DIY recipes

DIY recipes appear in and allow the player to craft certain items through the DIY mechanic. Once a player acquires and learns a recipe, they are able to bring the specified materials to a DIY workbench to create the item. Cooking recipes are also available since, and allow the player to cook food items once they learn the item and can cook the recipe using a kitchenware item.

The player starts with a handful of recipes from Tom Nook after taking the DIY workshop. As the player progresses through the game, they will encounter more methods of obtaining recipes.

Most recipes require natural resources (such as Wood, Iron Nuggets, and Stone), but some use other items which must be obtained or crafted first. It is possible to learn recipes, such as the, which require other crafted items that the player may not yet have found the recipes for.

Obtaining recipes
In early gameplay, if the player is the Resident Representative, they will obtain some furniture recipes from Tom Nook as part of the DIY and customization workshops, as well as some basic tool recipes from Tom Nook and Blathers.

Throughout the rest of the game, there are several ways to obtain recipes:
 * A daily Message Bottle on the beach containing a DIY recipe (one may also be found on a Mystery Island).
 * Purchases from Nook's Cranny (or from Timmy in the Resident Services tent).
 * Redeeming Nook Miles via the Nook Stop.
 * Speaking to some special characters (such as Celeste) or accomplishing specific tasks for them (such as giving Pascal a Scallop).
 * Speaking to villagers who are crafting or cooking in their homes (each personality has their own pool of recipes they can give out). Up to 3 recipes can be obtained this way over the course of a day.
 * From Balloons (via Slingshot).
 * Letters in the mail (rarely).
 * Learning automatically upon encountering (or collecting a certain number of) particular items, such as fishing out trash, digging up Manila Clams, or collecting Bunny Day eggs.
 * Speaking to the chef in the Restaurant for a random cooking recipe.

While some recipes can be potentially obtained from multiple sources including Message Bottles and Balloons, certain recipes can only be learned from specific characters. For example, recipes for Stars Series furniture can only be obtained from Celeste.

It is common to encounter recipes multiple times on the same island, and sometimes from the same villager, even if there are other recipes in the game that have not been encountered yet, with villager dialogue explicitly encouraging sharing the previously-learned recipe with other players. A DIY recipe that the player already knows cannot be learned again, but can be dropped or gifted for other players or sold/trashed. All recipe cards sell for 200 Bells each.

Visiting another player's island can result in the villagers on that island giving them gifts which could include recipes.

By season
Certain DIY recipes can only be acquired during specific time periods within (or mostly within) a specific season.

By event
Certain DIY recipes can only be acquired during a specific time period around a certain event.

By villager personality
Villagers may be found crafting inside their homes. Speaking to them while crafting will result in the villager providing the player with a DIY recipe. Moreover, if the player scans an amiibo card to invite a villager to the island's campsite, the villager in question might ask the player to craft a certain item. If the player does not yet have the DIY to craft that item, the villager will give the player the needed DIY.

A villager's personality dictates the pool of DIY recipes they can give to the player. There is also a number DIY recipes that can be handed out by any villager, notably flower wreaths and crowns. There is a 95% chance a villager will give out a recipe related to their personality, and a 5% chance for recipes unrelated to their personality.

The personality-related recipes may also appear in a Message Bottle on the beach.

Construction Kits
During the main storyline, the Resident Representative will be given recipes for construction kits needed for two pieces of infrastructure. Both recipes are single-use only and are removed from the recipe catalog once used. Only one campsite may be built. Additional bridges can be built once Resident Services upgrades to a building; for these the player will given the necessary kit upfront. These recipes are not seen again afterwards once the player has completed those tasks.