Why I Hate Home Improvement "Experts" v. 19.2
Fitzpatrick-- A 24-year-old master carpenter? Using liquid nails? Right.
As a design professional, if there is one thing that burns me more than the home improvement media industry it’s the unqualified people who pimp themselves as “experts.”
A review of home improvement TV websites turns up very few licensed or accredited professionals. Mostly, you get a version of “I’m not a doctor but I play one on TV.” While that may sell pain relievers, would you take advice for your home remodeling project from such a person? People do every day. Just because this media-genic personality enjoys gutting their own apartment, doesn’t make him/her an expert on building, contracting, design or architecture.
I recently began receiving an e-newsletter aimed at the professional design industry. Plinth and Chintz http://www.plinthandchintz.com is generally well-written and informative and there are actual licensed, accredited members of several design organizations as contributing writers. But when I looked up the articles on how to find and hire contractors, the author “expert” is described as a “serial homeowner.” So because he's owned a bunch of homes and worked on them, that makes him an "expert?" The advice in his articles is better than most of this ilk, but it still belies an amateur approach, mostly because he assumes the homeowner is not using a design professional such as an architect. And this is a magazine aimed at professional designers.
Here are some things I’m an “expert” at:
Dogs. I’ve been a mom to five dogs, a “serial dog owner,” therefore I am qualified to write articles and host shows on dog health, breed selection, training and how to get along at the dogpark. (Or better, how to get kicked out).
Cars. Hey, I’ve owned three, so I suppose I’m a “serial car owner,” qualified to tell you how to hire and fire mechanics and how to get the best deal on a vehicle and how to customize your ride. I used to change my own oil--I guess that makes me a mechanic too.
Plucking Eyebrows. The suckers grow down to my eyelids for chrissakes, so since I’ve been tackling this job for years, this makes me an “expert aesthetician.”
Folks this is silly and dangerous. I don’t know any professions currently more trivialized than the building and design trades.
As a design professional, if there is one thing that burns me more than the home improvement media industry it’s the unqualified people who pimp themselves as “experts.”
A review of home improvement TV websites turns up very few licensed or accredited professionals. Mostly, you get a version of “I’m not a doctor but I play one on TV.” While that may sell pain relievers, would you take advice for your home remodeling project from such a person? People do every day. Just because this media-genic personality enjoys gutting their own apartment, doesn’t make him/her an expert on building, contracting, design or architecture.
I recently began receiving an e-newsletter aimed at the professional design industry. Plinth and Chintz http://www.plinthandchintz.com is generally well-written and informative and there are actual licensed, accredited members of several design organizations as contributing writers. But when I looked up the articles on how to find and hire contractors, the author “expert” is described as a “serial homeowner.” So because he's owned a bunch of homes and worked on them, that makes him an "expert?" The advice in his articles is better than most of this ilk, but it still belies an amateur approach, mostly because he assumes the homeowner is not using a design professional such as an architect. And this is a magazine aimed at professional designers.
Here are some things I’m an “expert” at:
Dogs. I’ve been a mom to five dogs, a “serial dog owner,” therefore I am qualified to write articles and host shows on dog health, breed selection, training and how to get along at the dogpark. (Or better, how to get kicked out).
Cars. Hey, I’ve owned three, so I suppose I’m a “serial car owner,” qualified to tell you how to hire and fire mechanics and how to get the best deal on a vehicle and how to customize your ride. I used to change my own oil--I guess that makes me a mechanic too.
Plucking Eyebrows. The suckers grow down to my eyelids for chrissakes, so since I’ve been tackling this job for years, this makes me an “expert aesthetician.”
Folks this is silly and dangerous. I don’t know any professions currently more trivialized than the building and design trades.
permalink
