By Adam Dachis

Don't Do It Yourself: When and How to Get Help with Your DIY Projects

Doing it yourself is great, but you don't always have the tools or the time for every project on your list. When you can't go it alone, here's how to get help getting your projects done.

There's no reason you shouldn't embrace DIY whenever possible, try to learn new skills in the process, and reap the benefits of creating for yourself. The problem is, DIY doesn't always fall within the realm of reality. Realistically, you can't always do it yourself because, for example, you don't have the proper equipment, one of the skills required would take more than a few weekends to learn, or the cost of purchasing the necessary materials is just counterproductive when you need only a small amount. When you hit the wall of limitations on DIY, you can still DDIY, or Don't Do It Yourself.

The idea of DDIY isn't to say you ought to go out and buy pre-made stuff as an alternative to DIY. Most of us don't need any further encouragement to be consumers rather than makers. The idea of DDIY is to turn to your available resources to help you make what you want to make and not abandon a project because you hit a brick wall. It's about working together and doing it with others and not just yourself.

First we'll take a look at some of the best DDIY resources available to help you accomplish your projects that require that little extra assistance and then examine where DDIY is—and isn't—your best option.

DDIY Resources

Etsy Alchemy

While there are a number of resources available online, more of which we'll cover, Etsy Alchemy is my favorite. If you want something made, you simply post about it and suggest a price. If people are interested, they bid. You choose a bid, they make what you want, and that's all there is to it. While Etsy Alchemy can be used to avoid doing it yourself altogether, the reason this resource is so helpful for your own projects is because it exposes you to many willing collaborators. You don't have to ask another maker out there to handle the entire project for you, but to help you with the part you can't handle yourself.

Don't Do It Yourself: When and How to Get Help with Your DIY Projects

For example, when Apple released the Magic Trackpad I wanted to combine it with a keyboard to use for my home theater setup. When binding them together I wanted it to be as minimal as possible. I thought about cutting some thin plastic or using cardboard, but both were too flimsy. Wood was too hard when thick enough and too flimsy when thin. I noticed my keychain one day and realized it was made out of acrylic. Acrylic was perfect. It was both, thin, smooth, and the right combination of sturdy and flexible. Through Alchemy I was able to find SundrySupply, who cut a piece of acrylic that I could use to combine the trackpad and the keyboard. I used adhesive velcro to attach the keyboard and trackpad to the cut acrylic so I could remove them easily for battery replacement and could switch the trackpad from the left and right sides so it could adapt to the user's dominant hand. Overall the project cost less than $10 and I was able to get the right material for the job despite having no access to a laser-cutter.

I've used Etsy Alchemy for a bunch of projects, from making bags and wallets I designed to getting custom parts I needed for

Etsy Alchemy

Craigslist

The downside of using Etsy Alchemy is that you're often going to find people who aren't local. If you really need help with a project that involves making a physical object of some kind, it's frustrating to do it if you need to send your progress back and forth through the mail. Craigslist, on the other hand, can help you find people who can provide the help and resources you need in your area.

Even if you want to (potentially) find someone to help here and there, you're generally best posting to the "Gigs" section of your local Craigslist site to pick up freelancers who can help you out. While an Etsy transaction is collaborative, it often feels more like an online purchase. Meeting someone on Craigslist will feel more like hiring someone for a job, even though that's what you're actually doing in both cases. People also tend to negotiate more on Craigslist, so it's important to be prepared for that. When you find someone you'd like to work with on your project(s), be sure to set expectations and have a list of requirements before you start or pay any money. This is always a good thing for both parties involved because it helps prevent many common communication errors. Once you're both on the same page, you can get to work. Working with someone locally is not only a good way to get what you need, but also a good opportunity to learn more about a particular skill you don't have.

Don't Do It Yourself: When and How to Get Help with Your DIY Projects One great use for DDIY on Craigslist is building and modifying furniture. You may not always have the necessary tools to do everything you need, or maybe you're just really bad at furniture assembly and, therefore, are even worse at modification. Basic building, assembling, fixing and modifying skills are good skills to have. If you don't, working with someone who does on a great IKEA furniture mod is a great way to learn while getting the job done well.

Craigslist

Online Forums and Answer Services

Whatever it is that you're planning to make, there are plenty of resources online to help you make it. Online forums, where you can ask questions and get free answers from people who just like to help, are one of the best resources. If you're able to help others, you can use the forums to pay it forward in return. While there's no shortage of specific forums for specific types of project (e.g.: InsanelyMac or tonymacx86 forum for Hackintoshing, the Arduino Forum for Arduino projects, or the Craftster Forums for more crafts-oriented projects), we're going to take a look at a couple of the broader options.

Make Forums

Don't Do It Yourself: When and How to Get Help with Your DIY Projects The Make Forums are a great place to ask all sorts of DIY-related questions and get help on your technology-related projects. The Make Forums also have a few local forums for people in cities where DIY is particularly popular (New York City and San Francisco, for example). If you live in one of those cities, you have a place to look for local people and groups of makers. This is a great way to get help on your projects, provide help for others, and learn new skills about making various things. If you're not in one of the specific cities, the Make Forums also provides a Maker Meetups board to help you find people in your area as well.

Do It Yourself Forums

Don't Do It Yourself: When and How to Get Help with Your DIY Projects For DIY projects that are more household-focused and less technology related, one of your best resources is the DoItYourself.com Forums. Topics range anywhere from interior and exterior home improvement to vehicle work to food. While home improvement certainly dominates the forums you will find technology-related topics amongst the household stuff, plus other smaller sections like legal advice, business help, and recreational activities.

Aardvark

Aardvark is a site where you can ask any question. While it's not geared towards DIY, it can be used to get help on pretty much anything. If you have a concise question to ask and want some surprisingly prompt assistance, Aardvark is the place to go. If you want to learn more about Aardvark, you can check out our take on their service or just give them a try yourself.

MAKE Forums

DoItYourself.com Forums

Aardvark

DIY versus DDIY

DDIY can be nice because you get to work with others, but it can sometimes cost you a bit more because you are, in some cases, hiring help. Other the other hand, just because it's possible to do something yourself doesn't mean you should. Let's take a quick look at when you ought to do it yourself and when you should get help or avoid the project altogether.

DIY Technology

Don't Do It Yourself: When and How to Get Help with Your DIY Projects There are some great hacks to void your warranty and create some awesome custom technology, but these projects can get kind of expensive. Little mistakes can sometimes result in bricking a device or just breaking an expensive or hard-to-get component. Nonetheless, tinkering with technology is part of the learning process and handing this part off to someone else really defeats the purpose. If you're worried about making mistakes, getting help online before you get started on your technology-related DIY project is a good idea. Make sure you have a good idea of what you're doing before you dive in. If this is a first-time experience, you might want to start with a small project and work your way up. When you're done building whatever you're building it might, then, be the time to enlist the help of others to help you build a case or enclosure or provide help in making your creation look more polished and professional.

Home Improvement

Don't Do It Yourself: When and How to Get Help with Your DIY Projects Home improvements and fixes are all over the map. Often times you can fix your own toilet pretty easily, but for many issues you're going to want to a call a plumber. Painting your walls, however, can be pretty easy and fun to do with others. You really need to judge for yourself what you can safely learn to do and accomplish on your own. If a mistake can cause a serious problem, you're best off leaving that type of home repair or improvement to a professional. That said, if there are any projects you don't feel skilled enough to handle on your own but would like to be able to do yourself, you might want to put them off temporarily and spend some time learning. While there's plenty of information online, home improvement projects are easier to learn with other people. Fortunately, you can often pick up free lessons at a local hardware chain. Places like Home Depot and Loews are known to offer free classes now and again, so call up your local retailer and see what you can learn.

Other Projects

Don't Do It Yourself: When and How to Get Help with Your DIY Projects Other projects is an obviously broad designation, so determining whether or not you should do it yourself is a little bit difficult. Most other projects (as in non-technology and non-home improvement projects), however, have lighter consequences for small mistakes and failures. If your project falls under this category, the only real determination you need to make is if you'd prefer to do the work alone or with others. Many times you can find local groups so you simply have a work buddy. You can always use Craigslist, or even a service like Meetup, to find other people who want to do the same kinds of things you want to do. One of the best parts of DDIY is that you don't have to do it all by yourself. Even if you don't need any specific help, the company of good people generally makes a project more fun.