Men's practical skills are being challenged at home as more women are opting to pick up the tool box and carry out do-it-yourself (DIY) and home improvements themselves, according to the latest research from home and lifestyle channel HGTV.

The popular lifestyle channel, which has made household names out of strong female leads Joanna Gaines (Fixer Upper,) Mother-daughter home renovation team Mina Starsiak Hawk and Karen E Laine (Good Bones), Lex and Alana LeBlanc (Listed Sisters) and Nicole Curtis (Renovation SOS) found that women are increasingly pursuing home improvements.   

The reason behind the influx of tools and colour swabs, came back to enjoyment and relaxation, as one in three (33 per cent) women found DIY and home improvements relaxing and another 29 per cent said that they enjoyed carrying out home improvement tasks at home.

However, while 72 per cent of women were interested in finding out more ways to improve their home, 20 per cent felt they didn’t know enough about DIY and home improvements to carry it out themselves.

Nicole Curtis, from Renovation SOS, noted this was quite common across the globe and shared some advice for women.

She said: “Start with a project that you know you are going to be able to accomplish in a few hours. When you finish and your project is done, you feel confident and you’ll be ready to move on to the next project.

“If you take on something too big and monstrous, you’re never going to get it finished and then you’ll be discouraged, and never want to do it again.”

Considering 54 per cent of women plan on carrying out some aspect of DIY or home improvements within the next 12 months, this guidance comes as sound advice.

In addition, 63 per cent of women will look to re-decorate their home interiors. Lex and Alana LeBlanc from HGTV’s massive hit show Listed Sisters, believe it’s equally important for homes to be designed with beauty and functionality in mind.

“Every house, to make it a home, needs some sort of personal touches like family portraits, personal art or sentimental items throughout. Wood floors could always use a cozy rug. And a functional furniture layout is very important as well,” said Lex LeBlanc.

Thanks to the popularity and rise of HGTV shows that portray strong female role models who provide expert advice, women are now in a position, more than ever before, to conduct home improvement work themselves and learn new skills in the process.

However, a husband’s help is still appreciated. Nearly half of the women (46 per cent) surveyed in the GCC said that they would still like their husband’s input or help (even if it was just to get their vote of confidence).

The targeted piece of research surveyed 2,700 respondents that represent the cross section of expats, NRIs and GCC Nationals living in the GCC markets: UAE, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar.

HGTV is a home and lifestyle channel that broadcasts entertaining DIY programs, the latest in design trends and shares expert home improvement advice, exclusively on channel 357. – TradeArabia News Service