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Here’s something you don’t hear every day… for anyone wanting a really high-quality drill, the Bosch brand reportedly has the endorsement of a Russian brain surgeon.

According to a story in The Times, Henry Marsh, a consultant at St George’s Hospital in Tooting, South London, visits Kiev twice a year to assist his colleague Igor Petrovich at a neurology clinic.

In Britain Mr Marsh is accustomed to using a £30,000 medical drill driven by compressed air. But equipment in the Ukrainian capital is so scarce that the men have resorted to a £30 Bosch RSR960 to drill holes through patients’ skulls:

Surgeon uses DIY drill to perform brain operations

…Many of the operations, such as those to remove tumours, are done without general anaesthetic – a common practice in this type of surgery. By talking to the patient, surgeons can gauge precisely how far they can go without damaging vulnerable parts of the brain.

Mr Marsh has now taken a drill designed for medical use to Kiev. “I’m not recommending that we should all use Bosch do-it-yourself drills in England,” Mr Marsh said. “But it shows how with improvisation you can achieve a lot. Read on here…

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Easter at DIY retailer Wickes means a home improvement binge - and the retailer has some great special offers available, mostly running until April 20, and including tools, flooring and interior doors.

Here’s a summary of what you can get your hands on:

• 40 per cent off 18V cordless drill/driver - a two-speed gearbox, forward and reverse actions, 16 torque settings, supplied with two batteries, two screwdriver bits and a one-hour fast charger. Now selling at £49.99.
• Up to 20 per cent off a wide selection of tools - including hand tools, power tools, storage, ladders and brushes.
• 30 per cent off a Victorian interior door - this silkwood four-panel traditional door is now selling for £69.99.
• 20 per cent off selected radiators - a wide range of convection styles to suit all spaces.
• Up to 40 per cent off selected flooring and tiles - pick up all styles of flooring here.

Check Easter delivery dates here and visit this page to see all the retailer’s current deals.

Which way is consumer spending going? Will the home improvement market expand or contract in the months to come?

One school of thought believes that DIY might get a shot in the arm from uncertainty about the housing market, saying that householders are choosing to improve when they can’t move.

If this sounds appealing, then what’s the best approach to take to maximising the value and enjoyment you get from your living space? Here are Times writer Kasia Maciejowska’s tips for 10 great ways to add value to your home:

Top ten: Home improvements

MOVE or improve? A familiar question if you’re faced with lack of space, a growing family or itchy feet. With 58 per cent of us improving our homes over the past year (12 per cent more than the year before), we prefer making do to moving out.

Faced with high house prices, the popular solution is to expand or improve with the aim of adding value – and now younger people are getting involved, with 68 per cent of people between 18 and 34 investing time and money in doing up their home.

So how to achieve that extra £100,000? A fifth of improvers think a kitchen extension will add the most value, although the most common project is redecoration, making up two thirds of all home improvements. Here we give ten of the best projects to make the most of your home.

Valuers at Halifax say an extension is the top option for adding value, as long as work is properly carried out. For structural projects employ a professional to ensure you comply with planning regulations. A good extension should create at least one extra room and be used to bring light into the house.

A loft conversion is the second most profitable option. While maximising existing space, it can increase the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, two key valuation factors. Read full article here…

B&Q has some great offers at the moment which could net you up to 50 per cent on popular products. Here are the ones that caught our eye:

• All cupboard doors and drawer fronts half price - until March 13
• Get 50 per cent off an EVA pendant light – until March 13. Was £83, now £41.
• Spring savings on building accessories - everything from sealant and resin to lighting, tape and fixings.

Follow this link for details of all the retailer’s special offers.

DIY Tools is promoting some great prices on the Draper product range. It promises its lowest prices ever, and more than 600 products reduced.

There’s a huge range to choose from, including adhesives and sealants, car care and accessories, DIY products, hardware and fixings, home decorating, plumbing and ventilation, power tools and woodworking.

There’s bound to be something there that’s just what you’re looking for - definitely worth a visit and a browse!

* The retailer has specified no closing date for these offers - they are current as this post is written but will clearly not remain available indefinitely. See our terms and conditions for more details or visit our shop to search for current prices.

Screwfix has been in touch to let us know about some of the latest special offers on its website. Here’s what you need to know:

• Makita 8390 DWPE3 18V Combi Drill with 3 Batteries – save £100. Was £179.99, now £79.99. Offer available until March 17.
• Ryobi 33cc Petrol Chainsaw – save £20. Was £119.99, now £99.99. Offer available until March 31.
• Laser Level Kit – save 10 per cent, £17.99. Offer available until March 31.
• Tacwise 40mm Angled Nailer – save 50 per cent. Was £129.99, now £64.99. Offer available until March 31.
• Hitachi 4.5in Angle Grinder – save £10. Was £44.99, now £34.99. Offer available until March 31.

Are you dreaming about banishing Britain’s grey skies in favour of exotic sun and sand? And, if so, will you be foregoing home improvements to pay for your summer break?

That’s the suggestion made in a BBC Online article this week. Mind you, they are quoting a spokeswoman from the Association of British Travel Agents. Perhaps if they’d spoken to someone from a major DIY chain it would have been a different story altogether.

Still it’s an interesting point. What will be people’s spending priorities in 2008?

With an expected downturn in the UK property market, as discussed in this article on the Easier Property website, home improvements are going to look like an increasingly attractive option for people who feel unwilling or unable to sell up and move on.

We reckon it’s probably too close to call at the moment - but we’ll be watching the business pages with interest…

Is holiday fever going to spread?

Perhaps it is the winter chill, or maybe the fast disappearing memory of Christmas, but at this time of year our thoughts turn to summer holidays.

Booking season starts in earnest after the first pay packets of the year arrive.

But will families be digging deep for a place in the sun as rising fuel bills start to land on the doormat, credit is harder to come by and house prices stall?

They already have been, according to Frances Tuke, spokeswoman for Abta. She says Abta members have been reporting a very busy January and February, although there are no figures yet to back this up.

“People will find a way to pay. They tend to cut back on things on home improvements and still go on holiday,” she says.

She predicts that spending on foreign travel will stay around the same this year as in 2007. Read full article here…

Here’s an important safety warning from B&Q about a product that was on sale from November 2007:

B&Q has identified a potential safety issue with the B&Q Airforce 2000W convection heater offered for sale between November 2007 and 19th January 2008.

PLEASE NOTE THAT ONLY THE PRODUCT PICTURED IS AT RISK. ALL OTHER CONVECTION HEATERS SOLD BY B&Q ARE UNAFFECTED.

Despite rigorous quality control procedures it has been brought to B&Q’s attention that in some instances the product could overheat and possibly catch fire.

If you have purchased this product since November 2007, PLEASE STOP USING IT IMMEDIATELY and return it to the store where a full refund will be given.

If you would like more information to help identify if your product is affected please call our Customer Services Helpline on (UK) 0800 389 0419, (ROI) 1800 946 327 (Monday to Friday 8.30am to 8.00pm, Saturday 9.00am to 5.00pm).

B&Q plc apologises for any inconvenience caused and thanks you for your co-operation.

For more details visit the retailer’s product recall page.

DIY giant B&Q is currently offering up to 50 per cent off on some power tools and accessories - these range from essentials like sanding discs, cutting discs and blades to useful stuff like storage pouches, grinding stones and polishing kits. You can also pick up some great savings on DeWalt rechargeable batteries, so well worth browsing if you’re in the market for those.

These offers in particular caught our eye:

• MacAllister 1500W Planer Thicknesser COD1500PT - this popular product has a powerful 1500W, 8000min-1 motor and features a maximum planing width of 254mm and a planing height range of 7 to 153mm. It also includes a feed speed of 8m/min, a maximum depth of cut up to 2.5mm per pass, top-mounted rollers, a magnetic safety on/off switch and overload trip switch and an adjustable depth of cut indicator. Was £249, now £149.
• MacAllister 1800W Double Vevel Slide Compound Mitre Saw - features a useful double bevel cutting action and allows the operator to flip the blade, not the workpiece. Uses REDEYE Laser Line Generator technology for improved operator cutting vision, faster set-up, increased accuracy and safer operation. Was £159.98, now £115.98.
• Triton Biscuit Joiner BJA300 - creates fast, strong and invisible timber joints on the Triton RTA300 router table. Ideal for right-angle joints, mitres, bevels and edge joinery, includes TCT cutter and pack of biscuits, suits quarter-inch and half-inch routers. Was £89.98, now £67.48.
• Makita Jigsaw 4340CT/2 Blue 720W - a well-balanced, high-quality jigsaw with exceptional cutting accuracy. Three-stage orbital action, variable speed, a tool-free blade change system and comes with a carry case. Was £114.00, now £99.
• DeWalt Multi-Purpose Pouch DT8306 Black - large pouch with six external pockets, internal segregation and hammer holder, top grain leather for strength and long life, double stitching and steel reinforced rivets for additional strength and durability, heat-formed pockets to keep their shape. Was £46.98, now £31.29.
• Triton Dust Collector DCA300 - Dust collection canister with fittings. For use with most dust extracting tools, connects to a standard vacuum cleaner, 20-litre collection capacity, twin connection ports. Hoses and adaptors supplied. Was £32.98, now £24.88.

* B&Q has specified no closing date for these offers - they are current as this post is written but will clearly not remain available indefinitely. See our terms and conditions for more details or visit our shop to search for current prices.

If you haven’t come across it already, eSpares is a great little secret for handy men and women - a website selling spare parts for all kinds of major appliance brands. Its motto is “We keep appliances running.”

So, if you’re inclined to try a repair on that vacuum cleaner, washing machine, lawnmower, cooker or microwave rather than spend a fortune replacing it, this is your first port of call.

And, to make this an even better idea, eSpares currently has a discount code on offer giving AllTheToolsYouNeed customers a five per cent discount until the end of the month.

So, what’s on offer?

• Find out what’s available for kitchen, laundry, floorcare and outdoor
• Check out eSpares’ handy appliance guides
• Replace a lost or broken remote control
• Learn how to find a model number
• What if the part I need isn’t listed?

Don’t forget - to claim your five per cent discount, just enter the code “SPRING” at the checkout when prompted.