If it looks cheap then you're doing it wrong. I know what you mean tho, sometimes I wonder "what were you thinking?", but each too their own. I like to see the individual work that goes into some bikes.
If you get fun from buying a brand new bike, great. Anybody can go and buy a new bike, many people do, not everybody can build.
I get value from creating something that looks good, rides nice and may be of interest to somebody else, being unique is great, whether it's cheap looking or not is a matter of perception.
Here's my great value purchase I shall be working on over the next month or so. No doubt it's cheap looking to you, to me, it'll be a sweet ride. All the fun I'm having choosing parts, what exhaust? what colours? what bits to polish and what bits to chrome? single headlight or twin? USD's or stock? R1 Blue spots? LED lights?.......
It's like being in a sweet shop