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June/July 2003
New look: Trading Spaces makeover leaves family room cold
It all started when the Summerlin couple and their neighbors applied to be on Trading Spaces, the wildly popular design show on The Learning Channel. Both couples love the show and felt they would be perfect for the show. And they were. After being selected for the show, they were really excited to learn that their two favorite designers, Vern Yip and Genevieve Gorder were coming to Summerlin for the makeovers. Genevieve was going to be redesigning their room. Viewers who watched the show when it was aired in late March were surprised that the beautiful family room was even being redesigned. It was warm and cozy and looked beautiful on the screen... but Kenny and Samm were committed to having the room remodeled by one of their favorite designers. "We wanted a change," Samm said, "and sometimes the rooms on the show come out so nice. We knew it was possible to make this room beautiful, and hoped they would give us ideas on how to place the furniture." The large room is an odd shape, with a slanting ceiling with no right angles. Plus the large fireplace and pot-shelves that reach to the ceiling take up most so much space that furniture placement is a big issue. But that wasn't the only reason they signed up for the show, they also knew it would be a lot of fun... and it was. For two days their home was filled with film crews, while their neighbors worked with Genevieve on a redesign. Meanwhile Kenny and Samm were next door with Vern Yip redesigning their neighbor's living room. "It was so much fun, and we learned so much working with Vern," Kenny said. But when the redesigns were done, and Kenny and Samm returned to "open their eyes and see your new room," they were stunned. Their warm and cozy family room had been turned into "a purple monstrosity." And the furniture, covered with white slipcovers was still in the exact same place. The walls were painted light shades of gray, while the pot-shelves were painted graduating shades of purple... bright purple. And the fireplace had been boxed in with very dark wood. The room was the total opposite of their other rooms and stuck out like a big sore thumb. "It was awful," they both said. "The room was so cold and unfriendly, and it clashed with everything else in the house. We hated it." But while they seemed fairly calm on the television show, as soon as the camera crews left, Kenny and Samm got to work. Fortunately they learned a lot of techniques while working on their neighbor's house with Vern. And they were about to use some the designer's ideas on their own house. The project took a little over two months, but now the family room is back to being warm and welcoming. First to be changed was the color, especially the purples. They chose a honey/caramel color for the room with rustic red and white trim. The walls and pot-shelves are covered with varying shades of a paint called "gold." The three hues blend together beautifully and really add warmth and depth to the room. Next they tackled the dark wood around the fireplace, and painted it all white. They also changed the "barn door" that had been installed during the show, to hide the television. Instead they made this a storage space and entertainment center, with three shutter doors that are easy to open and close. And just for old times sake and fond memories, they left a spot on the ceiling of the storage space the "bright fuchsia" it was painted during the show. Next they put up crown molding and base boards using Vern's techniques. Except when it came to the corners, and Kenny had to create a system to fill in the odd angles. Then Samm made tailored slipcovers for their existing furniture in the rustic red, and she made pillows with zippers for easy cleaning. The table that was made for their room during the show still sits in the same place, but it too is now white. The pot-shelves have returned to their original function as a setting for plants and artwork, rather than the candles and "weird" lighting that was installed during the show. "If you watched the show you probably saw that purple hanging light and all the mood lighting on the fireplace," Kenny said. "Well what you didn't see on TV is that all of those cords ran down the wall, and the ends were cut off and spliced with electrical tape leaving a large ball of cords hanging behind the fireplace. All of that was plugged into a white extension cord about four feet long. Then if you wanted to turn the lights on, you'd have to plug that plug into the outlet in the guest bathroom (behind the fireplace). But you'd have to keep the door open to keep it plugged in... there was no switch." Needless to say, there is no fancy lighting now. But the natural light reflects beautifully off the shades of gold and rustic red. But all in all Kenny and Samm are still glad they applied for the show and went through the whole thing. "We had so much fun," Kenny said, "and it inspired us to do the whole house." Right now they're working on the playroom. And they loved their 15 minutes of fame, although they're looking forward to it ending. When asked if they'll miss the attention from television viewers, photographers and neighbors, they said it was okay. "But maybe we'll get another 15 minutes down the road." |
