These shops mainly sell art goods like pottery, embroidery cloth, and paper-cuttings, which encourage people's creativity andtalents.

DIY shops are suitable for people of all ages, said a man who only gave his surname as Zhou, a resident of Changchun, the capital of Jilin Province, northeast China.

DIY encourages patience and perseverance, he said, as it often takes numerous failures and attempts before people achieve success.

An elderly woman named Liang, who is working diligently on an embroidered chrysanthemum, said DIY shops give the opportunity forold people to relive some memories of their youth.

For children like Zhang Liang, an elementary school kid who is interested in making a picture with fabrics of different colors, it is a way to forget his huge amount of homework, said his mother.

( October 14, 2002)