CruiseDiva

So far so good with my Bosch smooth cook top. I got the special cleaner that they recommend and hope to keep it new looking for a long time. It's black.

The Swamp-something couple... the kitchen had perfectly nice looking cabinets and they had a tiny budget, so WHY tear them out? Unless they are particle board junk or built in place, cabinets can be painted and relocated, people. It seems that no one realizes that. And why spend all that time and money covering beams that the husband obviously liked? And covering an existing door to the basement with a barn door? Those two had even less sense than money. Don't get me started on an all dirt back yard! No wonder the wife wanted a mud room. Their back yard will be total mud when it rains or winter snows melt.

When I was a little girl one of my classmates was burned very badly when she was standing too close to the stove and her long hair caught fire. I've been afraid of gas ranges ever since. I love my new Bosch flat electric cook top--no whobbly coils. The best feature is no knobs--it's all push button and can be locked so it's child and cat proof. It's also pretty easy to keep clean.

I nearly died laughing when the couple was arguing and the realtor said they needed to have a "come to Jesus" moment. Apparently the husband did have his "moment" when he finally agreed that it was ridiculous for him to expect a flat back yard in the mountains. The two times we relocated for DH's job we didn't think to tell the realtors we wanted a particular style home. We simply noted the predominate styles for the area (single story Acadian in Louisiana and two story Federal in Georgia) and went with what we liked best that was on the market. For us the location was key and we have enjoyed our homes.

I believe she said she's a photographer. I didn't get the need for a trailer. Our HOA also restricts what can be parked in a driveway and if a trailer/RV is parked in a back yard it must be in an area where it can't be seen from the street.

Agree! I'm so tired of that god-awful style of tile and you nailed it that it looks line linoleum. Parking the trailer in the driveway won't last long if there is a homeowner's association. He he.

I hate painted brick and especially brick painted blue, but that blue wasn't as bad as some I've seen on HGTV lately. The wood really toned it down. I thought it disguised the garage conversion very well. Some houses with one-car garages have a wide driveway in order to have a parking pad/off street parking so I didn't think it was a giveaway that the second garage bay was converted. I had to laugh when they said they were converting the kitchen to a GALLEY style. I happen to like galley kitchens and that one turned out beautifully, but house hunters on teevee cringe when they see them. LOL!

They were a couple of odd chicks acting out their fantasy of being on teevee. Seriously, when the HHs only care about buying an older home for its 'charm' they should listen to their RE agent about not expecting open floor plan, huge closets, and deluxe bathrooms.

Our son lives in that Northern VA area so I watched the entire show because I was interested in seeing what's available near his apartment. I quickly muted the sound after hearing to that woman's voice. Good grief--she was atrocious. HH was really scraping the bottom of the barrel when they signed that couple up.

I believe the two doors in the back led to the patio from bedrooms. I wish the 'reveal' had been more revealing. We barely got to see the interior rooms when they finished. I was really confused by the final layout--they transformed the former living room & dining room into a master suite... so where did they get the space for the living room in the finale? The camera moved around so quickly that I couldn't figure out much of anything, although I really liked the toned down checkerboard tiles on the kitchen floor. It was kinda fun to see Ashley's many hairstyles,

I nearly fell off my chair laughing when that ONE car passing by caused the Cincinnati HH wife to freak out about the traffic noise.

They really cheaped out on that entire master bath. Not only did the shower need glass doors, but they didn't install a shelf--thus, all the shampoo and bath products are heaped on the shower floor. It was also odd that they installed a long vanity, but only one sink, the mirror above the vanity was smallish and out of proportion, and the light fixture was simply ugly and looked tiny. This description is a hoot: "This beauty features real hardwood floors, a designer showcase kitchen with upscale lighting and plumbing fixtures, new stainless steel appliances, dedicated outlets inside the cabinetry for hidden appliances," The light fixtures in kitchen and dining area look like builder-grade from Lowe's and the plumbing fixtures didn't look like anything special. As for electrical outlets inside the cabinets... who uses appliances INSIDE their cabinets? Sounds like a fire hazard to me. Would building codes even allow that? The whole reno looked like a poorly executed flip to me and since they didn't even live there for a year I think flipping it was their intent.

It sounds like Jo and Chip are hoping to be offered a better deal (and more money) to revive the show if the Discovery buy-out of Scripps goes through. IMHO. their show wouldn't likely make HGTV less valuable in the overall scheme of things. It's just one show on one of Scripps' channels. The hair and beard... not surprising that Chipster is trying to look like a country music star. He seems to have a huge ego.

On Jo's blog at https://magnoliamarket.com/our-last-season/ there is a video of their announcement that season five will be their last. Chipster looks like he's about to cry and JoJo looks pissed off. Personally, I think he's having some sort of mid-life crisis with the long hair and beard. I've always liked her, but have nearly quit watching their show because he acts so silly and does such dumb things to grab attention.

In addition to drinking out of the toilet, the dog would put his front paws on the window frames to look outside. I'm betting that his claws, which looked pretty long. scratched the paint on them. That would really piss me off more than water on the bathroom floor around the toilet.

One of the comments on the story that is linked above says that they recently sold their farm. Anyone know if that's true? Quitting the show is probably more face-saving than being canned.

I recently had granite counter tops installed. Please don't shoot me!! The house is 30 years old and the builder-installed Formica almond colored counter tops were really worn. I loved my matching cast iron double sink with porcelain finish--I took good care of it and it was still like new but simply couldn't be re-used. Instead, I had a double basin granite-composite under-mount sink installed that matches the light beige part of the granite counter top, which also has brown and black swirls with ivory gold flecks. The German-made sink is really deep and with my high arched faucet it's great for filling tall pots. Good on you! I'd do that as well.

We had a galley kitchen in our last home. The window was over the sink with dishwasher, built-in wall oven, and fridge on that side and the cook-top on the opposite side for an efficient working triqangle. And, on the cook-top side, (horrors!) there was an opening to the family room between the upper and lower cabinets with enough counter-top overhang for bar stools on the family room side. I guess that was what they are now calling a "breakfast bar." I loved it--I could be in the kitchen and just bend over to see the TV in the family room if something interesting happened to catch my attention. I wouldn't have dreamed of removing those upper cabinets for "open concept" because I'd have lost a ton of needed storage space.

I'm so tired of house hunters getting into the real estate agents' faces and saying, "Where's MY 3-car garage, double sinks in bathroom, stainless steel appliances, etc." They sound so entitled and whiny. My this and MY that... quite annoying. In terms of house style, I don't think any of the house hunters I've seen recently have a clue what a real Craftsman house looks like.

One of the reasons we chose our house 30 years ago was the two walk-in closets in master bedroom.

My mother-in-law took me to visit one of her friend's homes back in the late 1970s and before we got there she told me it was an unusual house with a "great room" instead of separate living room, dining room, and kitchen. Thinking back...it was open concept! When I was single in the early 1970s I had a studio apartment and the kitchen was open to the main room with a bar, but the kitchen had an actual doorway right next to the entry door. Back then I didn't cook often so didn't have to worry about company seeing dirty dishes. There was no dishwasher in my tiny kitchen. Even the first apartment DH and I lived in had a similar kitchen that was open to the living/dining area. I guess open concept has been around for a long time. LOL! I couldn't wait to move so we'd have a kitchen you couldn't see when entering our apartment.

Yes, it is nice, but if the Gaines conglomerate is raking in as much dough as I suspect they do it's kind of a token effort. The "MY Pillow" owner has just donated 60,000 pillows to relief shelters in the Houston area.

Especially if at least one of them snores like a chain saw.

It is beautiful and tranquil. We visited there while on a cruise and it was one of my favorite ports of call.

And I'm not getting rid of my built-in-place cabinets that are (horrors!) OAK!!! When we bought this house I was thrilled that the kitchen cabinets are oak because my furniture for the adjacent breakfast room area includes an oak dining table, an antique oak ice box, and an antique oak chest.