Hello!
If you’ve read my blog for any length of time, you know that I’m a big DIYer, and take a lot of pride in tackling projects myself vs. hiring things out for someone else to do them. That’s why I’m really excited to share a new tool with you – DIYZ (pronounced D-I-wise). To sum it up, it’s an app on your phone (available here on iTunes or here through Google Play) filled with DIY tutorials (including supply lists, and step by step video instructions), for all sorts of projects, ranging from painting a room, installing crown molding, and building a fire pit. Best yet, if you run into a problem while tackling your DIY project, you can live video chat with a pro, and talk through your problem step by step. This post is sponsored by DIYZ, but all experiences and opinions are my own.
The Project
I partnered with DIYZ to share what they offer with you, and also put one of their tutorials to work. Awhile back, I mentioned that I loved the idea of a USB outlet, and lo and behold, that’s one of the tutorials that they offer. You can see here, across the top of the project that you’re working on, that there are three tabs. One gives you an overview of the project, another one gives a list of the steps (with video to guide you through each step), and a third tab gives you a shopping list (with the option to buy the supplies on Amazon if you choose).
We (my husband served as my trusty assistant) gathered our supplies and got to work.
Professional Help When You Need It
In following the step-by-step instructions, we were confident that we would get this done in no time flat, and not have any need to tap into the “Ask a Pro” feature of the app. But alas, once we had the outlet installed, it didn’t work. AND, none of the outlets along one side of the kitchen (and the island outlet) were working either. Seriously? We tripped the breakers, and did everything we could think of, but to no avail.
We were working on the weekend, in the evening, so typically you don’t have the option of pro advice. Pros have families too, and if you want to get help on the weekend, it typically costs you more money. But with the DIYZ app, I was able to video chat with a pro within minutes, and right now you can get pro advice for free. No joke.
The pro I talked with was great – I told him what we were doing, and explained the problem we were having. It ended up being a simple solution (resetting another outlet in the kitchen that was hidden behind my magazine file folders below). But he was exceedingly patient and didn’t judge me when I told him that we were usually much more DIY-savvy.
But it WORKED! No need to call an electrician and mess up your schedule waiting for a pro to show up at your door. We got it done!
So there you go. DIYZ is like having a pro in your back pocket when you tackle your DIY projects, and I can’t say enough good things about my experience with them. So check them out, as you gear up for taking on all of your home improvement projects in the new year!
Jenny
No Comments