Do-It-Yourself / Design-It-Yourself
There are many reasons for altering the fabric of the home, varying from the personal satisfaction of do-it-yourself (DIY) as a ‘serious leisure’ activity in its own right to a perception centred on constant renewal to increase real estate value. When there is no practical need for a homeowner to reconfigure their physical environment, such as requiring additional space to accommodate an expanding family, other shifting cultural and behavioural pressures can provoke action.
Research into the less visible aspects of home improvement and the impact of home alteration on the day-to-day lives of the inhabitants has proved challenging to orchestrate and document, such as the transient emotional undercurrents and barely perceptible habits that make up a ‘way of living’. Direct observation and interview dialogue are often insufficient to uncover aspects of behaviour or context that are undergoing constant but barely visible incremental change.
The subject of this study, home renovation, emerged as a practice that created significant disruption to the daily patterns of living and household rituals, introduced new different routines and eventually a new pattern of living. As a result of a preliminary study, further fields of related investigation included:
The influence of the following on home making behaviour:
real estate industry, construction industry, media and advertising, DIY retail industry, home loans and grants, renovating for profit/self-help information.
The influence of expanding DIY behaviour on:
location-based identity, home décor consumption practices, DIY consumption practices, design of tools, restlessness and relocation, personal identity, clutter and waste, recycling practices
The role of the following on DIY behaviour:
social networks, skills/trade/craft education, nostalgia, DIY practice (historic and contemporary), and constructs such as affluence, aspiration, taste and class.