Thoughts: Fix the old or buy anew?

Have you ever found yourself staring at something that broke in your home and wondering whether to fix it or just buy something new?

You are not alone. We all do that. We weigh the pros and cons, considering factors like cost, convenience, and sustainability, and then make a decision. Is that right?

The other day, I was home and accidentally dropped my phone behind the bed. Classic.

I went to move the bed to get my phone, and accidentally dropped my twinkle lights and snapped the wiring. Yes I have twinkle lights above the bed.

I looked at them, a little sad. I loved those twinkle lights. They were copper, bendable, and made the space very cosy with their golden colour.

I looked at them and debated for a while. In short, I had two options.

Shall I buy a brand new set? I could get something along the same line, with golden tones and try and find something about the same length (most fairy lights are about one meter long, and these ones were three meter long).

Or shall I try and fix them? I mean, I can be pretty handy with a screwdriver and a drill, but I am not an electrician. I don’t know a lot about battery powered fairy lights, even less about how to fix them. 

I decided to a quick search online, just for a browse. I did not immediately find an exact replacement. Apparently three meter long copper wire twinkle lights are not as common as I thought.

It got me thinking. I cannot be the first person to break their twinkle lights. I decided to search for answers on YouTube, like I often do.

And guess what? Someone published a video on how to fix broken twinkle lights. And if she can do it, so can I.

I followed step by step what she did, it was very explicit throughout. I started with removing batteries for safety; you never know.

Yep, these are my actual fairy lights, which I accidentally broke and then fixed.

I took some scraps of sandpaper from my tool box and filed all four broken ends thoroughly, from all sides. I then used a lighter to burn the ends a little before twisting them back together where they broke.

Once they were nice and darkened, I used some light brown electrical tape (I have a large collection coloured electrical tapes that are very handy when I need to fix things), and taped the ends together for extra safety.

I put the batteries back in and voila’! It’s alive! I mean, it worked!

I could have bought a new pair, spent a little money and it would have been delivered in a few days. Very little effort. 

Instead I decided to fix the ones I had. It cost me nothing since I had sandpaper, a lighter, and electrical tape at home. It took me a total of 15 mins including searching for the video on YouTube. And I got back the lights that I wanted. Wire copper twinkle lights, three meter long 🙂 

In short, what is the price to fix something vs buying anew? I guess you need to weigh up the options and, if whatever broke is fixable, it’s worth exploring that.

In one of my jobs, I decluttered a room that had a broken wardrobe (remember the leaning tower of clothes?). After taking a good look at it, I thought: my client was already on a budget and buying something new was not in the plans.

Getting someone to fix it would have been pricey. It would also have been a lot of trouble to take down the wardrobe and dispose of it. And it would have taken us a while before getting another one delivered and built.

In short, it was simple: it was worth fixing it, but using whatever we had a home.

Yep, these are my actual fairy lights, which I accidentally broke and then fixed.

If you find yourself in a similar situation, try do a quick search online and see if you can do it yourself. Or find a handyman if you think that might be a little out of your skills. Or even consider attending a workshop on fixing things (yep, that’s a thing, have you heard of the UCL Repair Cafe?).