Everybody remembers the old days when dad used a hammer and saw to make the garden furniture, fixes the fence and many other stuff. Those days were replaced by contractors who bill you everything from the turning of a screw to more complicated thousand dollar jobs. The recession doesn’t mean people’s desire of improving their homes has diminished, it goes the other way.
With more time on their hands, people are finding odd jobs around the house to pass time and do something worthwhile that they can be proud of. Say, repainting the kitchen or bath, upgrading the den and cleaning and re-finishing the deck. All these can be done easy with the right tools and a little elbow grease. Gather ideas from magazines and other print media so you have a visual clue on what has to be done.