HGTV Shows

[Eastcoastmom]

I'm Pacific, so you'll have to check your own listings. It's not in primetime, but at least they are airing it.

Okay, thanks.

[MsDiva2007]

I am in California and I just saw a promo for love it or list it too. It comes on tonight.

[candor]

I got granite as a practical matter. It was super cheap, I could put a hot pot on it and it won't melt, and it didn't have the grout issue my previous crappy 4X4 bathroom ceramic tiles had. Plus it's black, so nothing shows. Everyone else I know is doing quartz, but I'm a budget person and got what I wanted without paying twice as much.

But the whole HGTV idealization of "open concept" still boggles my mind. If I had unlimited house perfecting funds, I'd add a wall and several doors....maybe even close in my front porch so the pizza guy doesn't have to come into my living room. I'm impossibly antisocial.

Unlike the veined slabs, I don't think black granite will ever look dated. Solid neutrals wear much longer. My parents' bathroom counter is, of all things, white Formica and believe it or not it doesn't look bad at all. Your eye goes right past it.

I got subway tiles in my bathroom, but I do regret letting my designer talk me into gray grout. I think if I'd gone with white grout it would have a more timeless look.

I do think open- versus closed-concept is more a matter of personal taste than following a trend. Way before I'd ever heard of the term I was drawn to open, loft-like spaces. I'd be perfectly happy if my living area was just one big room with poles holding up the ceiling and windows that went to the floor. Light is another one of those personal-taste issues. Most people like tall windows and skylights, but for some reason light coming from above but not the sides really bothers me. Is that normal for anyone else?

[MsDiva2007]

Mr Diva wants to know when Master-baths turned into en suites? Lol. I told him I don't know but if I hear one more person purchasing a 100 year old home get mad because one isn't there I will scream,lol.

[Dragonlady]

I'm looking for good counter tops myself. We have a mid century modern home by a great architect and I want to keep it in that style. Granite seems too new for that era. Tile has grout, which I dislike cleaning.....and it has to be super duper clean for me to be satisfied. The Formica that is there, since it was built in '73 has seen much better days and driving me nuts.
But in keeping with this thread, it didn't stop us from buying the house.
And we are still living with the dishwasher that is black while the other appliances are stainless!
oh, horrors!!!

[captain]

I hope you do not allow people in to see such horrors I have been waiting for the day when stainless and colored appliances go out of style.

[Eastcoastmom]

Well, I got to see LIOLI, Too last night with Jillian Harris and real estate guy whose name I can't remember. Vancouver real estate is just as pricey as Toronto's it would seem. It followed the same basic formula as the original but there was less drama. Plus, the contractor is pretty hunky. The feeling I got was that the couple was really playing it up for the camera. Jillian's designs run a bit more modern than Hilary's. Can't say I liked them all that much. She basically took a smallish 2 bedroom Craftsman and relocated the entire family of husband, wife, and 2 daughters into 3 bedrooms in the basement. She had to reroute a staircase which eliminated one of the first floor bedrooms and left it with usable space for an office. The other 1st floor bedroom became a guest room. Downstairs each of the girls had their own rooms, which were nice, and the master br had a nice walk in closet but no en suite bath. All of the problems found during the bathroom renovation caused a lack of funds and they did not get their kitchen renovated. I think the budget was $80,000 for the reno. The budget for the new home was 900K. In the end they listed it and decided to go with the newer house quite a bit farther away but closer to the beach. Plus, it was over their budget at 925K! Not knowing any background on the couple I don't know if it was a good move or what. I would not have wanted to sleep in the basement (even though it was really lovely) and where was the money going to come from to renovate the kitchen? However, perhaps the new location is too far from work. There is a reason the r/e mantra is "location, location, location." I will watch again if only to see beautiful Vancouver.

[captain]

I watched this last night and was shocked she put all 3 bedrooms in the basement. That was a major disappointment in my book.

[Eastcoastmom]

Too late to edit my post above but the sentence should read: All of the problems found during the basement renovation caused a lack of funds and they did not get their kitchen renovated.

[Arielflies]

I'm looking for good counter tops myself. We have a mid century modern home by a great architect and I want to keep it in that style. Granite seems too new for that era. Tile has grout, which I dislike cleaning.....and it has to be super duper clean for me to be satisfied. The Formica that is there, since it was built in '73 has seen much better days and driving me nuts.
But in keeping with this thread, it didn't stop us from buying the house.
And we are still living with the dishwasher that is black while the other appliances are stainless!
oh, horrors!!!

You could go with recycled products such as paper or glass, or even concrete for a smooth surface that isn't stone. You might even check out the updated versions of formica; I'm sure there are some.

I also saw LILI, too and agree with your review, Eastcoastmom. Their very small bungalow with a not used rental unit in the basement was a challenge. I could see the lightbulb go off in Jillian's head when she saw all the space downstairs, and since she couldn't create a third bedroom upstairs, upended the whole shebang. To make basement living palatable, she called it garden living. LOL. They will have problems with re-sale as the rental unit is no more and the upstairs living space is still chopped up. I do think they made a good, what they called, lifestyle choice to move to the coastal region even if it is in a different school district and farther from work.