Discussion keeps the world turning.
This is Roundtable.
You're listening to Roundtable with Steve Hatherley.
That's me, and I'm joined today by Nioh Honglin and Yushun.
Coming up, China's youth are rewriting the rules of furniture.
Forget the flat -packed boxes from large furniture stores.
this generation is grabbing sanders and chisels, transforming raw timber into personal statements.
What's behind this DIY rebellion against disposable culture?
And could building your own desk actually build something deeper?
Patience, pride, a connection to craft that clicking and shipping just can't deliver.
After that, first dates are stressful enough without the math, But here you are wondering if a 50 % off dinner coupon screams romantic prospect or extreme couponer is using coupons on a first date thrifty or a red flag bigger than the expiry date on your milk carton.
Our podcast listeners can find us at Roundtable China on Apple Podcasts.
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And now. Imagine a world where your bookshelf holds more than books.
It holds the sweat from your hands and the bloodstains from where you accidentally hit your thumb with your hammer.
Painful? Yes. Worth it?
Absolutely. Absolutely.
Across China, a generation is rejecting cookie cutter furniture, choosing instead the raw thrill of creation.
Whether it's a thirst to create or a quest to reduce waste, a number of people are throwing on their safety goggles to build.
And do you not agree that an injury, let me rephrase, minor injury when related to something creative is an injury that's almost worth it?
You are a young man.
or athletics those are those are cool injuries yeah that kind of uh scars makes you cooler don't you think i totally agree with you boys in the studio anyway absolutely more people are becoming obsessed with uh a seemingly primitive hobby handmade goods uh you know they're not of course professional craftsmen or trying to be yet they eagerly share photos on social media of themselves holding saws targeting at just marine boards or cardboards or just wood boards and transforming into modern day Lu Banzan who is a legendary Chinese carpenter or craftsman oh okay that's a historical figure and they've
turned niche industrial materials into self -designed furniture I have seen a video like that.
There was this girl in the video.
She bought huge, really huge plastic foam.
And she shaped the form into a strange shape.
And then she started to sew with heavy and also very huggable type of clothing.
And then she put them together.
Ta -da, a sofa. A very cute looking sofa looking like a little cat.
And you cannot buy it anywhere because it's made by her and created by her That was the first time I realized, huh, people in the cities In their busy modern day lives can make furniture by themselves And that's the moment you also realize, huh When you watch it in a video on social media It looks so incredibly easy And when you try it yourself, it is an exercise in futility of sorts So I'm guessing then that, speaking of social media, internet searches, social media searches related to working with wood, woodworking are really hot right now?
Yeah, so the terms like marine board, as I mentioned, linear rail, aluminum profiles on RED, which is a lifestyle sharing platform.
forum and you'll find a vibrant and unique world people building bookshelves from these marine bores and creating walk -in closets with aluminum profiles and turning linear rails into lighting rigs yeah that's cool and with tags like diy for anyone low -cost diy and eco -friendly furniture or Or just don't spend that 10 ,000 yuan on a closet.
Just build one for yourself, that kind of thing.
Yeah, make it yourself, huh?
Yeah. The linear rails, the lighting rigs, I guess those are, they kind of look like train tracks, I guess, except they go on your ceiling.
Or maybe they can go on your wall, too, and then you can put light fixtures on there.
That's a really popular one.
uh I I saw one trend it was I think it was stainless steel there was a big interior trend of stainless steel in Canada or America or UK or somewhere um where people were turning um their kitchens like fully stainless steel and then it like moved to other rooms in their house where it got like a little bit weird like they were in an industrial elevator but still these types of DIY projects people people really this isn't just a Chinese thing this is something that that people love all around the world, if they're into that type of thing.
And there are definitely different types.
We get to see, for example, the video I mentioned.
The sofa looks so nice and comfortable and beautiful and almost perfect.
But there are the ones that you should mention, like DIY for yourself, where anyone can do it.
That's the hashtag.
And in Chinese, we'll also say things like, as long as you have hands, you'll be able to make this.
So that's easy to achieve.
yet not that perfect kind of furnitures.
I think the trend here is that no matter if you're a newbie in this hobby or you are already someone who's quite skillful with a lot of different strange techniques and experience and knowing your material quite well, you can have a taste of this.
Yeah. Back to this trend because this trend is more specific than just DIY projects in general, right?
This is about building furniture, which is really impressive.
What's going on in terms of the popularity?
Why are people loving to do this?
I think the mentality of having fun.
And after you finish these things, the sense of accomplishment make people are just obsessed with building things by themselves.
You know, the process of assembling, playing with Lego, but the satisfaction.
I was just about to say.
It's like building something when you were a kid.
Right. Yeah. And it doesn't have to be perfect because this is a and I think this is part of the reason for the popularity, too.
You don't have to be a master woods maker, if that's the term, to satisfy your own creative side.
You're not going to be selling these online for thousands and thousands of you on.
So if the edges don't line up, that's OK.
If some screws are showing, that's OK.
And this reminds me of an episode of the sitcom Friends when Joey made the huge, well, he started making a little standoff carpet or little stool and then ended up building this huge shelf that takes up the entirety of the space of the living room.
And it blocked the doors to the bedrooms. I think that kind of hobby or that mentality is universal.
Yeah, I think you're right.
Also, you know, when you look online and you see these communities, those communities will also provide instructions for people, too, yeah?
Yeah, and when people are having that kind of same interest and hobby, people talk about that online and they share their own insights and have a lot of discussions on different types of materials or different ways to build that one single thing.
And that will spark people's interest in these kind of things and also, I think, rise the popularity of this kind of discussion.
There are successful experiences and tips of making those things.
But there are also many posts talking about my epic failure in making those.
These are cute and fun, too.
It's like creating a community on the Internet and sharing the same hobby with peers that you don't really know.
Yeah. And I think it's great because you get help from people who know how to do it right.
If you don't do it right, you get comfort knowing that there are plenty of other people out there who mess up as well.
I've tried so many times visiting IKEA and I'm saying, I'm not going to pay some person to come into my house and build this.
I can do this myself.
self yeah i'm dumb and i you should what do you follow the instructions have you ever built anything like ikea or whatever furniture store yeah of course and i am kind of fan of buying things that i can make yeah me too me too um do you follow the instructions i do i read all of the instructions those instructions are for babies bro that is why i can build them successfully fully I bought a sofa an L -shaped sofa right from that store and at the time my living room this is years ago my living room was shaped in a way that it kind of had an entrance and the L shape the the bottom of the L the smaller
part was supposed to be near the living room window not near the entrance I built the sofa backwards which I didn't even think was possible so that the sofa That little L part was now facing the entrance of the living room, blocking the whole door.
And I live alone at that time, so I'm trying to move this 12 ,000 -pound sofa by myself.
And there's always extra screws and stuff left over, too.
There's always extra pieces.
But, you know, it's fun.
It's fun. And for those who are making their own furnitures here in China, one reason they do that is that they want to fit everything into the place perfectly.
and it's not always easy to find exactly the length, the width that they need for their furniture.
That is why instead of buying the pieces and put them together, they buy the piece and they adjust them a little bit.
And after the first try, the first success, they decided, why not just buy the raw material?
I have approved that I can do this.
So that's one thing led to another.
And now it's a trend.
And then it just grows.
Yeah. I mean, the reasons why it's really really fun and almost addictive, I would think, are pretty obvious because you get to show your creative side.
There's a little bit of individualism that's expressed there too, I think.
It's often cheaper, maybe not always cheaper, because, you know, tools, depending with every hobby, depending on how into it you want to get, it can get more expensive.
But then there's the sustainability side of things as well.
But that said, there's got to be some drawbacks, I wonder.
Yeah, you may get hurt, of course, for beginners who do not have much experience in making such things.
They may hurt, let's say, their hands while using saws and hammers or just screwdrivers.
Also, the furniture they make does not pass the quality check.
Minor injuries. Let's stress minor injuries.
That makes you look cooler.
Sorry, what was your last point?
You don't end up with the product that you wanted to build?
Yeah, so because there is no guarantee of the quality of this kind of furniture, I mean, for example, that table you made of just raw wood boards and four stands, maybe the screwdriver is not that hard enough or solid enough than if you were putting a hot pot on the table.
Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.
collapse so there may be accidents if we don't have that kind of very professional quality check if we're just made these things by themselves and before entering the master stage of it knowing every material knowing how to use these tools it's also possible that we put things that are not supposed to be together together and also when we're sewing things or when we're just saw things things.
The pollutant might be hurting your health because you're not a professional carpenter at all and you're making noise that are bothering your neighbors because it's not a construction site, it's your living room.
Sure, yeah, don't build something at 3 a .m. Don't.
And talking about, you know, cost -effectiveness, of course, we may think of, as you said, buying raw materials and put them together could be cheaper.
But think about all of the tools that you need to buy, Right.
And also you need to have professional knowledge about maybe waxing your wood board and everything.
That's probably take you like a whole day for that.
And then time consuming.
Yeah. Yeah. But I guess people who are into it don't really care about the time consuming side of things.
Right. Really fun trend happening here in China.
You're listening to Roundtable.
I'm Steve with Yuxuan and Yehong Lin.
Lynn, what do you think?
Using a coupon, a discount coupon on a first date, is it practical or is that a deal breaker for you?
Looking for passion?
How about fiery debate?
Want to hear about current events in China from different perspectives?
Then tune in to Roundtable, where East meets West and understanding is the goal.
Okay, so there you are, sipping on your artisanal lychee latte because you are amazing and you are on a date.
Suddenly, your romantic interest casually pulls something out of their pocket.
What's this, you ask?
And then you see the answer.
It's a crumpled up 20 % off muffin coupon That your date slides across the table to the waiter Like it's a classified government document The waiter's eyebrow lifts Time slows Time stops Is this charmingly thrifty?
No, wait Is this a savings opportunity?
You watch in awe as the waiter recalculates the post -discount bill and suddenly you recalculate everything in your life.
Why am I here with this person?
But wait a second. Could this type of financial savvy be very useful in a long -term relationship?
What am I supposed to think?
Is it okay to use coupons on a first date?
It was too vivid a picture you paint.
This is a trend. this is according to 2025 talker research survey a solid majority of people now you might find this surprising 56 to be exact actually think using a coupon on a first date is totally fine and this suggests that for more than half of daters this is not a faux pas this is not a huge mistake they are totally okay with it what do you think are there any conditions are you just using coupons in front of your partner or just using coupons secretly and you're just paying the bill?
You're being very specific about this question.
I don't think the survey asked that question.
I was thinking it was me.
I wouldn't use a coupon for my first date, I would say.
No. Even though both my girlfriend and I normally just use coupons on our meals and everything.
That's girlfriend, though.
That's an established relationship.
Of course. Of course, what I'm trying to say is that we both agree that using a coupon on the very first date might leave a somewhat negative impression.
Not at all for me, but I think it depends on the times.
Oh, I sound old. So 10 years ago or 15 years ago, when coupon was not that popular or not that common a thing in the Chinese market like today.
well it's considered strange because you have to go out of your way to collect the coupon to find the group on kind of set that you can use in a restaurant and you if you go the extra mile to do this it shows that you really care about this in your life and the financial decisions you make might also be reflected by these kind of phenomena which would be a bit strange for me these days.
Yet in today's China, in today's Chinese market, in today's Chinese restaurants, different tourist destinations and different places, it's almost a given.
There are so many different types of set that you can choose from.
There are different platforms that you can get these coupons from.
And the restaurant, for example, itself would provide different sets based on what's the day of the week.
So it's something so common that I do not see it as a a problem.
It's just one option out of many options.
Okay. I'll explain to you why it might be a problem.
What about this way of thinking?
Did he or she bring me to this restaurant?
Are we here because this person thought that we would enjoy this meal together in this ambiance, in this location or are we only here because he or she has a 15 off 5 to 7 p .m discount coupon do you see what i mean that takes away that totally takes away from the romance of the the moment because i can really understand both sides here's another um answer from the survey 28 28 % of the respondents, they said that they considered this type of frugality, using coupons on a first date, sexy.
Smart, financially.
Conversely, 56 % believed that flashing cash and other ways to show off wealth were a turn -off.
A turn -off. It depends.
Times change. Right?
I mean, I don't know.
No, maybe it was. It doesn't sound like it was only in the West. It sounds like here in China, too, where, you know, you show up in your expensive, fancy clothes.
If you have a nice car, you bring your nice car.
You go to an expensive meal to show off a bit, to impress your date.
Young people not impressed by that anymore and not just not impressed.
They don't like it.
They think they think.
Yeah, they think you're bragging and showing off.
I think that mentality is in line with a very common and popular saying on the internet that is riding a bike to a bar.
I spend the money I must spend and I save the money that I can save. In that scenario, riding a bike, meaning that you're not driving your fancy car, that's the money you're saving, yet you're going to a bar and you're going to spend a lot of money in it because it's the money you want to spend.
And I think that is the mentality of many young young people here in China, that is, they care about the quality of the product they enjoy.
And they want the service that they've made up their mind to enjoy.
Yet, they don't, they find finding a way to have the same quality of service with less money, a smart choice.
And I think that is quite rational, and for especially the younger generation, instead of being impressed by the material condition of a person, the kind of money they have, they're being impressed by their strategic and smart decision making can it not go too far um what I mean by that is okay taking the bicycle to the bar cool um let's say you're gonna go to your second spot and it's like seven kilometers away right okay it's kind of doable on a bike on a date I guess but it's also a little little bit far.
Yes. Right. I agree.
So you say, let's take a taxi.
And your date says, why?
It's only seven kilometers.
We can bike there in 25 minutes or 40, 40 minutes.
Do you know what I mean?
Like, I know what you mean.
You can't go too far.
Yes, you can't go too far.
For me, the the line is that if you use the coupon in a restaurant, fine.
But if you go out of your way, study the rules of a fancy hotel and see how many points you can get for different different nights in the hotel so that you can upgrade the level of rooms you stay in and you can get free meals and you do the math so carefully.
For me, if you do that on a first day, it'd be a bit too much. Actually, if you do that as my boyfriend, it'll be too much. So for me, that is the line.
Yet my point here is that everybody's different.
People's line are drawn on different places and that's perfectly fine.
Just find those who you find charming.
That's And Yuxin, you said you wouldn't use a coupon on a first date.
You just wouldn't do it.
I just wouldn't do it.
And I think it will not be as sexy as people would think when they're just using coupons.
And also what I want to say is that it's probably because I'm talking about the Chinese environment per se.
One key difference is that in the shopping environment in China is that we now just so commonly use apps.
like uh dimping or yelp that that is making even the restaurants and all of the consumers think that it is just the correct and common way yeah to go to a restaurant yeah and i think in the digital age you could use a coupon without your date knowing that you're using a coupon you know i did the whole like oh who who cuts out coupons from newspapers anymore no i'm sure it exists but but, you know, not so much, right?
So for me personally, I don't think I'd do it, but I wouldn't be offended either.
So, I mean, that's just walking the line of both answers, isn't it?
Yeah. All right, that's a fun topic, but it is a reflection of the times.
Ranran, can I close with that jazz music?
Is that possible, I wonder?
Close on a little romantic note.
That'll do it for Roundtable for today.
Thank you. Oh, there it is.
To Yushan. Thank you to Nyo Hong Lin.
I'm Steve Hatherly.
See you next time.
