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Windy City Rehab - General Discussion


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33 minutes ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

I bet you can't guess who is one of the designers on Ty Pennington's new show premiering next Spring?    Fortunately, I never liked Ty too much.  

Yes, I can guess. And no, I will not watch. I really can’t understand why producers/shows/networks keep rehiring these same losers. Just no.

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They're getting sneaky.   They showed last week's episode, and apparently changed something, and it was listed as "New" on my cable guide.

On the clip show that's running now, Donovan is no where to be seen, except on the house hunting part.    Isn't the one they left as a 4 apartment building unit the one that didn't sell, but they claimed it did?  

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Lol, ok, Bridgeport is NOT the Brooklyn of Chicago. Like at all. 
 

Also if they are going to do a house in Bridgeport maybe show some shots of Bridgeport. Every shot is of Lincoln Park, the Loop, and Wicker Park or Bucktown. 

Edited by jkitty
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15 minutes ago, LittleIggy said:

OMG! That bitch painted that beautiful pier mirror black! And she painted this house crematorium black, too! 😱 What does she have against natural wood tones and brick?

She’s mourning the loss of her partnership. 🤣🤣

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Thoughts:

1) I don't live far from Bridgeport and I go there often. I totally agree that it's not the Brooklyn of Chicago, lol. I found Donovan complaining about BP to be kinda off-putting, but I scratched my head at them renovating there. Her style and price-point seem to be a mismatch for that area, IMO. I knew she wasn't going to get much of a profit from it.

2) God, that black exterior sticks out like a sore thumb. If she was going to stick with that color choice, I wish she would've put some color on it to not make stand out so much among the surrounding houses.

3) I really loved that stained address window. I wouldn't have guessed it was brand new when I saw it in a preview. Everything else in the house looked nice (i liked the antiques this time around), but I could've done without the gold fixtures in the bathrooms and that mini golf course.

4) Still want to hear Donovan's side of everything, ha.

 

 

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Is that painting of a circular black brushstroke on a white background from Wayfair because I swear I recently saw it on Brother vs. Brother.

That range hood was so ugly. More Trumpian gold bathroom hardware. 🙄 The putting green and the fake grass was awful. What about the potential buyer with a dog and/or kids? 

Edited by LittleIggy
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2 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

More Trumpian gold bathroom hardware.

You win the internet today! 😁

So. Much. Black. Why?  What is wrong with brick?  And ugly range hoods in every house?  I just don't get it.

And what is up with the 90 minute episodes?  Isn't an hour long enough?

Edited by 3 is enough
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On 9/16/2020 at 9:42 PM, buttersister said:

LOL!!! 
To paraphrase Capt. Picard, there is ONE ferris wheel!

Show can't stop lying about everything.

take a GOOD look at that pic   4 people in the first group now look at the 2nd group same group of 4!!   they are duplicated  like a time lapse cAuse they were in slightly different positions that is why there are 2 ferris wheels!!

   she is SO obnoxious....what happened to that place from last year where the guy totally screwed up the stairs..and he put cheap ass ply wood on the wall around the fireplace no insulation they had to strip it all off and do it right and he was on screen arguing with them to pay him!! I could not believe he would want bad publicity  like that

    anyway they had to hire a crane to get all the furnature  in.....there was problems with that too of  of course.....the place did not selll...she said something about renting out until the spring and sell it then....but ccome spring time covid happened...I thought "boy is she screwed.

     I don't think she is innocent either and  is throwing her contractor under the bus

  

 

 

 

 

  

 

Edited by sue450
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There was an episode in the first season where they did construction on a house in Chicago in January. Watching the show, I remember saying to myself "who would do a major outdoor renovation project during the winter in Chicago?" They had to stop construction for a few days because of the weather. That episode made me wonder about the hosts' decision making. And I knew nothing about the legal problems at the time.

Now it makes more sense.

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6 hours ago, sue450 said:

take a GOOD look at that pic   4 people in the first group now look at the 2nd group same group of 4!!   they are duplicated  like a time lapse cAuse they were in slightly different positions that is why there are 2 ferris wheels!!

I agree it was a time lapsed photo but that does not explain both ferris wheels.  If the camera was panning left or right, you would get more than one ferris wheel or, if the ferris wheel was moving (like the people walking), you'd get more than one ferris wheel.  However, the camera was stationary in this shot and the ferris wheel does not move from one place to another.

Edited by KeithJ
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3 hours ago, nb360 said:

There was an episode in the first season where they did construction on a house in Chicago in January. Watching the show, I remember saying to myself "who would do a major outdoor renovation project during the winter in Chicago?" They had to stop construction for a few days because of the weather. That episode made me wonder about the hosts' decision making. And I knew nothing about the legal problems at the time.

Now it makes more sense.

Most of these developers are foaming at the mouth to make the spring market, which means the bulk of their renos are through the late-fall/winter months to reduce their carrying costs. 

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14 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

OMG! That bitch painted that beautiful pier mirror black! And she painted this house crematorium black, too! 😱 What does she have against natural wood tones and brick?

I cringe anytime she gets near an antique. I just know she's going to do something awful to it - these items have survived centuries only to be done in by Allison.

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On 9/22/2020 at 9:56 PM, LittleIggy said:

Is that painting of a circular black brushstroke on a white background from Wayfair because I swear I recently saw it on Brother vs. Brother.

That range hood was so ugly. More Trumpian gold bathroom hardware. 🙄 The putting green and the fake grass was awful. What about the potential buyer with a dog and/or kids? 

I think virtually everything on this show comes from Wayfair.   

I couldn't believe in the four apartment remodel that they spent $4,000 on each range hood, and they were the usual ugly ones AV likes.   She's not an experienced landlord, because when renting you do nice looking, but durable items.  

I love how the clip show had AV and the production people, who seemed less than thrilled to be on camera.   

Also, since when is "I knew nothing about anything" a defense in court?    The way Donovan was invoicing for his services, and labor is the right way to do that, to keep transparency in the draw, and payment process.

Wouldn't AV telling everyone on the clip show that she gets so much for free, affect the tax on the selling price?    

Edited by CrazyInAlabama
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Why in the world would you buy gorgeous antiques just to paint over them?  The pier mirror you could at least see some of the detail, but the fireplace mantle literally lost everything that made it special.  By painting it that color, it looked like it was new build, not an antique. 

The black looked so terrible when you saw the street view with the other houses.  Ok, so you don't like the look of traditional brick.  Does the only other option have to be black?

Those gold fixtures are also going to be out of style pretty quickly, too.

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Just watched the pre episode on the other nights show featuring the Lincoln Park four plex.  I swear she is Jones's Anthony Davis's eyebrows.  They are getting darker and darker.  Even he backed off his.  Anthony Davis NBA.

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Why is everything black in her designs? Black, and gold faucets. It's ugly. That house looked so depressing on the outside. That (arguably cool) stained glass in the entry way was kinda drowned out with all the darkness in my opinion. Also, who on earth thinks a putting green is a cool idea for a backyard? Especially as a flipper? I can't with this one. She's also free of any guilt, of course. It's all the other guy's fault. He doesn't communicate. 

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On 9/22/2020 at 7:26 PM, CrazyInAlabama said:

They're getting sneaky.   They showed last week's episode, and apparently changed something, and it was listed as "New" on my cable guide.

On the clip show that's running now, Donovan is no where to be seen, except on the house hunting part.    Isn't the one they left as a 4 apartment building unit the one that didn't sell, but they claimed it did?  

Argh, I actually was interested in the one in Bridgeport, and had this set to tape, but first Xfinity screwed up and gave me the awful clip show under that name -- and I watched it thinking eventually it would be about the Bridgeport place somehow -- and then they got the real one but cut off the beginning.  Anyway, funny she made only $15,000, which likely doesn't cover costs, but I'm shocked that place sold for $790K in Bridgeport (and based on Zillow apparently it really did).

On 9/22/2020 at 8:35 PM, jkitty said:

Lol, ok, Bridgeport is NOT the Brooklyn of Chicago. Like at all. 
 

Also if they are going to do a house in Bridgeport maybe show some shots of Bridgeport. Every shot is of Lincoln Park, the Loop, and Wicker Park or Bucktown. 

Yeah, I had the exact same thought.

23 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

OMG! That bitch painted that beautiful pier mirror black! And she painted this house crematorium black, too! 😱 What does she have against natural wood tones and brick?

Yup, agreed.

Edited by msmarjoribanks
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Where to begin, did not like the black brick, and the black stained glass for the address— you won’t be able to see in the dark, right? Her obsession with hoods and gold/brass does not seem like money well spent, some may look good but the hood of stove not why I’m buying a house— she needs to take some lessons from Tarek and Christina— who are not my faves but they know the basics, get it done fast and will the extra money be worth it—

I’ve read a few items and Donovan seems shady but she and others on the team should have been paying attention—this house should be done or if disbursed 80% of funds -  someone making sure house is 80%done etc she knew the one house had to be done in a year and should have checked it out earlier

also noticing lots of quality issues, the stair from condo, i think they Started an addition w/o permits and had to redo; did not turn on furnace in winter to save money and water pipe bursts, tile installation issues 
 

but then again, she knows all about Chicago—knows all about design and what buyers want, as she tells us every 5 minutes 🤣

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The Bridgeport house... others have already pointed out the painted antiques and depressing black brick facade, which were ridiculous. Why spend the money on that expensive pier mirror when it didn't really add anything to the actual value of the house? At least the fireplace was a selling feature. 

Okay, I lived in the Chicago suburbs for about ten years and every place we lived had a coat closet. Even apartments. The weather in northern Illinois sucks and people wear coats at least half the year. Instead of that hipster "coffee bar" under the stairs. a coat closet would have been a practical use of that space. I wouldn't want my coffee maker so far away from a source of water. Duh.

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Where is the hanging outside light fixture over the front steps that she was going on about.  Ended up with just a can fixture.  She is so over herself.  Only reason I watch the show is because of the Chicago scenery.  Lived there for 10 years.  And don't get me started on painting all those antique wooden pieces black.

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4 hours ago, cameron said:

Where is the hanging outside light fixture over the front steps that she was going on about.  Ended up with just a can fixture.  She is so over herself.  Only reason I watch the show is because of the Chicago scenery.  Lived there for 10 years.  And don't get me started on painting all those antique wooden pieces black.

I “car wreck watch”: You know it will be ghastly, but you can’t help but look. 😱

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15 hours ago, CruiseDiva said:

The Bridgeport house... others have already pointed out the painted antiques and depressing black brick facade, which were ridiculous. Why spend the money on that expensive pier mirror when it didn't really add anything to the actual value of the house? At least the fireplace was a selling feature. 

Okay, I lived in the Chicago suburbs for about ten years and every place we lived had a coat closet. Even apartments. The weather in northern Illinois sucks and people wear coats at least half the year. Instead of that hipster "coffee bar" under the stairs. a coat closet would have been a practical use of that space. I wouldn't want my coffee maker so far away from a source of water. Duh.

So true.  I was actually quite interested in this episode since I live in a "Chicago workers' cottage" style house (on the north side) that was rehabbed to get more space/baths/beds, and has a layout somewhat similar to this one (some major differences, such as kitchen location), as well as an addition on the back -- all done before I bought.  I actually wish it had more of the feel of the period in which it was built, and have a plan (delayed due to coronavirus) to redo the fireplace to bring back some of the vintage feel (my place is a bit newer than the house in question -- 1910). For me it would be important to bring in details that aren't out of place given the vintage and style of my house.  For example, I love Victorians, but a 1910 workers cottage never had the same kinds of details as a Victorian,and such details would also not fit with the relatively modern, open, simple style of my place.  Allison doesn't seem to care where/when something is from so long as it is old, which is fine if that's her aesthetic,* but it doesn't seem like bringing back the house to what it was, or whatever she says.

Anyway--back to your point--since my floor plan has some similarities and since I nevertheless couldn't imagine where or how that pier mirror would fit in my place, I looked to see what I did have in the place she put it, and of course right where her pier mirror went is my coat closet.

The episode I watched missed the beginning of the show, so I might try to find and watch the first bit to see what the house looked like before she bought it, as that is one of the things I like about house rehab shows.

 *I'm also not a fan of painted brick, especially that black, or hoods intended to make an artistic statement and likely (among other things) to feel dated before all that long.

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So interesting, I did finally watch the beginning, and wish I'd seen it before.  I didn't realize it was a 2-flat, and it seemed much bigger than they suggested.

Also, the first bit did indict Donovan as a jerk.  "I don't want to be selling $800K houses, that's beneath me."  I still think Allison must have had more knowledge than she pretends, but ugh.

Edited by msmarjoribanks
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10 hours ago, msmarjoribanks said:

Also, the first bit did indict Donovan as a jerk.  "I don't want to be selling $800K houses, that's beneath me."  I still think Allison must have had more knowledge than she pretends, but ugh.

Yeah. They can’t carry all of those million+ properties forever. I’m pretty sure they took on the smaller house, because that’s all they could afford, while waiting to offload some of their expensive properties that wouldn’t sell, but couldn’t admit it was because they suck. 

Edited by absnow54
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On 9/24/2020 at 4:18 AM, CruiseDiva said:

The Bridgeport house... others have already pointed out the painted antiques and depressing black brick facade, which were ridiculous. Why spend the money on that expensive pier mirror when it didn't really add anything to the actual value of the house? At least the fireplace was a selling feature. 

Okay, I lived in the Chicago suburbs for about ten years and every place we lived had a coat closet. Even apartments. The weather in northern Illinois sucks and people wear coats at least half the year. Instead of that hipster "coffee bar" under the stairs. a coat closet would have been a practical use of that space. I wouldn't want my coffee maker so far away from a source of water. Duh.

I think there may have been a front closet, if you noticed, there seemed to be a wide area between the stairs and front hall that may have been a closet

Thinking, the coffee bar could also be used for liquor

i was trying to figure out why the season were jumping throughout the episode, there was a stop work order on Carpenter as well. It also may explain the increase in reno costs.

Also, read where 10 of the 11 past reno's  have sold,

,

Edited by sheetmoss
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1 hour ago, sheetmoss said:

I think there may have been a front closet, if you noticed, there seemed to be a wide area between the stairs and front hall that may have been a closet

Thinking, the coffee bar could also be used for liquor

I found the house on Zillow and looked at the photos. You're right. There is a door to what I imagine is a coat closet. opposite the front door. The wall the closet is on separates the tiny foyer from the stairway, which takes a dogleg into the living room. The filming of the show jumps around so much that I missed it.

I agree, the coffee bar is more likely to be used as a dry bar for liquor. Too bad they didn't put a little sink in the counter there.

According to Zillow, the house was on the market for $815K and sold for $790K. Allison is lucky she didn't lose money on that one. The neighborhood really doesn't support that price.

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On 9/23/2020 at 9:07 PM, Infiltr8 said:

but then again, she knows all about Chicago—knows all about design and what buyers want, as she tells us every 5 minutes 🤣

It's like a lot of big lies, keep repeating it over and over and over and some people will start believing it.

I'd had an organizer who put a "beverage station" (coffee, tea, brita, water carbonator), in my small kitchen, next to the sink. It was a bunch of years ago, so there's our Allison, always on top of trends. 

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This is an older article, but claims the first season they claimed to have sold seven of eleven, and only sold four.   Plus, the four apartment home, with the $4,000 range hoods, where they were going to rent them furnished for almost $3,000 a month, had to go through many price reductions, and only rented one as of the time of the article.

https://candysdirt.com/2020/03/09/hgtvs-windy-city-rehab-offers-more-reality-off-camera/

Here's a more recent article outlining some of the permit, and construction issues.   The $1.3 million house in the lawsuit was purchased by two attorneys I think (at least two of the very unhappy buyers are attorneys).  

https://norwalkreflector.com/news/277081/everything-you-need-to-know-about-windy-city-rehab-ahead-of-the-season-2-premiere/

I have to laugh when she talks about the Bridgeport house being so wonderfully designed.   The front transom window she paid thousands for with the house numbers in it, is covered by the front porch roof.    The travesty of taking that 200 year old chest, building it in, and painting it black is hideous.    

I wonder if one of the law suit houses is the one that had a foot of water in the basement when she looked at it?  

Edited by CrazyInAlabama
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I just watched the rerun of the Carpenter house and agree with all of your comments. Why does this woman insist on painting antiques and losing the unique, historic elements? She painted the exterior brick once again! And woohoo! She made a whole $15,000 on this house. I’d give anything to grab a good hairbrush and brush that mess off of her forehead! And don’t even mention those “eyebrows”. Dear heavens me.

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The older clip show about Lil, (penthouse) is hysterical.         The sheer incompetence in scheduling items like the stairs is ridiculous, and waiting endless amounts of time, and then having to do stairs at the last minute certainly doesn't show me that there is anyone competent on their projects. .   So the clip shows with the discussion panels is part of the 'Donovan did everything' story?      If she says "Sick" one more time I'll scream.  

The sheer waste is absurd.    They just throw money away, and certainly had enough time to get permits for everything since their remodels seem to take forever.   She just said the rebuild was scheduled for six months, and took nine more months. (Or did she say it was scheduled for six months, and took nine?)     Why would anyone ever hire her, or her former partner?   

On the penthouse, I don't like the living room.   Is it safe to leave all of that stuff out on the decks?    I didn't like the built in with the arch, because the bench went over the side of it.  

Edited by CrazyInAlabama
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Just wow. I’m also watching the show with the crew talking about the penthouse rehab. How many times can VA say “I”, “my”, I stained this”, “I put up this wall”, “I designed this room”, etc, etc. It seems to me that there are always many craftspeople involved in all of these rehabs not to mention the filming crew, producers, cameramen, etc. If she can claim credit for everything, then she needs to accept the blame for everything that gets screwed up. 

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OMG! That bitch painted that antique hutch black (of course, we knew she would)! 😱I would love to see an antique dealer refuse to sell a piece to Alison because  she would paint it black.

OMG! That bitch installed another AstroTurf putting green, but she put it out front! 😱

BTW, I love red.

PS, I hate that “Hi, Michael. You can call me Amanda” commercial. Wherever that kid is from, I’m sure her closet is bigger than most people’s homes. 🙄

Edited by LittleIggy
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She is a walking crime against good design, and the enemy of antique furniture.      The screwups are amazing at Berenice, and taking a remodel schedule, and turning it into almost two years is bizarre.      I hate that they took the pantry cabinet in brown, and painted it that hideous grey-brown color.    I had to laugh at the screw up with the mantle at Berenice, with the chain saw corbels.    Any salvage place would have real corbels that would look better.   Then to have the mantle too shallow to hold anything, and almost seven feet in the air is ridiculous.   The mantle looks bizarre.    The storage in the master closet going from red to the blue is hideous.  

 I love how everything is Donovan's fault, including no one getting permits, and approvals before starting to work.  

Edited by CrazyInAlabama
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3 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

OMG! That bitch painted that antique hutch black (of course, we knew she would)! 😱I would love to see an antique dealer refuse to sell a piece to Alison because  she would paint it black.

OMG! That bitch installed another AstroTurf putting green, but she put it out front! 😱

BTW, I love red.

PS, I hate that “Hi, Michael. You can call me Amanda” commercial. Wherever that kid is from, I’m sure her closet is bigger than most people’s homes. 🙄

True, true and true. She is so predictable. I think her style is tacky, but at least she did add curb appeal. 

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The kitchen was horrible.

A fireplace?
The mantle?
Painting the antiques black?

And the lights over the island?  They're all rusted on the inside!  I'm sorry but if I'm paying $1m+ for a house, I want all new in it.  Also, what's up with now importing antiques from Texas?  I thought she puts Chicago back into houses.

As much as I dislike Alison, it's probably for the best she got rid of Donovan.  Him trying to cut corners on structure to save a few bucks was unbelievable.  No wonder he wasn't getting inspections done on his other houses, they probably wouldn't have passed.

Edited by KeithJ
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Just looked up the sold comps for the Ravenswood area of Chicago.  Good luck with the number she has the home listed for.  High for the area.  Never want to be the most expensive place in the neighborhood, unless it's a really exceptionable place and Ravenswood doesn't qualify for the honor.

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Round Rock Texas has a huge flea market & antique sales there a few times a year (normally, three times a year) where designers, and builders come from all over the country to buy antiques, and salvage items.    Fixer Upper's Joanna Gaines shopped there a few times on her show.  

I would go ballistic if I saw rusty interiors on a light hanging over my food.  You can get similar looking items without rust, and I bet they're cheaper too.   

What kind of staging was that supposed to be in the living room at Berenice?    Two chairs blocking the living room entry from the foyer, that wasn't good at all.  

 

Edited by CrazyInAlabama
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One thing I noticed more this episode: 

It's obvious they are filming multiple houses at the same time, with the same talking head set-ups. 

If you watch out for "Checking in [Name of Project]"  and it happens All. The. Time. Like... this episode is focused around this house, we don't need to know that after every commercial break. 

 

 

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I grew up in Chicago and spent my 1st 33 years living there.  It was driving me crazy how she said the street name Berenice.  Never heard it called that.  My DH grew up a few blocks off of Berenice and also never heard it called that.  The project manager called it bur-niece which is what we always called it.  She was saying Bare-a-niece.  Maybe that is the French way.

Her designs are awful.   Just sad how it turns out.  Pull all the old woodwork out.  Ugh!  Ari's new digs are lovely and his girls are adorbs.

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2 hours ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

Round Rock Texas has a huge market there a few times a year (I think it's a few times, instead of having permanent shops) where designers, and builders come from all over the country.    Fixer Upper's Joanna Gaines shopped there a few times on her show.  

I would go ballistic if I saw rusty interiors on a light hanging over my food.  You can get similar looking items without rust, and I bet they're cheaper too. 

Joanna Gaines put up rusty light fixtures over a dining room table on an early episode of Fixer Upper. I nearly gagged when I saw them installed. I thought for sure she'd  "fixer upper" them by sanding off the rust and repainting them when she bought them, but no... Doesn't everyone like little rust flakes in their food?

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On 9/18/2020 at 8:41 PM, LittleIggy said:

OMG! That bitch painted the two century old Chinese cabinet black!  😱

I still can't get over that. After the dealer went on about the finish, she not only painted over it in BLACK but looked at the camera and snarkily told everyone watching that she didn't fucking care.

It must be a nightmare living next to one of her designs. EVERYTHING has to be expanded. I hope the neighbors are well compensated. 

And did she really redo the lawn in artificial turf on Berenice because she wanted it "green all the time." Bitch, you live in fucking CHICAGO. It snows there. 

 

 

Edited by ChicksDigScars
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