"Trading Spaces"

sozobe. I just read your post about a hay wall. NOW I know precisely why watch it. This show is a rolling car wreck. Its a crime scene and the perps are still hanging around. Therefore, its funny as hell, without meaning to be.
Id love if theyd do some celebrity's house. Someone with real Atteetude, like Allen Iverson or James Garner.

Oh, I've seen tears.

Farmerman, yes, I absolutely HATE it when they deface classic houses or paint over good wood furniture. My favorite episodes are when they take some giant characterless suburban room and make something beautiful and just a little subversive.

Oh, yeah, farmerman, that's exactly it. It's not that they don't know it, though -- I mean, maybe at the beginning, but now they play into it fully. They aren't TRYING to make the best possible, happiest possible reaction. The dramatic tension is "will this be as horrible as it seems?" and "How horrified will the homeowners be?"

Then there are also the gleeful, leaping reactions.

In terms of the hay wall, I dunno what they said, but yeah they were talking and the eating thing certainly occurred to me. Generally I was impressed because they weren't wearing pasted-on grins -- it was a lot of headshaking and "this is coming down TOMORROW" vibes.

sozobe, I LOVE your sig! I'm a huge Feynman "fan". I'm not that into drama, but I enjoyed seeing that woman stand up to Hildy about the orange dyed carpet. They can do anything they want, but they need to be less annoying about it.

Frank is tacky, but he at least gives poeple options.

The painted furniture thing needs to stop, though, and stop NOW!

(Thanks! We have alllll the Feynman books. This line stuck in my head.)

Yes, SO has to stop...!

Did you see that episode in, hmm, Key West, with the inebriated fella who had lots and lots of ideas for Frank? I was really impressed with Frank's sang-froid, though the end result was kinda icky.

I think I did see that one, but I don't remember what they did. All the shows are running together... but I remember seeing it this past week.

Oh really, that recently? I saw it maybe um um 6 months ago or so. It was a sort of garden room, there was a big wooden cut-out mermaid involved, and the guy successfully lobbied for some sort of blue wave border around the top, among other things -- meanwhile Gen was making a fairly cool library, with one part wallpapered with pages from very old books, but she ran out so she had to get a cheap paperback and dye it with tea... hee hee.

Oh, that wasn't the show... must have been another place.

I dont like many of the themes that they do. On "While you were out" they redid a sun room in a Roman style... now that one was actually very nice.

I saw the hay-wall episode -- and the room actually didn't look that bad, but it was more of an art-exhibit than a living room. And the couple did have kids and were concerned with that. My concern was about the dust that would accumulate on the straw and how to keep the place clean.

Hildi used to do some cool stuff, but I think she's on an ego trip and she can't get off. The worst thing I remember her doing is spray-painting a special chair black -- one that belonged to grandpa that *did* look bad (like Martin Crane's chair) but was special none-the-less -- and then adding neon colored flowers to it. The room the chair went in was hideous -- it was turquoise, orange, yellow, and had records stapled to the wall. The owners were not happy. They kept their cool, but didn't hide their horror.

Gen starts some projects with Hildi-like ideas--and I think "That will be hideous!" but they tend to work out for her.

I think Gen has a great personality. She's always barefoot and has that same long earring...?

(Still--she leans a little to scary projects.)

I shall rate them, since it is 2:30AM, and I am not sleepy.

1) Laurie
2) Vern
3) Gen
Last Place) Frank and Doug
Dishonorable Mention--Hildi

(Now I feel sorry for Hildi. Where did she go wrong? )

Gawd, does anyone like Hildi???

Saw an ep recently wherein she painted a dining room black. Yep, just like the Stones' song. With screaming yellow chairs and table, and a built-in mantle with, blech - hard-boiled eggs in a vase. Oh, and she covered the only window (which was a rather nice window seat thingie with a white muslin curtain, and the ceiling fixture was a bunch of lightbulbs in rows on a black piece of plywood.

The homeowners' reactions were interesting. The husband was trying to be nice. The wife just gave her a "what were you thinking?" look and immediately said "We're calling the painters tomorrow."

And the eggs! Gawd! Paige even asked Hildi if the eggs would start to eventually rot and smell, to which Hildi replied "Oh, I don't know." Well, duh!

Got Mr. Jespah to watch an ep of While you were Out when they built a basketball court in a backyard. He won't admit this, but he actually enjoyed that. :-D

Sounds like Hildi is just having fun, instead of considering what people think. Black walls??? Jeeze! And YES the eggs will smell. I feel sorry for the people who have to paint over black.

Sometimes I watch the show, and think "Hey I know what I want to do to my living room"... and other times, "I don't need to redecorate anything, at least it isn't as bad as that poor couple's house now." ha ha

I like Laurie the best... I think that's how you spell it.

I like Laurie but I doubt I'd ever do anything she suggested (we're not exactly elegant around here). Hmm. One thing Frank did has actually made sense to me and we may do it one of these days - it was tiling a floor. They were able to cut kitchen tiles (which were probably not too terribly expensive) with a regular pair of shears, rather than a special knife. It just looked easy, and I need to retile a bathroom (one that doesn't have a shower; it already has linoleum in there - don't ask - so putting in more lino rather than something different or better could actually work).

Oh yeah, in While you were Out - have you noticed that Andrew doesn't seem to like Chayse very much?

** Eek, I just realized I sound like a soap fan.

Well, if you watch these kinds of shows enough, you notice little things like that. There's drama everywhere, at least its not so intense it takes away from the show

Oh drama is the name of the game.

Yeah, Andrew's got a dark side. I like that about him. Did you see the episode where they made the jazz club/ stage for the very sweet mom? Andrew told (awwhatshisname) Stephen that it looked like crap, Stephen got all huffy and flounced out... great stuff.

I watched Trading Spaces: Family for the first time and it sucked. Too much going on, too many people, too juvenile. Everyone was on their good behavior. Blech. One mom reacted strongly, but everyone else was kind of "oh, huh. Nice..." There were too many long shots with 6 or 7 people in the frame, you never felt like you got to know anyone, there wasn't enough of the goofy, sometimes R-rated banter.

So that all played up the soap operish elements of why regular Trading Spaces does work -- you like one gal and really hope it works out for her, you think another is anal and totally deserves the monstrosity Hildi is cooking up for her, the conflicts between spouses, the conflicts between crew (designer/ carpenter), the badinage, (Ty and Frank can be hilarious), etc. I think the appeal is more about that than the pure how-to/ before-and-after aspects.

You've got a point there, sozobe. I enjoy the dynamics of the show, but I wouldn't if it was like "American Chopper" or something that extreme. And as I said, I think the family one is just annoying. Last night there was one where one of the families didn't get all their "homework" done. I had never witnessed that before... and the family didn't even care

That's the one I saw. The mother looked rather mortified. They seemed to have a LOT of homework, though. (That's the first I've seen of Edward, the vaguely Dracula-ish new guy I mentioned before, and it was hate... well, intense dislike... at first sight. Blech.) At any rate, hesitate to judge based on just one show, but not nearly as interesting as the other two (TS and WYWO).

Definitely, it has to be within the realm of reason for the dynamics to work and not just be kitsch.

hi ya..stopping in to say..yeah...I had the Trading Spaces itch for a while, and I dont mind watching it now but, i dont go out of my way for it anymore...usually end up seeing it at some point during the week though....nice to see you all here too!

I didnt initially like Edward but, have grown to like him, like Ive grown to like the redhead...but, Id let Edward do my place before her. Id never let Doug or Hildi near my own or my nieghbors house and Vern has his days, Gen and Frank do good for a homie feeling rather than classic or contemporary so, they'd be allowed in.
Ty could come by anytime Amy too...shes okay.
I dont have much to say about Paige...got the same big fake smile happy feelings from her that just seem like WAY too much for any normal human.
The new carpenter...who is this goofball? Okay, maybe I just have to try to watch him more to get to know him but, found myself missing Ty and Amy.
The family show I saw this weekend and the host seemed to not stick out in any way at all...quite the opposite of Paige which actually had me thining..gosh..I guess Paige has her good points..yikes.
I like While You Were Out, Andrew cracks me up! Theresa is good...and you gotta love the reactions from people who no absolutely NOTHING...its funny.
Actually, Ive seen a few episodes of Monster House, and other than the non-working or whiny workers....these things come out really really interesting so, catch like the first few mintues and the end I guess. They are more professional in the build aspect, and they have I think its a whole 5 days to get it done...then have a designer come in to finish it up...just a different twist on it I guess.

Who is this new guy on While You Were Out? He sounds like Kermit the Frog! What have they done with Theresa?

What? What? They did something with Teresa? Nooooo!

I haven't watched either in ages. Totally out of the loop.