Once people realise the sense of wellbeing and self-esteem that can be gained from carrying out one's own handy-work, then they rapidly become smitten by the DIY bug. Moreover, this 'buzz' is more easily achievable today than ever before due to the multitude of goods on the market to make life for the home decorating enthusiast both easier and more exciting. There is no longer any need to spend time with a spirit level hanging a mirror when Uni-bond 'extra-strong' is available, 'paint-pods' allow rapid wall coverage and all-in-one tile grout is quicker than mixing your own.

The problem of this amazing choice, however, is that it can leave the beginner uncertain as to where to start. What is more, some of the new products on offer are not all they profess to be and can leave the uninitiated with a DIY catastrophe, for example, ready-mix grout which has both shrunk and discoloured, wrecking your expensive tiles.

These are the circumstances in which the Internet can be an excellent commodity for the self-taught decorator. If you are unsure where to start, then navigate to one of the main DIY merchants' sites where they have search tools to enable you to select a project to match your skill or fancies, from garden design, to painting effects.

For DIY projects that have already run off course, then the Internet can be used to find a solution. This is a far easier prospect than flicking through hundreds of DIY books at home, or in your local library. Take advantage of the different search engines, or wikipedia, to find an exact answer to your question. If you don't know where to start looking, perhaps go to one of the websites for the main hardware retailers as they host their own help centres, with the most successful giving you recourse to industry professionals via twitter, e-mail etc.

Similarly, the top sites are likely to have webcasts, diagrams and files that you can download. These are usually organised into manageable, 'bite-sized' snippets of information: from wallpapering to sanding. The tools on offer are constantly being updated; one store has just launched an App so the smart phone generation can have DIY information right at their fingertips. Moreover, don't forget that the democratic nature of the Internet means that any Joe Blogs can begin a facebook group or twitter feed and there are many very useful forums on the 'dos' and 'don'ts' of DIY.

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