I was quoted £7k to replace my bi-fold doors but did it myself for £11 instead – people say I’m a total ‘DIY Queen’ now
IF you’ve ever looked to transform an area of your house, chances are you’ve been put off by the extortionate costs.
But one savvy homeowner has proven that sometimes it’s better to give the project a whirl yourself rather than getting a professional in …because it’ll look just as good and cost a fraction of the price.
In a clip posted to TikTok (@mummyandzozo), the woman named Shelley explains: “I don’t have £7,000 to replace these doors…that’s OK because I think I can do it for about £20.”
She then goes on to show what the kitchen bi-fold doors looked like before she set to work – and they’re totally basic with no detailing at all.
“Yesterday I painted them black and left them to dry overnight,” she says, before holding up a pot of the Hammerite ‘direct to rust metal paint in satin black’ which she used to do it.
“So today the goal is to make them look like the Crittall doors that I’ve had on my vision board for the longest time.
“I’m so impressed with how it’s looking so far but I know it’s probably going to be a project that looks better from a distance.”
After her partner measures the doors to get the spacing correct, she then adds Diall electrical insulating tape to the glass in a checked fashion to achieve the look she’s after.
“This tape cost me £1 something but I think we’ll get a really good idea just from doing it and if I have to add on a better type of tape later on, then that’s totally fine,” she explains.
Showing the original inspo image on her vision board, she enthuses: “Honestly, I think we did a good job. I’m so impressed with this.
“Instead of spending £7,000 on new doors, this only cost me £11 in total.
“The transformation it’s made to this room is absolutely massive.
“I’m not a DIY person so I’m feeling very proud of myself.”
Shelley captioned the post: “Sooo what do we think? For £11 instead of £7,000 I am feeling pretty proud of myself.
“Yes the new doors would have been better quality etc, but for now we can really enjoy this new style and work out if it works for our family.
“But to be able to tick something off my vision board for this year feels pretty good.”
And it turns out that the savvy homeowner isn’t the only one who is “so impressed” with the outcome.
“I love it!!!! You diy queen now!!!” praised one social media used.
A second enthused: “Actually looks great – 60 min makeover will be taking notes!”
A third commented: “Love the black strips! Safety feature as well. I saw many people walking into glass doors because they thought the door was open.”
Meanwhile, a fourth noted: “It looks SO good omg.”
And another chimed in: “Love it, looks stylish and beaut!”