Funmurphys: the Blog

Trading Spaces, Again

Trading Spaces may have left town, but I can still see it every Saturday night, or via tape delay Sunday afternoon. This week’s episodes provided a double helping of Doug, with sides of Frank and Kia. Doug does great theme rooms that are often impractical. This time, both rooms were great, and practical too. In the White Room, the HOs (Home Owners) wanted a brighter living room. And boy, did they get one - everything, including the brick fireplace and ceiling fans, was painted white. Some artwork, a mirror, and brightly colored pillows on the new white sofas were the only non-white elements. I really liked the look, but I wouldn’t illuminate that room too strongly for fear of snow blindness.

The other room Doug turned a family room into a cozy lodge room. They Venetian plastered the walls, which we paid close attention to since we’re wanting to do it in our bathroom and stairway. When Doug asked the HOs helping him what they wanted to see in the room, they replied “Does it matter?” They’ve obviously seen Doug before. Later though, they kept complaining, especially about putting the top coat on the plaster. Doug finally told them that they could stop if they wanted, but he was putting the top coat on with or without them because he thought it was worth it. He also had Amy Wynn build this gorgeous rough hewn armoire (not four words I normally put together).

Frank took a cluttered, mish mash of a country room and turned it into a slightly less cluttered, mish mash of a country room with much nicer pieces. And Kia -- ugh! -- the HO’s (both sets even) had it right when they said it looked like a graveyard. She wanted a bed of flowers, so she covered an astroturf “coverlet” with cheap plastic flowers for the bed. The room was repainted in bright (some might say vibrant, I would say garish) colors, she threw in a swing and a brightly painted doll house, and managed to achieve a psychedelic graveyard, an effect not much in demand these days. The HO said she loved it (her friend was silent), showing that there is no accounting for taste.

The fate of Kia will tell us about the direction of Trading Spaces. She’s done two amazingly awful designs. If she stays on the show, the producers are indicating they want more train wrecks. If she leaves, it means they want design quality.