Does anybody build a website from scratch?

The people using templates correctly take advantage of the tools, resources, and inspiration provided by them instead of simply just pasting in their own text. You actually can learn a lot from well-made templates. However, in order to actually learn things, you have to understand them in the first place so that's where learning the basics comes in. If you want to innovate and not rely on templates as your crutch, then grind it out and start from the bottom.

Otherwise, switch to wordpress if you're not willing to go the distance.