women consider themselves to be as good as, if not better than, men at carrying out DIY successful. Believing this was because they are logical and good at difficulty solving, while the men who took part thought woman are high-quality at DIY because they stay calm. Whatever the reason, manufacturers are responding to this increase in female interest by producing smaller and lighter tools that are easier to handle.

Barbara K, a general contractor in New York, realized that tools could intimidate women, so in 2003 she pioneered a range in the US that has become a huge success. Her tools are lighter, with features such as hip holsters, so you don't have to keep pitting them down between uses.

Some ranges designed for women can be underpowered or delicate, but manufacturers are including features that make tools more comfortable for both sexes, such as non-slip grips, gels pads and quick change mechanisms.

DIY is much easier when you have the right tools, you need a drill for putting up curtain rails and shelves, while an electric screwdriver makes assembling, flat-pack furniture easier, and laying laminate flooring is much less effort with a jigsaw. Make sure you handle a range of tools in the shop before buying, remember that you won't be holding a drill up for hours, and that the load of some tools, such as jigsaw, will be borne by what you are cutting.