Good Bones - General Discussion

[dleighg]

1 hour ago, bilgistic said:

And futhermore, will someone please explain to me the point of a long-sleeved shirt with an exposed midriff?

I made a comment on the first episode of Amazon's Project-Runway-Clone that Heidi Klum was wearing a long sleeve jacket over a turtleneck that had an exposed midriff. Of course that is LA for you. Can that possibly be a thing in Indiana????

[deirdra]

10 hours ago, dleighg said:

I made a comment on the first episode of Amazon's Project-Runway-Clone that Heidi Klum was wearing a long sleeve jacket over a turtleneck that had an exposed midriff. Of course that is LA for you. Can that possibly be a thing in Indiana????

My niece is going to college in Indianapolis and based on her SM photos, apparently it is a thing.

[Ohmo]

The bedroom on the main floor is ugly and spooky.  It looked like a place for Dracula to sleep, not a bedroom for a just-married or about-to-be-married couple.

[CrazyInAlabama]

I didn't realize the Swanson House (the carriage house, and venue space) was on the market until August, after a bunch of price reductions.    I just wonder where anyone parks in that neighborhood?    It doesn't look like there is anywhere to park, or for caterers and other vendors to park and unload.    

I found this article interesting:

https://heavy.com/entertainment/hgtv/lawsuit-mina-starsiak-hawk-good-bones/

The article discusses two separate company lawsuits.  

Edited October 11, 2022 by CrazyInAlabama

[bilgistic]

2 hours ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

I found this article interesting:

https://heavy.com/entertainment/hgtv/lawsuit-mina-starsiak-hawk-good-bones/

The article discusses two separate company lawsuits.  

Oh, no—she may have to sell one of her five houses.

[pasdetrois]

Something's wrong when there is that much chaos. Did she expand too fast without knowing what she's doing? Or did she get set up by the plaintiffs because they figure she has deep pockets?

Begging for a cheap or free attorney is not a good look. Mina, why should anyone work for free because you can't manage your life and profession?

Edited October 11, 2022 by pasdetrois

[MrPissyPuppy]

2 minutes ago, pasdetrois said:

Begging for a cheap or free attorney is not a good look. Mina, why should anyone work for free?

Besides, isn't her mom an attorney?  Unless she let her license expire or doesn't specialize in that area.  But Karen should know some people. 

Couldn't find her in the search using Laine or Starsiak. 

https://www.in.gov/courts/help/attorney-search/

Edited October 11, 2022 by MrPissyPuppy

[bilgistic]

Karen was a criminal defense lawyer, but yeah, she should absolutely know someone who could defend Mina. My mother was a paralegal for some 30-odd years and can still recommend lawyers.

[CrazyInAlabama]

3 hours ago, bilgistic said:

Karen was a criminal defense lawyer, but yeah, she should absolutely know someone who could defend Mina. My mother was a paralegal for some 30-odd years and can still recommend lawyers.

Since Karen is part of the company, it would be a conflict of interest for her to defend the company., and for a case like this you need a specialist.     

Edited October 11, 2022 by CrazyInAlabama

[chessiegal]

2 hours ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

Since Karen is part of the company, it would be a conflict of interest for her to defend the company., and for a case like this you need a specialist.     

It may be ill-advised, but there is no conflict of interest.

[bilgistic]

Well, that happened. All that drama for them to finish on time after all. Quelle surprise.

The stairs were cool (but scary, and no rail?) but overall? It didn't look very "Victorian". The outside of the house, apart from the turret, looked pretty generic. I can't believe how much money Mina put into that whole project.

I forgot to mention this last week, but it was odd that Mina went to the cake (catering) tasting with the couple and even odder that this week, she went to the bride's dress fitting and awkwardly stood around. The bride is a hairstylist, and Mina is her client and vice versa. Mina acts like everyone in Indianapolis is her "friend". Just because you interact with someone doesn't make them your friend.

The "speakeasy" looked tiny. What was the deal with the one whole side behind the couch that was curtained off?

[CrazyInAlabama]

They also did the hairstylist's house a couple of seasons ago, I think. 

[bilgistic]

They did, but a client isn't a "friend". Every single person to whom she sells a home is called her "friend". I guess I have a different definition of "friend" than she does.

[Andyourlittledog2]

I hadn't thought about lead but is Indianapolis the only place in the country that a) never used asbestos in building or b) has absolutely no laws regarding testing and safe removal during remodeling?  Because whenever that cloud of dust/debris explodes into the air during demo all I see is potential asbestos exposure. And now lead.

[absolutelyido]

23 hours ago, bilgistic said:

Well, that happened. All that drama for them to finish on time after all. Quelle surprise.

The "speakeasy" looked tiny. What was the deal with the one whole side behind the couch that was curtained off?

Yeah, surprise, surprise Mina pulled it off. It wouldn't surprise me if the wedding was completely fake and they just held it when the house was finally done.

Mina seemed to mismanage the whole project then patted herself on the back for doing a great job. At times it seemed like she had never managed a construction project before. The concrete guy had to explain to Mina that they couldn't pour the concrete below a certain temperature. After how many years in construction, shouldn't she know that already?

The whole space (house and carriage house) seems poorly planned. It is supposed to be an event space but no space is large enough to hold even a smallish wedding so you have to put up a tent outside. Yes, the speakeasy is tiny, as is every other room. I can see holding an event in a large home with separate rooms that people can gather in, but no room in the house looks like it can hold more than 8 people. If you actually want to have your guests all sit down for a meal, I guess you're back in the tent. And they showed people arriving by van, so obviously no on-site parking is available. 

I get the impression this was a big vanity project for Mina, and a poorly thought-out one at that. 

Edited October 13, 2022 by absolutelyido

[KeithJ]

Am I the only one who's glad this (Risky Business) is over?

I liked Good Bones and Mina before this but this show has really changed my impression of her.

Maybe because this was a vanity project for her and she put herself on a very tight deadline but she seemed like a totally different person. At times she seemed incompetent and was way over her head.

Now, on to the show.

This episode was mostly about the speakeasy and it was absolutely awful.

First of all, it's way too bright for a speakeasy (unless it was extra lit for filming) and I'm not sure you can even call a single booth a speakeasy.

The flamingo screen right when you enter doesn't say "speakeasy" to me and what's with the curtain?

The big radiator is terrible. Couldn't they at least replace it with a new one that's not rusted out?

Why did they leave the wood from the wine rack unfinished?  If you have black everywhere else, that probably should have been black as well.

I can't see a single neighbor being happy with what Mina has done to the house. I can see it being rented as an Airbnb but I am still very surprised zoning allows them to hold events there. I would think many extra things would need to be added to the house (sprinkler system, etc) to allow them to host events.

Edited October 13, 2022 by KeithJ

[LoveIsJoy]

I recall years ago, when my ex hired a construction guy to dig up the ground and place concrete piers according to a specific plan for a commercial building.  The guy took the deposit, made a mess of the land, dug piers in the wrong locations, and didn’t rope off the area for safety.  Then, he suddenly disappeared from the worksite and no communication for nearly a month.  He was then fired.

My ex had to hire another firm to fix the mess.  Then, the fired contractor wanted to sue for breach of contract.  They all ended up in arbitration where the guy was awarded $$$ mostly to avoid a long legal process.

So, this scenario is not uncommon in construction sites: work is done wrong, workers miss deadlines or walk off of jobs, subcontractors are no-shows or don’t get paid, invoices are not paid on time, etc. or it all ends up in a lawsuit.

What surprises me is that I initially thought HGTV had more of a hand in making sure that things ran smoothly.  But that idea was shattered with the mess that was Nicole Curtis (Rehab Addict) and Allison (Windy City Live).

The other thing I noticed about this episode was that it was obviously filmed in different seasons although they kept acting like the scenes were all taking place in the “OMG, 4 weeks until the wedding!” drama.  During the bridal consultant walk through and the dress fitting, Mina was wearing a summer top.  During the concrete and turf drama, it was obviously bitterly cold.  

And I had the same reaction to the speakeasy stairs— no rails?  And how were the men supposed to get dressed in that little area?

[Andyourlittledog2]

It was obvious the timing was suspect when they were all at the bridal shop ohhing over the dress two weeks before the wedding.  Who brings eleventy people to a dress fitting, which it would have had to be that close to the wedding. Otherwise, that scene was long before that date.

Yeah, this vanity project kinda sealed the deal on my opinion of Mina and Good Bones in general.  Whatever good thoughts I ever had about her and her company has been obliterated.

Charlotte Hall. Seriously.

[bilgistic]

1 hour ago, Andyourlittledog2 said:

It was obvious the timing was suspect when they were all at the bridal shop ohhing over the dress two weeks before the wedding.  Who brings eleventy people to a dress fitting, which it would have had to be that close to the wedding. Otherwise, that scene was long before that date.

Yeah, this vanity project kinda sealed the deal on my opinion of Mina and Good Bones in general.  Whatever good thoughts I ever had about her and her company has been obliterated.

Charlotte Hall. Seriously.

Who brings their wedding venue owner to a dress fitting?

Edited October 13, 2022 by bilgistic

[Andyourlittledog2]

23 hours ago, bilgistic said:

Who brings their wedding venue owner to a dress fitting?

Someone who is getting a deep deep discount on the venue due to TV filming etc? 

Black rooms and fake gold fixtures.  All Mina needs now is a live-in caretaker with vampiric tendencies and she's all set. That speakeasy (actually dark spooky basement with drinks) was awful. And the staircase without handrails is an accident waiting to happen. I think Mina forgot that if someone gets hurt walking up or down that thing that it is the owner who is going to take the legal hit. And that would be her.

[deirdra]

21 hours ago, Andyourlittledog2 said:

And the staircase without handrails is an accident waiting to happen. I think Mina forgot that if someone gets hurt walking up or down that thing that it is the owner who is going to take the legal hit. And that would be her.

It is most likely a building code violation that only a moron would show on national TV, alerting the local inspectors.

[chessiegal]

17 minutes ago, deirdra said:

It is most likely a building code violation that only a moron would show on national TV, alerting the local inspectors.

I doubt local inspectors sit around watching HGTV shows. Surely, they have to get permits ahead of time before renovations. That said, we discovered after we bought our house that the guy who built it, lived in it, and sold it to us, got permits, but didn't bother to get the final inspections on 4 of them, and we therefore had issues when we went to get a building permit. Catch 22 - the only person who could request a final inspection was the person who got the permit, but he didn't own the house anymore. Of course, he falsely signed papers at closing that said there were no open permits on the house. The county took pity on us and let us re-open the permits (at $50 each), and have the work done to code so we could move forward on our project.

[deirdra]

1 hour ago, chessiegal said:

I doubt local inspectors sit around watching HGTV shows. 

But the people who are not fans of the 2 Chicks and have lawsuits in progress probably do and more violations could strengthen their claims. I'd never buy without first running an independent check on liens and outstanding permits on a property.

Edited October 15, 2022 by deirdra

[Angelsmom1009]

Mina is very active on IG, here's some gems she's covered that I found interesting:

-They're getting all of their ducks in a row for this current lawsuit. And they are currently being sued by two other contractors for nonpayment. She basically said if they do the work they get paid, and there's sexism behind the lawsuits.

-Niether Tad nor Kelsey (her younger sister) work for Two Chicks anymore and haven't for a while. Tad comes in once in a while to do demo, and with Kelsey, they decided that the working relationship was a strain on their actual relationship, so they decided to go back to being sisters. 

-Her niece Bean aka Julia's mother aka her half sister aka Tad's full sister has struggled with addiction on and off for years, and her niece lived with her and Steve because she temporarily lost custody.

-Tad actually posted this on his IG, but his mother actually struggled with addiction as well, and passed away from an overdose, which he didn't find out about until he was older.

-Mina and Karen have had a very up and down relationship for a long time, and they actually did not speak for over a a year whole she was in college.

-Mina often posts memes about difficult family relationships and healing from childhood trauma, but hasn't really elaborated on it.

I always find stuff like this interesting because HGTV and reality shows in general make everything so rosy and perfect on TV (other than the manufactured drama) but behind the scenes there's more "normal" situations going on, because let's face it, there are very few families like the Cleavers. I also admire her transparency on social media, and her personality is more genuine there than on the recent seasons of the show. That's why I love earlier seasons of shows like this...they are the most authentic, before those network checks and producer plots start rolling in.

[Barlowe]

https://www.theknot.com/us/mel-moss-and-curtis-mcgaha-jan-2022 

I was reading Indianapolis Monthly’s recap of the finale and they linked the wedding announcement where it’s mentioned guests parked at the nearby goodwill and were shuttled over or ubered.

I found it to be weird dig that they use the word infamous to describe Two Chicks & a Hammer and comical that they only had the cocktail hour and the ceremony at the the hall and then guest were on their own for getting to the reception venue.

[bilgistic]

That makes me think (and agree with other posters) that they got a free wedding venue out of appearing on the show. It's not like they could've fit more than 10 people in the carriage house for a reception, anyway.

[CrazyInAlabama]

The main house has five suites, and the carriage house has three suites.   I think the carriage house suites are in the second story addition. 

Spoiler

Mina had a Q and A on her Instagram (someone posted about it, I don't have an Instagram account). 

So, Tad left the company too, and only shows for the demo shots?  HE has his own clothing line, and who knows what else.  Kelsey left and works for another company now.   

MJ and Austin are the only ones who work directly for 2 Chicks now, that are shown on TV.   Apparently there are others who aren't shown on TV.   Corey only works as project manager sometimes, he has his own project management company. 

 I'm tired of hearing how broke the company is, and Mina is personally.   Going on social media after the lawsuits are filed, and asking for a pro bono attorney isn't giving me confidence in their financial stability.  I bet they would do so much better redoing houses like MJ's in the near in suburbs, higher returns, quicker to work on, you buy them, flip them, and make more money, especially if you just do a cosmetic redo on houses that could be done in a month, not years.  

So the house in the Valley section, on Warren is something they owned for 4 years!   If they have an inventory of pre-reno, falling apart houses, and ones that people are squatting in, I can see why they're losing money.   I wonder how many other of their 'squatters were in this house', houses were already in their inventory and they never secured or checked on them?   

How the heck does someone build a house from scratch, and screw up by five feet too short?  The headboard turned picture frames was hideous. 

The new headquarters has a big playroom for Mina's two kids, and Finley's kid or kids, with a window from their office so they can supervise.    My guess is that they have a full time nanny for the kids. 

Edited October 20, 2022 by CrazyInAlabama

[tessabq]

If you are designing a space to be used for events, it would be a good idea to consult with a professional event planner when designing the space. Just saying. 

[absolutelyido]

On 10/16/2022 at 5:20 PM, Barlowe said:

https://www.theknot.com/us/mel-moss-and-curtis-mcgaha-jan-2022 

I was reading Indianapolis Monthly’s recap of the finale and they linked the wedding announcement where it’s mentioned guests parked at the nearby goodwill and were shuttled over or ubered.

I found it to be weird dig that they use the word infamous to describe Two Chicks & a Hammer and comical that they only had the cocktail hour and the ceremony at the the hall and then guest were on their own for getting to the reception venue.

Only the ceremony and cocktail hour at Charlotte Hall, except the ceremony was in a tent because the house and carriage house are both too small. I still don't get how exactly Mina envisioned people using the hall.

[bilgistic]

New episode...I mused that Mina was doing so much work at the house herself because no contractors in Indianapolis will work with her anymore.

The nook drama was ridiculous. Why is no one actually managing the work?

And Finley babysits Charlotte now? What doesn't that poor woman have to do for Mina?

[bilgistic]

Also, those plastic frames that Karen spray-painted doo-doo brown were not great, Bob.

[65mickey]

 Mina bought and renovated this house and a carriage house and spent a lot of money  for an event venue that cannot accommodate a wedding that was not particularly large let alone a reception. So the weddings must be held in a tent. So just what type of event does she think this will attract? Did I read somewhere on this thread that she is trying to sell it now?

[Andyourlittledog2]

So we're doing wedding venues/stores now?  This show is unrecognizable.  And not interesting at all any more. I don't want to see renovations of mansions, wedding venues, flipped Airbnbs, etc. I also could live without watching Mina get her hair done or a pedicure. Seriously.

They seem to be doing their own properties (2 Chicks storage/headquarters etc), commercial properties that they or their friends and relatives own, etc. And the prior residential homes apparently are being used as Airbnb and not single family owned homes. This show has a serious integrity problem with me.

Edited October 26, 2022 by Andyourlittledog2

[CrazyInAlabama]

On 10/25/2022 at 9:09 PM, 65mickey said:

 Mina bought and renovated this house and a carriage house and spent a lot of money  for an event venue that cannot accommodate a wedding that was not particularly large let alone a reception. So the weddings must be held in a tent. So just what type of event does she think this will attract? Did I read somewhere on this thread that she is trying to sell it now?

It was on the market until August, and was off before the show aired.    Who knows what will happen with this house.    I don't see it as a rental for short term, or Indy 500 month, no parking.    

She did say when they did that generic redo on the NBA player's place, that she wanted to do upscale commercial and residential properties.     If I have enough money to remodel, and hire a designer, it would be someone that I like their taste, and not this company.   Their staging looks like the clearance rack at Pier 1 when they were selling out to close. 

A lot of their properties are obviously Airbnbs, and not a family home.    Except for the relatives, I think most of their properties for the past few seasons are short term rentals, or flip houses for people who want to resell for short term rental.     I'm not watching a redo on wedding shops, or rental properties.  

I decided to hate watch this week, after seeing the preview that's full of screw ups, including making every doorway the wrong size.   And they have another employee, a Build manager?  or something like that.   With a house with no foundation, rot everywhere, and a bad floorplan, I say demolish the house, and build the same footprint, unless they expand to 80% of the lot.    

I had to laugh at the historical association saying the patio has to go on the front, I'm guessing that's the way they limit the partying when the house turns into a short term rental?  

Edited November 2, 2022 by CrazyInAlabama

[dleighg]

54 minutes ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

Their staging looks like the clearance rack at Pier 1 when they were selling out to close. 

That is such a great description of the staging!

[deirdra]

4 hours ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

 I'm not watching a redo on wedding shops, or rental properties.  

I've had to take it off my PVR and just read the snark here to see if there is anything worth watching. So far, nothing! But I enjoy everyones' descriptions!

[Grrarrggh]

11 hours ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

 If I have enough money to remodel, and hire a designer, it would be someone that I like their taste, and not this company.   Their staging looks like the clearance rack at Pier 1 when they were selling out to close. 

The thing is too many supposed interior designers don't have a style. They go with the path of least resistance, which is whatever is the easy trend of the moment. Right now that trend is white/grey open concept shaker cabinets and subway tile so they sell that hard. 

[CrazyInAlabama]

I had to laugh my way through this episode "Twinning is Winning"  where they build two homes on a lot in Old Southside.     Worst floor plan ever for the first floors.   Horrible mistakes, multiple stop work orders So many stop work orders.   

They're making it obvious that they don't do anything but film, and someone else does the work.   They always complain about budget, but do custom dying of the bed covering?   They have an island with stools, but the dining table is a two person table. My guess with a 4 bed, 3 bath, and a first floor bed/bath, that it's another short term rental.     I think that's all they build, short term rentals, or houses ordered and done for a specific client who already saw the floor plan, chose finishes, and have a buy contract.     Or clients who buy a short term rental, so they cram in the maximum bed/bath number.   It's obvious that what they build aren't family homes.    

 Next week is Karen's series with her doing landscaping, Good Bones Better Yard.   

Edited November 9, 2022 by CrazyInAlabama

[RoxiP]

I just wonder why they hired that woman recently to oversee all the jobs and yet they still have this many mistakes?  

That wooden handrail (and quite honestly the metal one from the other episode) are not to my taste at all.

[Andyourlittledog2]

I've been hanging on by a thread here, but I don't think I can do this show any longer. I was willing to white knuckle the problems I have with their intentions and designs and ignore Karen and ff through Tad but now they seem to have installed Cory as the Karen replacement for chatter with Mina. And I can't stand Cory.  I can't stand people like Cory.  Thinks he's adorable and funny, acts like a ding a ling, takes on responsibility which he constantly 'oops!' his way through with a carefree belly laugh, does things he has been told not to because he just knows he's 'right' and just because he wants to.... I want to punch him every time I see him on screen. If he's going to be goofing and guffawing his way through each episode that's it for me.

And I absolutely refuse to watch Karen do anything, so the yard show is out.

As for the house last night on Twinning: no. That stair rail looks like you are doubling as a small town jail there. It's stupid and it just towers over everything else in the room. Did you notice that things seemed to be cheaper last night? In the house. The little dining table and chairs were very basic, everything seemed very basic. Except the faucet, that was kinda cool. I didn't like the four bed three bath squeezed into the home with, once again, public space that is crowded and dining for so few. It was larger than she usually does, but still too cramped. Another reason not to install a permanent towering handrail on one whole side of the house.

[CrazyInAlabama]

On 11/9/2022 at 10:07 AM, RoxiP said:

I just wonder why they hired that woman recently to oversee all the jobs and yet they still have this many mistakes?  

That wooden handrail (and quite honestly the metal one from the other episode) are not to my taste at all.

I bet the woman they hired took Kelsey's place (the sister who left), or she's the coordinator between the company and the filming schedule.   

I'm not a fan of the handrails they've been doing, except the one that had the metal uprights, and the lovely wood handrail.    The one last night looked cobbled together, because they needed it now.    It looked very weak.   

Edited November 16, 2022 by CrazyInAlabama

[bilgistic]

I'm watching Karen's new show. My thoughts so far:

1) Karen is exhausting with her mugging to the camera and general manic energy.

2) I'm tired of her bring her tiny dog to every house they work on. It's so dangerous to have the dog underfoot in a construction zone.

3) $100K to landscape a yard? I guess I'm in the wrong business.

4) LENNY!!!

What's the contraption on the back of Karen's upper right arm? I've noticed it in the last couple episodes of Good Bones. It looks like some kind of medical monitoring/dispension device.

Edited November 16, 2022 by bilgistic

[65mickey]

Maybe something for measuring her Glucose level. I haven't noticed on Karen it but I have seen it on others. 

On 11/9/2022 at 6:07 PM, Andyourlittledog2 said:

As for the house last night on Twinning: no. That stair rail looks like you are doubling as a small town jail there.

That's all I could think of that It looked like the jail cell in Mayberry. All it needed was a big key hanging next to it. 

[madpsych78]

Yeah, I have to say that Karen at the beginning of the show was really way too much. That being said, I have to admit that I learned some things about trees.

Very interesting that Lenny was back. I wondered if Mina was the reason he was less on the main Good Bones show. It seems like lately the main Good Bones show is the Mina/Cory/MJ show. There's less Karen of course, but even less Tad and Austin.

[CrazyInAlabama]

Lenny was only on the first season, and then disappeared.   I think he shut down his business then also.   I liked him. 

He's also Tad's stepfather, I think he was married to Tad's mother Cheryl (?), and she also was married to Mina's dad. 

Edited November 18, 2022 by CrazyInAlabama

[65mickey]

What is the name of Karen's garden show? I can't find it On Demand. 

[bilgistic]

Good Bones: Better Yard

[pasdetrois]

On 11/17/2022 at 12:43 PM, CrazyInAlabama said:

Lenny was only on the first season, and then disappeared. 

I read somewhere that there were general disputes - money and reality TV. I don't know if the producers refused to pay Lenny, or if having to cooperate with production cost him time that affected his business.

[CrazyInAlabama]

This show is coming back for another season.  My question is why?   It will be on 15 August, Tuesday.   

The ad I saw has Mina talking about everything changes.   

Spoiler

From what I've read, Austin, Corey and Tad aren't really employees.  Corey does project managment and only is on certain projects, and Tad has another business, and they only come for demo/filming.   I also heard that MJ, the designer, went to another company too.  Also, the HQ/Warehouse is empty and for sale, and Mina apparently works from her home office now.     This season will have Mina helping Kelsey and Tad do something with their new houses. 

I don't understand how this show has enough to film for this season.   It sounds like the business is pretty much gone, except for their many short term rentals.   I wonder if they still have the huge inventory of abandoned, deteriorating buildings with cargo containers/pods full of stuff?   I wondered where they were getting these derelict buildings, and last season it dawned on me, the company owns them, and does nothing until it's time to film them.  Part of the deteriorating neighborhoods are building the company owns, and have done nothing to fix.   

Edited August 8, 2023 by CrazyInAlabama

[RoxiP]

TV has been so boring lately that I am looking forward to a new show, even if she sometimes drives me crazy...but I've seen her a lot on Instagram lately and what the heck has she done to her eyebrows?