Reality TV for decorating has arrived in your living room. From screams of joy to looks of utter horror, home decorating is the latest big trend in reality TV programming.
Apparently having a stranger decorate your house is high drama, and viewers love to peek into every minute of the change. Will they really paint that room orange? Don’t you hate those big retro dots on the wall? Are they going to use twigs to make a chandelier? Can they finish in time? Will the homeowners cry, jump up and down, or just look shocked?
This is a television genre that has it all: celebrity hosts, perky designers, hunky carpenters, impossible time limits, suspenseful countdowns, shouts of “surprise!” at the reveal, and family members telling a plethora of little white lies designed to deceive unsuspecting spouses until the transformation is complete.
Drawing the biggest crowds this year has been Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. And it really is extreme! Debuting in late 2003 on ABC, the crews have performed near-miracles for applicants who tell their family’s sad story and are selected by need, sincerity, and appeal. The first family of five was sent on their first-time-ever family vacation in the Bahamas while carpenters, landscapers, architects, decorators, painters, tilers, flooring experts and neighbors did a 4-month renovation in 7 days. Truly extreme changes included moving walls, installing hardwood floors, constructing novel furniture (the son’s bed was constructed from the truck bed of the dad’s jalopy!), installing a beautiful yard and pirate’s ship décor in the pool area and building a whole new house. Tears of joy were on everyone’s face, homeowners and workers alike, when they returned home for the unveiling. They say that it still feels new after 3 years. Just when you think they couldn't do anything more wonderful or amazing, the crew members outdo themselves with each episode, bringing in celebrities to add to the excitement.
- Best Moments: Watching the stressed-out designers bicker and argue.
- Don’t You Wonder: How they’ll clean the “grass” carpet around the perfect Barbie house in Olivia’s bedroom?
Probably the most well known is Discovery Channel’s Trading Spaces. Neighbors, once friendly, exchange house keys in order to transform one room in the other person’s home. In just two days, designers and carpenters assist the teams as they work their magic before the cameras. When the clock runs out, it is time for the big reveal. Not all homeowners are thrilled, but they are always surprised.
- Best Moments: Outrageous moss walls and silk flower bathrooms. (How would you clean them?)
- Don’t You Wonder: How many homeowners cry then repaint the next day? How many stop speaking to their neighbors?
- What’s Next? Look for a series of books featuring Trading Spaces designers and makeovers.
Hotter than hot, Bravo TV’s Queer Eye for the Straight Guy presents a team of 5 gay men trying to show a dull straight guy how to be fabulous. These guys are really funny, sincere, and adorably cute, so it’s no wonder the show’s ratings are through the roof. Over a full hour, the Fab Five offer lessons in fashion, culture, food and wine, grooming and interior design. Meanwhile, viewers are treated to hilarious antics, sidelong glances, and looks of horror as hosts peer into a bathtub last cleaned in the 80s. By the end of the show an enlightened, totally hip man emerges, newly clothed and coiffed in a totally updated (and clean!) apartment, usually to the delight of a special woman.
- Best Moments: Guys who really get it. Also, watching the Fab Five critique their creation.
- Don’t You Wonder: Why some guys have no real clothes in their closet.
- What’s Next? Look for celebrity makeovers, sitcom appearances, and books.
