When you get right down to the nuts and bolts of hardware stores, they are utterly fascinating.
Every trip is an adventure, maybe the adult version of Disney World. Personally, I lose track of time while meandering through the aisles. Only a rare breed, contractors mostly, can stride purposefully into a hardware store and go immediately to the item they need.
I venture to guess a big box store has millions of pieces of inventory out on the floor. The small neighborhood shop probably has thousands. And who knows the purpose of all that stuff?
One of my favorite finds at a hardware store was glow-in-the-dark duct tape. The boring gray duct tape was a brilliant invention, but this fluorescent version is downright genius. I put it on my pooch’s collar and I can now spot him while he’s darting all over the Sausalito dog park at night.
Etsy, the online store known for selling handmade and vintage goods, even has a hardware section with almost 5,000 items. I haven’t spent much time perusing it because my shopping cart would runneth over.
I’m not a DIY person, yet I’ve spent a small fortune at hardware stores since I moved into my tiny abode. The itsy-bitsy screw that holds the dryer’s lint filter in place disappeared. The pulls on the kitchen cabinets were outdated. No matter how hard I scrubbed the grout on my bathroom floor, it wouldn’t turn white again. In one trip to a local hardware store, I solved the day’s pressing problems. A teeny screw, a set of screwdrivers, designer-looking cabinet pulls at a bargain price and something I never even knew existed—a grout paint pen. The list of purchases goes on and on.
Actually, perhaps I’m a DIYer after all. Yes, I am. And I owe it all to the sage counsel of the hardware store clerks who know where each little gem is located and how to use it.
