No Demo Reno - General Discussion

[needschocolate]

On 9/3/2022 at 6:52 PM, alexa said:

For the recent episode I was hopeful she would actually use some color since the basis of the renovation was that beautiful turquoise room.  But nope, pretty much all white like all of her other designs.  Which is why I quit watching for the most part.  It is too much the same every time.

This show is very repetitive.  Not just because she paints the walls white.  It seems like almost every house starts off with a large corner tub, a too small shower, and a two tiered counter, and ends up with white walls, brass hardware, and a free standing tub, a large shower, and (more recently) tile with uneven edges that isn't sealed and has to be soaked in water before applying. 

That said, I like the show, but I am not really sure why. I think is makes a good background show, perhaps because of the banter between Jenn and all the regulars.  

[Grrarrggh]

7 hours ago, needschocolate said:

This show is very repetitive.  

Is there a programme on HGTV that isn't? I'm not being sarcastic here. Genuinely wondering. The closest I can remember is the one that Lil Jon did, and that only had six episodes. Every other programme it seems that after 3-5 episodes you've seen the same design at least twice already. Even HH/I gets like that because most of the hunters are Americans looking for the same HGTV design lol. 

[alexa]

1 hour ago, Grrarrggh said:

Is there a programme on HGTV that isn't? I'm not being sarcastic here. Genuinely wondering. The closest I can remember is the one that Lil Jon did, and that only had six episodes. Every other programme it seems that after 3-5 episodes you've seen the same design at least twice already. Even HH/I gets like that because most of the hunters are Americans looking for the same HGTV design lol. 

Agreed.  And what is annoying is that the first episode of any show they tend to do something more creative to make me think they are different, and then every episode after is white, white, and white.  Lol

[madpsych78]

Little late to the topic, but I'm in Dallas/Fort Worth (essentially where No Demo Reno takes place) and while two-tiered counters are not uncommon, I think it reflects more of the time period (early 2000s). We're getting a house built and it's going to have a one-level island rather than a two-tiered counter, which reflects what is popular for kitchens in the early 2020s.

What I've noticed IS more common in the DFW area (or maybe Texas in general) is that brick/stone homes seem to be the norm here. Even with homes that appear to be built in the 70s or 80s. When I lived in the Chicago suburbs there were some brick homes, but vinyl siding was more common. 

[3 is enough]

Brick is more common in Texas because it is manufactured there, so transport costs are lower. 
I lived in the DFW area from 1996- 1999, and a lot of these homes look very familiar to me. 
The other thing which was common in new builds 25-30 years ago was wallpaper in the kitchens and main baths. Haven’t seen any evidence of that on the show. 

I like Jen. She has a certain style but so do all of the HGTV personalities. 
I do like how she sprinkles in some tips during the show.

[RoxiP]

Well she used wallpaper last night, although it was very subtle and in an "adult" dining room it should probably stand up well.  Loved the built-in she did in the dining room.  I wish she had showed more of the work she did in the kitchen (or maybe I napped through that part) - I know she mentioned moving the refrigerator but I never saw that pointed out during the reveal.  

[KeithJ]

I didn’t really like the tile in the shower.  Thought it looked really bad although it may have just been the lighting.

The microwave seemed to be just a little too high in the appliance cabinet too

[StrictTime]

The white grout on that dark, “handmade-look” tile looked terrible. If it had been a dark grout it wouldn’t have made the imperfections in the tile stand out.

[Shelbie]

Loved the floor tile in the bathroom but hated the shower tile. Looked really messy to me. The microwave was way too high for the wife to lift hot dishes out of.

[CrazyInAlabama]

I didn't like that Jenn didn't tell Victor about the porcelain counter tops.   Porcelain is harder for the fabricators to work with, and does take special handling, and there's an increased chance of it getting damaged during fabrication and installation.    I usually like the work relationship between Jenn and Victor, and hope the dustup was a storyline, and not a real conflict. 

I did love how the finished kitchen looked, and I liked the house.   I didn't like the conflict. 

Edited September 25, 2023 by CrazyInAlabama

[buttersister]

Conflict caused by Jen. Did she not know about installing porcelain? WTF? Forgot to tell Victor? Trying to spice up her show? Not endearing, Jen. 

I was just getting over how annoying she can be. 

[buttersister]

LOL, Jen made Victor install another porcelain countertop.

So here we go—couple had a super nice white kitchen and wanted it o be more Tudor style. Soon: Jen, please separate this open floor plan!

[CrazyInAlabama]

At least this time it was only a small piece of porcelain countertop.   I hope this is the last porcelain countertop we ever see.    

I think the finished house was exactly what the couple wanted, and I suspect that the homeowners have a huge list of what they want and don't want to guide the design. 

[CrazyInAlabama]

LIke the reno tonight, and was shocked that the woman and her dad started and never finished so many projects in the house.   Six years without replacing the floor in that one room was ridiculous.    However, I am tired of the dark green shower tile.   I would have liked a dark blue instead.    

[quirkygal]

I miss the two client episodes where Jenn worked a major renovation and then a smaller job for a different family (redoing the closets, setting up a home office, carving out a laundry room and drop zone, etc).

Yes her kids are cute but I'm not watching for the kids. I'm watching to learn more about renovating my space to fit my life and learn some design concepts.

 

 

[CrazyInAlabama]

I really enjoyed the couple who moved from a custom house, and weren't loving the Dallas house.    Since I'm not tall, it was interesting to see the issues for the very tall husband.    I loved the kitchen pendant lights, and the hardware on the kitchen cabinets was beautiful.   I've never seen hardware like that, and I really liked it. 

The bathrooms were lovely.    

[CrazyInAlabama]

I like that we hear about the reasons behind the design choices.   

I really liked the house on tonight's new episode, that was a huge budget, and I really liked watching the choices Jenn made, and hearing why she chose the lights, stains, etc. that totally transformed the house.     That sunken tub was so big!   What a waste of water and space that was.   

[RoxiP]

I could swim in that bathtub, but I'm only 5'3.  I would love to have a bathtub and I can imagine his joy in having one big enough to fit his 6'8 frame.

I did like this transformation.

[Book Junkie]

I loved this house and liked most of what Jen did, but I hated the living room/fireplace redo. I would've preferred she painted the brick black to keep the living room looking more mountain-like chalet and cozy. I think that would've gone better with the overall look of the house. By drywalling most of the fireplace and painting it white, it made this huge blank wall and it was too sterile looking. I loved the bathroom redo.

[buttersister]

Jen did a great job for the empty nesters. Loved the kitchen. And while I don’t like wet rooms, that couple sure did. Lennie was hilarious, openly admitting he’d have nixed all Jen’s ideas, but loved the finished rooms. But what I thought he liked the most was how freaking happy his wife was.

Nice job on the brewery, too. I wonder which page of the Gaines’ HGTV Book of Cash In Early that they and the Napiers found buy a old building, turn it into a store, restaurant, tourist attraction?

Edited December 8, 2023 by buttersister

[CrazyInAlabama]

I loved the empty nester redo, and the couple were so much fun.    

I'm not a fan of wet rooms, but that one was exactly what the homeowners wanted, so I hope they enjoy it, and 

Jenn and Mike already had a big coffee shop, and it's been in operation for years.  So, the brewery, or brew pub, or gastropub was a nice addition to that.    The menu at the brew pub looks amazing.    

Edited December 11, 2023 by CrazyInAlabama

[RoxiP]

At least the wet room was contained within glass walls.  My big issue with wet rooms is when the entire room is wet - who wants to sit on a soggy toilet?  I live in an RV and when I was shopping for it I found a lot of RVs have the "wet room" concept -- no thank you!

That couple was really sweet and although normally I find over the top personalities on these "reveal" shows a little fake and off-putting (sometimes I think they are "acting") I didn't get that impression from the wife on this show at all...I think she is just normally an exuberant person.  

[buttersister]

Ugh, first trip to Denmark, wet rooms were in some of our modern hotels. No. Just no. Seriously no.

[CrazyInAlabama]

I watched the rerun of the empty nesters, Lisa and Lennie.   I even liked the way the wet room was set up.   The tub area was pretty far away from the shower area, and tub was far enough out from the tile wall to let the floor tile dry.   With the long floor drain, the tub is probably going to get a minimal amount of water from the shower side.  The wet room floor also sloped toward the middle by the drain, so I bet the wet room will dry pretty quickly.        I really loved the tile in this house too.   

Edited December 31, 2023 by CrazyInAlabama

[endure]

I just started watching this show recently.  I  tend to go on then off of HGTV renovation type shows in general and have been off for a couple of years, so maybe easing back in.... just a bit.  I really like Jen, my first impression wasn't great but by the end of the first episode I really liked what she did and she grew on me too.  She has a good sense of humour but still pulls off an interesting and fun reno show.

[chessiegal]

I watched a couple of episodes today. Several times Jennifer said she was no good at "math". I really dislike hearing a woman say that! Fits right into the stereotype that girls can't do math, which is ridiculous. She needs to stop saying that.

[RoxiP]

Maybe she just really isn't good at math?  I understand that you are saying that she doesn't need to verbalize it but not everybody can be good at everything.

Perhaps a truer statement would be to say that she doesn't care about having to do the calculations required, which indicates a disinterest as opposed to an inability?

[chessiegal]

From what I could tell, Jennifer was talking about arithmetic. Good grief, that's something you learn in grade school. It's not calculus! For someone who has a renovation business, that's just a bad message to send.