Doubters spur me on: why more women are taking up DIY

It's hard to miss the explosion of DIY content that has hit our social media feeds over the last decade.

From quick reels on how to fix cracks in walls, to complicated YouTube tutorials on building alcove seating from scratch, the internet is chock-a-block with seemingly endless home improvement demos.

While DIY was once seen as more of a male domain, female influencers are inspiring a new generation of women to take matters into their own hands.

Meanwhile, demand for female professionals is rising, while some women are changing careers to take up trades which they see as more AI-proof than their desk jobs.

DIY influencer Jasmine Gurney has documented an impressive and exhausting sounding list of tasks on Instagram.

Over the last year alone she has torn down partition walls, replaced flooring, erected a fence, insulated and boarded her loft, built an outdoor workshop, made custom cabinetry, moved plug sockets and built her son his first bed.

Eight months pregnant, the former marketer is now racing to finish building a fitted wardrobe before the new baby arrives.

"I like proving people wrong," says Jasmine, 33, from Bedfordshire, who says she's been trolled by people questioning her techniques but they just "spur me on more".