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This is how we're defining good questions now?

wow. pink, cute, quality, and powertools just don't seem to go together.
why not focus on quality first (and I suppose something you can handle easily) and paint it pink yourself if you really want it girly? if you're buying a powertool because it's cute, i think you're buying for the wrong reason and I'd go out on a limb and guess it'll break sooner than a 'not cute' black or gray powertool.
I guess what I'm saying is, I echo your dad's comments. And as he's someone who is around these types of tools often, I don't know why you wouldn't listen to his suggestion.

I've had good luck with Black & Decker, and Target carries a pink version:
http://www.target.com/Black-Decker-Power-Screwdriver-Pink/dp/B001I2PGWQ/sr=1-13/qid=1227562179/ref=sr_1_13/188-4102963-4375252?ie=UTF8&rh=k%3Atools%20pink&page=1

I asked my dad about my first toolbox, and he recommended just picking up a basic toolbox from Target or Sears that wasnt too expensive, but that had a range of stuff I thought I needed.

Target also carries a pink toolbox set (non-power drill type), but under the Apollo name which I'm not familiar with.

-Ruth

Buy it because it will work, not because of what it looks like.

I'm a single gal in my 30's and if I balked at the weight of tools and boxes and furniture, I'd never move anything or finish any project. I'm sure despite your petite stature you can suck it up and heft a drill for a few seconds to put in a screw.

I'm not a bra-burning feminist and like being 'girly' as much as the next woman, but I get irritated with the helpless routine. We don't need diminutive tools in pretty colors just because we're female!

Buy tools based on usability and safety - not promotional licensing deals. Make a charitable contribution to an organization later - separately.

Overstock's got a big selection. If you want smaller sized tools for smaller hands, that's one thing. But I'd just make a donation myself to breast cancer research and buy regular tools.

http://www.overstock.com/Home-Garden/Womens-Pink-18-piece-Tool-Set/3319081/product.html

I want pink tools!!! Maybe then I would use them. Just because something is useful doesn't mean it can't be pink!

Listen to your dad. Save the pink for some fetching safety eyewear. :)

LilyC, there never were any "bra-burning feminists". That's an urban myth.

Anyhoo, buy good stuff, a can of pink spray paint, and customize it. Why? Because the dude(s) in your life will, I promise you, NOT abscond with your good tools if they are painted pink. I lost a good hammer to an ex. If I'd have painted it pink, he would've never managed to hide it in his garage/man-cave/trash-heap.

Most "pink for girls" products are total pieces of crap, because most companies think women only care about the pinkness, and not about the quality.

I have had women I know recommend Ryobi and Japanese hand-tools in general as they are sized for smaller, non-gorilla-sized hands.

I agree with the comments against the pink-I hate cutesy things in any genre, but especially tools; buy good quality, well-made tools-then donate some money or time to breast cancer;

Jezebella-I personally know a woman who burned her bra publicly (back in the day, so to speak)

Anyone who uses color as a criteria for power tools should probably not own any.

Noe- LOL I SECOND that!

Wait, I have to add,,,, I LOVE pink and say if you want to add in some girl power to you DIYing buy the ryobi and get pink coveralls, a tool belt or a colorful tool chest.

First of all, I think it's insulting that people are dismissive of anyone who is looking for a feminine-slanted aesthetic in their tools. I agree - function, quality, and durability are most important. I completely disagree that wanting a specific 'look' to powertools means that a person should be banned from owning them. We automatically select products partly based on their appearance... it just so happens that most of the time, tools are made to look 'tough' and 'manly' in the aesthetic. They just as easily could be pink instead of black.

Am I defensive? Perhaps. Perhaps because I, a single woman, am personally remodeling my condo -- including restoring original tile and coping trim -- and I, too, use tools that are both quality and cute. But does this last criteria mean that I don't know how to use them, or that I just straight-up shouldn't own them? Why is it that a product geared towards a specific female taste is invalid?

Anyway, I do recommend Ryobi. The 12v is totally suitable for household chores -- the 18v might be a little too hefty for an average woman. (I have the 12v, and it's done everything I need it to do.) While it's not pink, it is a cute lime green...and I have already put some hello kitty stickers on it. So there.

The whole pink-for-breast cancer awareness thing is a bunch of garbage propaganda anyway. Please, Think Before You Pink.

The other way to look at it is: Why do power tools have to be Darth-Vader black and silver, man-sized and man-weight for guys to use them?

I'm sick of oversized, too-heavy power tools that look like they shoot death rays.

We're forgetting that most power tools are specifically designed for men (aesthetically and functionally). Instead, we assume that power tools are "gender-neutral" when in fact they are not.

How many men would choose a pink power drill over a black one, regardless of quality?

Why do women insist on measuring themselves relative to standards created by and for men?

There's nothing wrong with being unhappy that most power tool companies clearly still don't consider women to be an important customer demographic.

So in order to be considered an important demographic I need to buy pink? Puhlease, I stopped liking pink when I stopped playing with Barbie. I'm a women and don't need things to be cutie putie for me to buy them. I'm buying a power tool because I need it to drill etc....not be charming.

kellylj and jezebella are onto something. Accepting that "real" tools are black, steely, and tough is like accepting the terms "man" or "mankind" as standing for all humans, male and female. I'm not an an especially pink/girly type female myself, but if a pink colored tool helps a woman get over the idea that she can't fix things for herself that need fixing, I'm all for it. That said, it's important that a pink tool be safe, functional, and of good quality, which makes this an excellent question. More importantly, a real safety issue for women is that tools be of a size and weight they can handle. There's a potentially huge market for quality woman-sized tools that aren't cheap crap cynically painted pink.

KarenH, all my power tools are yellow. I'm pretty sure they're real.

ok if you want a good drill, get something with a lithium battery. This will make it light enough for woman who is looking for something without so much heft, but you're going to keep your quality at the same time.

i've heard good things about the ryobi lithium set. they are lime green, and supposed to be great. They can drill through a padlock in like 11 seconds. Not saying you need to do that, but come on...11 seconds...

I have an older craftsman set. and they're red. I don't love them, but i don't hate them, and i'll use them until they die.

Why did this have to turn into an entire sexiest type conversation?

But on that thought, skip the pink power tools. They are most likely not quality, and will die out on you. They are praying on the fact that women might not know a lot about tools and most likely trying to make you pay a premium for the color. Just suck it up and get something in a different color (is lime green too bad, you could wear pink while using it and be sort of complimentary). If it is a battery model, and your battery isn't working great, is this brand that made a pink special ladies one, making spare batteries. What if your battery dies in a year or 2, then can you find a battery? or do you have to start all over with a new drill.

Buy something that is high quality, from a good brand, and that you know accessories will be around for it. That's what matters in a drill.

oh and don't paint something pink, that suggestion is horrible.

First of all you would have to prep the plastic for the paint to stick good. Sound like a lot of fun giving the drill a light sand? no.

then, this is something you are going to be handling, moving, pushing on, etc. The paint will; start to come off, and first of all look like crap, and get all over you./ Now instead of an ok looking (black, red, silver, whatever color drill) you now have a half whatever half pink flaking piece of junk.

Plus if if you ever have to use the warranty or something they will call you out on painting it and say it broke it...

buy this, it's a compact model, does it really look manly? i didn't know lime green was manly (which what i thought when they came out with this whole line) and it weighs 6 lbs, that's not bad at all. Their same 12v drill, non lithium, weighs 8.5lbs. that makes a big difference

http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10051&langId=-1&catalogId=10053&productId=100596701&N=10000003 90298

My Ryobi Power Drill is Teal Blue, my toolbox is Red & Black, and my level is bright yellow?

So does that make me look Gay or Straight, Butch or Femme?
Capitalist or Socialist?
Republican or Democrat?

I'm female. I have a large collection of tools. Larger than my husband is happy with, sometimes.

I have yet to see a cute pink tool set that is worth anything. If you are worried about the tools being too heavy, there are options. I was really sick last year with Graves Disease, and a thyroid storm. I had so much muscle wasting that my normal tools felt like lead bricks in my hands. I just looked for more compact models.

The color of the plastic on your tools does not mean anything, nor does it take away your femininity. Buy good reliable tools. Don't succumb to marketing that targets your insecurities about using them.

hey jmorey, the painting it suggestion was a joke.

I have a hitachi rechargeable drill. It's not cute (nor do I care for it to be--though the black w/ green accents ain't bad) ,but it is light and a great size for lighter duty work around the place.

My drill is real red, but I didn't pick it because it was red. Quality is quality, I looked at all the drills. I bought the red one because I had reason to believe it was the best drill for my purposes and for the price. If the steely black one was the best it wouldn't have put me off. If they were selling a purple one and it was better for me, that's the one I would get. That's how a person shops for tools. The problem here is that the manufacturers tend to cheap the feminizations of power tools, not that the person wants a more feminine appearance of her tools. But then, I don't think tools look particularly masculine just because they don't come in pink usually. They look like what they can do.

DO NOT buy Black and Decker. The motors burn out way too quickly, they just aren't quality tools. Ryobi and DeWalt are good brands to go with. Make sure to buy at least a 12.5 V, nothing under that (the batteries don't last through most projects otherwise). I recommend a 18 V, kinda heavy but you're not going to be holding your arms up over your head for super long lengths of time (it's all about taking quick breaks). The 18 V supplies the drive power you need. Again, DeWalt is good stuff.

wow, i didn't know there were so many self-righteous AT readers.

mrs. w, i'm also petite and i love my ridgid 12v lithium drill/driver. it's way more powerful than drills i've used in the past and the batteries last forever. read the reviews if you want more info: http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10051&langId=-1&catalogId=10053&productId=100618256&N=10000003 90401 501461 1600

maybe you can stick everything in your new super-girly pink tool belt? http://www.oshatoes.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=29&idcategory=0

scmtngirl - http://thinkbeforeyoupink.org/ your link didn't work. That didn't tell me a lot I didn't already think, but thanks for sharing it.

I don't mean to presume in the case of the OP, but people who want something to come in pink will often think someone will eventually market it around breast cancer. "Pinkwashing" I think for the most part is successful because some women just want anything that comes in pink and don't care or worry about cancer that much (vs. people who purchase to help out a cause or align themselves as/with survivors of the disease by displaying as much of it as possible=create awareness and pride).

As far as power and hand tools being the domain of men... not sure what that means. I was thinking it over again. If I saw a "drill for women" that was scaled down or weighed less (regardless of what colors it came in), I'm not sure what to think. Do you want to put a hole in something or don't you? Can your needs be met by a lightweight drill? What's inside the drill is going to be as big as it needs to be and weigh what it needs to weigh. Plastics are lighter, and will wear out sooner. Batteries cost a lot of money to replace. Lower V is not going to put enough grrr into the spinnie and will choke on heavier projects. It seems to be enough for some people, men and women, because they sell those drills right now.

Brands put a lot of thought into designing thing-things "for women" in the cosmetic element... it's marketing. How things look (that don't matter what they look like) is part of the business of reinforcing to women that they are shallower than men. Brands of drills in general all seem to come in colors, their own signature color, like a team, I guess. You're not color-coordinating your garage or your worksite so much as easily identifying your drill quickly or which brand of drill your co-worker is using. Mine is Hilti, all Hiltis are red. How machines are made, that they work, that you can discuss the performance and recommend a product, and not so much care that it is red or wished it came in powder blue.

I actually was half-serious about painting tools pink, though perhaps not drills. Hammers, screwdrivers, and the like, however, if you don't want a man to steal your tools, paint them pink. I know a number of women who have done this and recommend it. Yeah, so the paint gets a little cracked or chipped on the hammer handle, so what? At least you've still got the damn thing.

I actually went looking for a pink tool belt, and the reviews were all terrible: the dye rubs off, the seams don't hold, etc. Apparently even pink tool belts are for decorative purposes only.

And, as Karen noted: there's no good reason for power tools to be marketed to "masculine" taste, for them all to look like weapons in video games. Design isn't neutral - and it certainly isn't gender-neutral. I would think people around here would understand that things aren't designed by accident. My newest drill is, frankly, over-designed with an abundance of molded plastic detail, flanges and whatnot. It's a pretty good drill, but it looks like a freakin' Transformer toy.

I can't understand people saying that tools "look like what they can do." There is nothing "functional" that demands power tools come in black, silver, yellow, red, and very occasionally lime green. There is nothing inherently more practical about yellow heavy duty plastic than pink heavy duty plastic. That is marketing, pure and simple, and it is aimed at men. It is a shame that, like so many products marketed to women, you will pay a premium for a crappier product if you want something that looks nice. There is no logical connection between this irritating fact of life in a sexist world and being self-righteous to someone who wants her tools to be cute-looking as well as appropriately sized and properly functional.

Mrs. W, I would buy as sleek and attractive of a (well-reviewed) set in black as you can find, and accessorize with pink where possible, because I think right now the product you want just isn't out there. Black also won't look as bad as it ineveitably gets scuffed up and dirty. Lithium and Japanese are probably the way to go for more power in a smaller tool. And try to ignore the jerks who think wanting something to look nice means you "need" it to be girly to use it or that it has something to do with "insecurities." Ugh.

Limiting yourself to a "set in black" is pretty much to choose whichever drill is black. Drills of any decent quality tend to come in red, yellow, teal, and orange. The irritating fact of the sexist world is that men buy and use tools that women can also use. They are marketed to men on the inside, how well they run. I don't know how the shape and color of a drill can oppress you or some cartoon gun shape can hurt you. It is, in fact, gun shaped because it's a drill, and it's cartoon-like because it's not actually a gun. You're choosing it to oppress you by demanding something fancy. You're going to be putting holes in things. What about the companies that market to women who brainwash you into caring how things look, when what matters is what they do? A drill is not part of an outfit! It's not going to stand on the counter next to your Hello Kitty toaster. It's not going to clash with your nightstand and your easy chair. You're tough enough to put holes in things and if you're girly, that will not go unnoticed either. Have some security.

Nobody's claiming to be oppressed by drill design. I should think it's obvious, I say it again: design is not neutral. Design is not GENDER-neutral. There's no need to be condescending to someone who doesn't like the current trends in power-tool design, which is clearly - CLEARLY - aimed at the young male demographic.

Now, are you suggesting that men don't care what things look like? Really? On a design website frequented by a whole lot of men?

I like a tool that works well, feels good in my hand, and, it's nice if I like the way it looks. It's basic aesthetics, and it's basic human behavior. The problem I'm seeing is that the dudes around here think that the "default human" is male, and therefore everything should be designed so that guys will buy it.

Oh sweet jebus.

Power tools are marketed to men for the same reason make-up is marketed to women. There's nothing wrong with targeting your demographic.

But to suggest that black is inherently a man's color or pink is a woman's is dumb.

And I, for one, did not disparage pink as an aesthetic choice, or as a feminine one. I do still maintain that choosing power tools based on color is stupid, regardless of what color you prefer.

Meanwhile, other posters are complaining about POWER tools looking "tough" and "steely". I'm a woman, I'M tough and steely AND feminine, and I want my power tools to be tough and steely and do their job for many years to come. And since they spend most of their time in a tool closet, I couldn't give a flip what freaking color they are.

Well, no. Most men don't wear make-up, but lots of women need, and use, power tools. So the power tool demographic isn't, or shouldn't be, "men" so much as it is "people who fix and make things." The problem lies in those companies who think "people" means men only.

Creating smaller, lightweight, yet still effective tools would not only be useful for women with smaller hands, but smaller men, older people, and people with physical limitations. Heaven forbid we make home repair accessible and friendly to anybody but big burly dudes, right? RIGHT? I would think companies would want to sell as many drills as possible.

Nobody's complaining about power tools looking "tough" and "steely", they're suggesting, dear, that perhaps other human beings, besides tough steely Manly Men could use a fookin tool now and again, and aren't particularly enamored of the way tools look these days.

Jebus, yourself. It's like y'all are being intentionally obtuse. Go look at your drill and tell me it's not intentionally designed with stereotypically "masculine" features.

My drill doesn't have broad shoulders, facial hair, or a penis either.

heresyoftruth: I have Graves' also. I hope you are feeling better.

Isn't it one of that glamorous cordless drills that Benny Benassi used in his "Satisfaction" video? A very sexy power tool!