The Internet has loads of information for do-it-yourselfers of all experience levels. So to help you sort through the options, we asked a variety of DIY experts to tell us about the sites they think are best. Of course, each expert recommends his or her own site as well.
Hey, we think www.MotherEarthNews.com offers a lot for do-it-yourselfers. So we might as well start with some great resources, such as the Do-It-Yourself page that is the main page for all DIY information from Mother Earth News. Our DIY articles (the entire archive) are listed on this page. The DIY Ask Our Experts page gives you an opportunity to ask questions and see answers to other readers’ questions. The Hands-On and How-To blog offers tips, information and entertaining stories — along with a list of our favorite DIY blogs. You can get updates on our new DIY articles and information if you sign up for our free DIY Skills & Projects e-newsletter.
OK, now that we’ve blown our own horn, here are some other DIY sites for you to visit.
- Askthebuilder.com. Dave Campbell, deputy editor of Wood Magazine says, “Askthebuilder.com is deep and robust with lots of free how-to videos. The owner and Web master, Tim Carter, is a great guy and really knows his stuff.”
- Make. “Instructables is definitely my favorite, but Make would be my second favorite,” says Eric Wilhelm, founder and CEO of instructables.com.
Other popular sites that weren’t specifically mentioned by the experts are below.
Television Programs
This Old House offers videos and written step-by-step instructions for reference.
Take Home Handyman includes lots of videos, and rates the difficulty of each project on a scale of one to five.
Woodwright’s Shop, with riddles and trivia, is entertaining. But you can also find some plans and information on techniques for using hand tools.
Magazines
These magazines have informative, instructional Web sites:
A Few More
Handyman Club of America is a membership-based organization, but their Web site has a significant amount of free information available to everyone.
Expert Village, doityourself.com and eHow have a variety of articles and videos, but be mindful about the source of information on these sites. Contributors may be novices or have commercial motives for providing information.
Did we overlook your favorite DIY resource? Tell us about it in the comments section below.