would it be easier to design websites for a cms like joomla or would it be easier to just design the whole thing by urself. just curious.

It depends on what you want. If you want a back-end to everything and a nice admin. panel, you're better off starting with a CMS.

I use modx its easy to design/code creating pages directly can be time consuming go with a cms

i think it would be to design website using Joomla because they will help you through tutorial. So, you will never find it hard as you think because Joomla is there to guide you until you finish creating your site.

What type of site is it? What do you want out of it? I think it's easier to work with templates, but you're not always going to get the end result you hoped for.