For those who don’t know, Trading Spaces is a show on The Learning Channel where two neighbors get to redecorate a room in each other’s house.
They get $1000, a decorator, a carpenter, they have two days to do it, and then they are let loose.
The results run the gamut from fantastic to frightening.
I find it fascinating to see the process they go through, and then to see how the neighbors react when they see their newly done rooms.
Anyone else into watching this show?
My wife watches it every single day. She’s an artist, though, so she loves to see the things they make and do with the rooms they’re working on.
I just think it amusing because the one designer, the older guy with white hair, looks likeCajunMan.
I still watch it, but…
After seeing Changing Rooms (the original), Trading Spaces has lost its lustre. They’re changing it to a more reality-game-show thing, which I’m not all that interested in. I want to watch for the designing, and how to do really neat things on a tight budget.
The people in CR are far more likely to actually listen to the homeowners they’re working with. I’ve seen where Anna bought purple paint and the team HATED it, and she went right out and changed to blue paint. That kind of attitude is almost nonexistent in TS. Laurence (my FAVE he rocks) wanted to do this rose-patterned brocade cloth for curtains, and the worker didn’t like it. So he had her choose another cloth she liked, and they made them so one side had his fabric and the other had hers, and the homeowner could switch between them if they want.
Plus (IMHO anyway), the CR designers have more talent. All the TS designers have the same style over and over and over and over. I can instantly say basics of what Laurie will have or the fabrics Vern will choose. On CR, Graham can do anything from blue-and-silver ultra modern to burgundy-and-mahogany Victorian, and ALL are done nicely (even if it isn’t my style).
And Handy Andy is much cooler than either Ty or Amy! 
Mmm…Handy Andy…
I LOVE Trading Spaces and Changing Rooms–I think that you can definitely be fans of them both. I tend to learn a lot more from Trading Spaces, like cool room ideas, but some of the reactions and interactions of the people on Changing Rooms are just priceless. My dad keeps telling me about an episode where they completely destroyed some poor woman’s teapot collection by putting the teapots on an unstable shelf…anyone seen that?
Yeah, the Trading Spaces designers very rarely listen to the homeowners, but I don’t feel bad for them. I look at the Homeowners as I do the people on Real World or Big Brother–you chose to do this, and now you have to live with the consequences. I think you’d have to be nuts to go on the show, especially if there was a chance that Hildi or Doug would design your room. But there have been some CLASSIC Trading Spaces–the moss wall, the hay wall, the movie theater living room, and of course, Crying Pam and her fireplace. I love that show. 
LOL- I had the exact opposite impression. Trading Spaces, especially the second season is vastly superior in almost all aspects , IMHO. The designs, production values, show length, home owners, designers all are much better then the shorter, much cobblier CR. The CR designs are often horrid, and the lower budget seems to hurt the designs and the shorter show ruins the flow.
Also I like the Trading Spaces tunes better too (/starts humming the jaunty “time is almost up” tune/). Handy Andy is slightly amusing, but nowhere near as good as Ty and Amy. This is one copy that vastly improves on the original. Much of that must be credited to the great group of designers (and the TS willingness to ditch a bad one, unlike CR which kept the horrible designer who did the “bordello” room).
Now ground force is fun to watch- but what is up with that horrible toupe? Looks like a dead animal landed on his head. :rolleyes:
As to the OP- there have been several good thread on Trading Spaces here- trying running a search- hopefully those threads will pop up.
Frank doesn’t have CajunMan’s eyebrows are style.
I love this show. Gen and Ty. Yummy factor.
Mmmmm…Gen. The Barefoot Contessa. She could cover my walls in used dogcrap and I would still love her. How sick am I?
Mrs. CaptMurdock got me into this show. She hates Hildy and Doug with a passion, especially Doug and his “if-you-don’t-do-what-I-want-why-am-I-here?” 'tude.
Every weekday, I come home from work, and the boyfriend has today’s Trading Spaces taped. We usually watch during dinner; it’s a blast. It’s been the jumping-off point for our “what the heck should we do with this living room/bedroom” discussions. It’s even forced us to buy a sewing machine. Fun stuff.
Don’t forget, this week on TLC, after the two Trading Spaces episodes on Saturday, Makeover Story is doing Ty and Amy Wynn. See your favorite carpenters get gussied up for the Emmies.
I am such a sucker for this show.
I love Trading Spaces. I love Ty. I love Frank and Vern.
Does anyone like Doug or Hildy?? I saw both the crying fireplace lady and the home theatre debacle. I swear that if Doug didn’t live in complete self-denial, he wouldn’t be able to get out of bed in the morning.
I ADORE Vern - and I think Hildy is an absolute train wreck of a designer. She and Doug are both so narcissistic and uninterested in what the “Client” wants, I can’t imagine hiring either one.
What is WITH Doug’s “shit-brown” obsession? And does anyone else think he’s got some kind of creepy Charles Rocket thing going on?
Memorable Hildy moments:
[ul][li]Hildy spray-paints the homeowners’ couch and overstuffed chair HOT PINK and leaves it outside to dry - in Seattle. Of COURSE it rains overnight and the furniture is ruined (not that it wasn’t already ruined by being spray-painted PINK). The supernaturally cheerful hostess’s mask of perkiness slips for a second and she is PISSED OFF. The show breaks its own rules and pays for replacements. Hildy shows no remorse and snarkily says, “Well, I couldn’t have predicted rain in Seattle.”[/li][li]Hildy glues HAY to the wall of a family room in a household with small children. When it’s pointed out that the kiddies will surely be yanking pieces of hay off the wall and eating it, Hildy shrugs and says, “Well, they’ll just have to tell them not to.” BWAAAA hahahaha! I am relieved to know that Hildy has not been allowed to reproduce, given her clueless response.[/ul][/li]
Mmmmm, Vern. He is SO yummy, and I love his designs too.
Doug is actually pretty funny. If you catch him in some of the earlier shows you can see he’s more of a regular guy and sort of developed the diva act because people love to have him or something. One I’m specificly thinking of was when he was joking with a couple of guys in front of the sewing machine: “Ok, I called my mom and she said there’s a pedal you push that makes it go.” Later in the show the guys asked him if there was any sort of pattern they were supposed to be assembling something by. He replied “uhhh, no?” and one of the guys said “I wish you would’ve put as much thought into this as you did your hair this morning!” Classic! (Hildi is just a psycho, however. I have liked a few of her rooms but her attitude is just the worst.)
Vern is my favorite hands, down. He seems very professional about doing things the right way and really taking into account what the homeowners want and like. I like Frank’s personallity and enjoy watching him, but I hate his whimsical freehand painting all over everything. Hell, I could do that, but I don’t because I want it to look GOOD! Gen annoys the hell out of me because she doesn’t listen and doesnt care, and something about Laurie rubs me the wrong way too, although I have no idea what it is.
And I’m SOOOO glad someone started a Trading Spaces thread so I could link to the hilariously cheesy: www.tythehandyguy.com site. It’s like one page of stuff he built, then a dozen or so shots of him with his shirt off, lol! (Does this man know his public or what?)
I, too, think Gen is a doofus, but her rooms usually end up looking OK. And I know what you mean about Laurie. She’s this sugary sweet southern gal. . . but I think she’s really a barracuda underneath.
LOVE Ty (MMMmmMMMMMM Ty), really like Vern and Gen, usually. I would have no problem going on this show, except for the nagging fear of Hilde, good Lord that woman does some strange rooms.
BTW There was a suspicion about that Seattle show where the chairs got wet. Many people on the Trading Spaces BB believe that either the crew, or the homeowners went out and either ripped the tarp off them to get them wet, or actually hosed them down.
Also, Crying Pam responds to criticism http://tlc.infopop.net/1/OpenTopic?a=tpc&s=6941912904&f=3951974134&m=3681926035
It’s an interesting site, plus you can get advice on your own projects.
Laurie’s rooms are okay, but not as good as Vern’s. Frank seems very nice, but WAY too whimsical country-ish for me, with the exception of Fred the Dog’s matching bed, that was great!
Pink. shudder
Hold on to your hats, boys and girls, because next season Dez of the hats and funky lamps will be coming back while Laurie is on maternity leave.
There will also be 2 new designers added to the mix for more variety in the rotation.
Okay, does anyone remember the straw walls? :eek:
Hideous! Hildy should have been made to pick off each bit of straw all by herself. (But we do remember it!)
Hello. I’m CJ and I’m a Trading Spaces addict. No, I can’t explain it – I don’t think I’ve ever been into decorating, but I seem to have gotten hooked.
CJ
I remember when Hildy was painting the sofas pink she said something like “I’m so glad I’m doing this show so I can try out things I normally wouldn’t do!”. She was basically cackling with glee with that paint gun. I KNOW the helpers had to have sabotaged that “leaking” water to ruin the couches. Then she ended up buying new couches and COVERING THEM WITH HANDMADE SLIPCOVERS!!! Sounds like she had that planned all along.
And what is the deal with ceiling fans on this show?? I can count at least 5 shows where the homeowners (usually the male) went on and on about “Don’t mess with the ceiling fan” and the FIRST thing the designer says is “The fan has got to go”. What do these people have against ceiling fans??
Love the show, but I really think it’s time to change the music.
Ceiling fans are not dinky little dangly lights. Ceiling fans are functional and, apparently, beloved. Therefore. . . they’ve got to go! Removing the ceiling fan adds to the annoyance quotient of the show and to the authority of the egotistical designer.
And I totally agree about the music. I watched the Memorial Day Marathon and was ready to throw a ceiling fan through my tv set over the music!