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For Heather Barnes, DIY isn’t just a passion project, it’s her livelihood. However, this was not always the case.
“About five and a half years ago, I was on maternity leave with my daughter,” explained Burns, a former elementary school teacher who has grown her social media platform to more than 100,000 regular viewers.
“I wanted to make the most of my time, so I started doing DIY projects in the house I had bought with the understanding that it would be a repair job. Before that, my dad was a contractor and let me do all the tools except power tools. I’ve never felt scared to do anything. I also wanted to share information online. I wasn’t trying to do business or anything, I just wanted to share.”
Photo provided Local DIY influencer Heather Burns regularly posts content to her website and Instagram account to inspire everyday people to pick up the tools and improve their homes themselves. She will be attending this year’s Winnipeg Renovation Show on January 13th and 14th at the RBC Convention Center.
By the time Burns returned to work and taught second grade students at Lord Selkirk School, her following had increased significantly.
“When I went back to work, I tried to juggle both,” the St. Andrews resident said.
“But after two years, I took time off to do DIY full-time and ultimately quit that job. I never intended for it to become a business, but this is what happened.”
Currently, Barnes regularly posts content to her website OurBarnesYard.com and Instagram account @ourbarnesyard. This account aims to encourage the public to pick up some tools and do some home improvements themselves.
“What’s important to me on my channel is budget-friendly DIY,” Burns says.
“You don’t have to spend a fortune to build a home you love. I also strongly believe that anyone can succeed with DIY, but you have to start from scratch.”
Burns believes that anyone can learn the skills needed to do projects around the house, but it’s also important to start small and build up your skills over time.
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You don’t have to spend a lot of money to build a house you like.
“Last year I renovated a bathroom from start to finish and did something I had never done before,” she said. “But I had no intention of starting there. Once you start, you learn quickly. That’s the teacher in me. Anyone can learn anything, it’s just a matter of effort.”
Burns will be sharing some basic do-it-yourself home improvement tips at this year’s Winnipeg Renovation Show, which will be held at the RBC Convention Center from Jan. 12 to 14. She will be presenting on the show’s Lifestyle Stage on Saturday, January 13th at 3:30pm and Sunday, January 14th at 2pm.
“I built a little mock wall in my house and used it to demonstrate different things,” she said. “Rather than me just talking about people, it’s going to be something really demonstrative and immersive. I’m giving people the idea that if you start making small improvements in your home, it will snowball from there.” I want you to take it home.”
For more information about the Winnipeg Renovation Show, visit winnipegrenovationshow.com.
sheldon barney
community journalist
Sheldon Varney is a reporter and photographer for Free Press Community Review. He is the author of Missing Like Teeth: An Oral History of Winnipeg Underground Rock (1990-2001), and his work has appeared in magazines and online in Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom on his platforms. Sheldon, her husband and father of her two young children, likes to play the guitar. When she has time, she recs hockey. Email sheldon.birnie@freepress.mb.ca. Please call 204-697-7112.
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