Woman transforms her backyard into a ‘luxury resort’ for $25K

By Alex Lane-Kieltyka via SWNS

A “DIY obsessed woman” has transformed her backyard into a hotel style luxury resort for $25,000.

Jade Strang, 30, started getting into DIY when she was a child and is in the process of totally renovating her 90s home.

She says she's taught herself to do everything - because she doesn't "overly trust" tradespeople to do as good a job as her.

Her latest incredible transformation involved the backyard at her family home in Northern Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, which took her around 15 months.

It was a basic garden with a forest of trees but now it has a renovated pool, artificial grass and a pergola.

And she did the entire thing herself, with the help of husband, Joel, 31, her daughter Lacey, 11, and son, Nixon, six.

Jade's online fans love her backyard pergola which she was able to build for a lower cost doing it herself.

She estimates if she'd hired tradespeople to do it for her, labor alone would have cost around £1,500 (AUS $3,000), but thanks to her DIY, she kept costs to a minimum.

Jade, a business entrepreneur, said: " I am super proud of it, I love that my husband and I put all that effort in and how it has turned out.

"I get really excited about creating something and feel super proud of myself and my husband when we have completed a job."

Jade bought her home in the Suburbs of the Gold Coast for $1.3 million and has been renovating it ever since.

She said: “There was never really a day that I decided to start doing it. I was painting walls and the projects just got bigger and bigger.

“DIY has never been a job.

“I have always been hands on - never been ‘book smart’ - and I am not the one to sit down and sit still.

"I don’t like to sleep in at weekends until midday. I would much rather jump up and get started on a new project."

Jade says she has never let the fact that she is a woman involved in a “male-dominant industry” hold her back.

“I did not find that there was much pushback growing up, but since the TikTok has grown, I do receive some,” she said.

“The negative comments mainly come from men - you can get a lot of stick.

“You need a strong backbone to be involved with this industry, but I quite like the negativity as it gives my videos views which drives me.”

She said her passion for DIY is because she “stupidly believes she can do everything” herself.

Jade said: “I think I am the 'Jade of all trades'.

“I don’t overly trust tradies. I have hired two and both have messed me around with punctuality and capability of completing a job with professional results."

Jade says it is the “dopamine” that drives her to post videos to her personal DIY TikTok.

“My personal page came around after we posted some videos on the business page, and they went viral - it gave me a dopamine kick," she said.

“Generally, the support and reaction on my page is fantastic.

“I get a lot of direct messages asking me for advice on DIY and how to style something or to help with working on their home.

“It is a fantastic community.”

Although winter is coming in Australia, Jade was happy to give some advice for anyone venturing into DIY this summer.

“The biggest DIY tip I would give is to make sure you have a budget and a plan before you even start," she said.

“Everyone is struggling right now with inflation and the cost of living.

“Check to see if you have any spare material lying around before you go and buy anything new from a store.”

Jade said the next big project she wants to work on is an outdoor kitchen.

“I would also love to have a teppanyaki bar,” she said.

She also owns her own business, Imagine Vinyl, which has grown since the DIY TikTok page grew.

The company sells custom prints and crafts to customers around the world including the UK and North America.