By Steph Sandhoff
Welcome back to Week 4 on The Block. This week we have more guest bedrooms to take a look at, with a mix of both children and adult spaces. I personally would have preferred to judge all the kid’s room in one go, so hopefully Scotty Cam takes that under advisement for next season. Secondly, if anyone from The Block is reading this, I would also advise them not to spend an entire week click-baiting us with Jesse and Paige’s exit from the show when we already suffer enough watching four nights a week. Anyway, that’s my suggestion box officially closed for the day, so let’s get stuck into some rooms.
HOUSE 1 // Jesse and Paige
Photo Attribution: Nine
First up we have Jesse and Paige in House 1 and having already completed an adult guest room, the couple went for a girl’s double this week. Personally, I don’t love the idea of designing for a specific gender but if we are judging the room based on this concept; it gives a great, first impression. Let’s start with their layout because this may be the first kid’s room we’ve seen that actually looks spacious enough to properly house two single beds. The small walk-in robe was a great design choice because it allows for a large, functional desk space, with plenty of play room in between. The room itself feels really consistent with the rest their house, due to the continued use of wall paneling and another timeless choice of wallpaper.
Photo Attribution: Nine
However, there are a few things that let the room down. The first being their lack of execution; the unfinished walls in the walk-in robe aren’t a major issue but on a competitive week, it cost them important points. My bigger issues though, are the desk and overall styling. As I said, the desk itself is a great size but it has a really obvious DIY look about it and they didn’t get the height right. There’s nothing wrong with a fun ‘do it yourself’ project but it’s not high-end enough for a multi-million-dollar property and the cluttered stationary styling on top does nothing to elevate it. Finally, the bird art is not a great choice for a multitude of reasons but most importantly it is detracting from the wallpaper. Nine of out ten times, wallpaper is sufficient and should act as the piece of art – especially in a room where there are already so many detailed elements.
HOUSE 2 // Courtney and Grant
Photo Attribution: Nine
Up next we have reigning winners Courtney and Grant from House 2. Having already completed a kid’s room, these guys went with an adult room suitable for an au-pair or guest/s, etc. It’s another stunning room from this couple and very on-brand for their home but it’s a room that starts to fall apart the more you look at it. Interestingly, I thought it was one of my favourite rooms but when I checked my notes – yes I write notes during the room reveals, very nerdy I know – all I could find were criticisms. I think this is because on the surface I like a lot of their choices; the bedding, bedsides, sconces and art, are all great but there are some fundamental problems underneath.
Photo Attribution: Nine
Their major design concept for the room was the recreation of the bathroom curve. If you know me at all, you’ll know I love a curve and I love consistency, but there is something about this curve that just doesn’t work. It’s all about scale. If you take a look, you’ll notice that the bedhead fits tightly inside the curved wall and there is plenty of room either side of the bed for bedside tables. However, because the room is already skinny, the vertical lines and lack of room between the bedhead and the curve visually ‘squeeze’ the bed and make the room appear even skinnier. It also limits how the room can be used in the future. If you were to set the bed on the long wall or even widen the area currently covered in wallpaper, it would make the room feel wider and more spacious. The judges also pointed out the functionality issues within the cabinetry and I wish they had installed their pendants in a more obvious cluster.
HOUSE 3 // Ricky and Haydn
Photo Attribution: Nine
Moving on to House 3 and the boys had a big week. Not only did they win a boat, they actually finished their room AND found their style – the name of it anyway. The boys are officially going for a “holiday, resort” style, although that’s very non-specific and leaves a lot of room for interpretation. Something that doesn’t leave much room for interpretation is the curved bulkhead behind their bed. Although it’s a stunning concept, it’s another wall that is simply not wide enough to encompass the design (what’s with all the skinny rooms this year?) and I would have loved to see the bed and both bedside tables sit inside the curve. Alternatively, they could have used smaller and matching bedside tables for a better sense of balance.
Photo Attribution: Nine
The other end of the room also has issues because I don’t think the boys made great furniture choices this week. The bed frame isn’t substantial enough for the space, the large bedside table on the left is too ‘matchy’ and the ottoman at the bottom of the bed is quite obviously too tall and sits awkwardly against along the bottom of the bed. The cabinetry finish they chose is another odd choice. It’s too industrial for the space, however if I had to choose between the ‘concrete-look’ and another mural, I’m sure you know where I stand. Considering all the criticism I have just given, I want to point out that this room is a huge improvement on their kid’s room. This space would have easily won the week in other seasons but unfortunately for the boys, some of this year’s couples are on another level.
HOUSE 4 // Kylie and Brad
Photo Attribution: Nine
Next up is House 4 with Kylie and Brad, although I really do feel like Kylie should have taken the ‘grumpy’ title instead of Grant this week. Much to their distress, the couple designed their room for young kid’s and completely changed up their style once again. Was it successful? According to the judges it was but I wholeheartedly agree with Shaynna (crazy, I know) that they could have incorporated more ‘black’ if they had wanted.
Photo Attribution: Nine
I’m glad they’re continuing with the dark cabinetry and black lighting because if feels like they are the only elements that are true to them. I personally love the black and white checker sheets but wish they had used the ‘Shou Sugi Ban’ wall cladding instead of the raw timber. Their furniture already provided multiple warm, timber elements and I think the room may have felt more consistent with the rest of their home had they given it a similar sense of depth. They may even have liked the space enough to use their bonus point – talk about biting off your nose to spite your face. If you hate the room, you may as well make some money from it, surely? Finally, I don’t personally love their choice of wallpaper but I do think it adds an important layer of texture that has been missing from previous rooms. On the other hand, I actually love their choice of art, just not in this room. It the perfect example of how the couple could incorporate coastal elements into their own style and I would have loved to see it in pride of place, on a large wall in their living or dining area.
HOUSE 5 // Kristian and Mimi
Photo Attribution: Nine
Last but not least, we have Kristian and Mimi in House 5 and apparently ‘they're back, baby!" It’s true they were the winners again this week and according to their 75% success rate they are serious contenders this year. If you’ve read my past blogs, you’ll know I don’t necessarily agree with all their room wins but this one did present beautifully. I was interested to see how they went with a kid’s room because their past spaces were lacking serious warmth and character. However, they really surprised me. I loved the rainbow mural and cloud bedhead but I think the choice of beds really made the rest of the room pop. The gorgeous teal velvet with white piping was the perfect base for their colour palette and I’m glad they altered the mural to coordinate.
Photo Attribution: Nine
Now we need to move onto functionality because that is where this room really loses me. I personally love a trundle bed over bunkbeds because you get the same amount of amenity but a better visual. However, trundle beds are only useful if you can pull them out and actually use them… As an interior designer, you get pretty good at estimating dimensions and I can confidently tell you that neither of those trundles will properly pull out. Shaynna mentioned it could be used as mattress storage but that again only works if you can pull the mattresses out. They could have easily gone for beds with storage drawers instead and even styled them the same way. I do love the way they have made the toys pop out from under the beds. It’s a nice change from the standard play rug and messy array of items that are usually 'spread around' to fill up an empty corner.
Okay, that is all from me this week. Thanks for reading and I’ll see you all next week for more bedrooms. At least these ones are master, sorry main bedrooms and we can check out some walk-in robes. Don’t forget if you’re all for working smarter not harder and would like each week’s blog sent straight to your inbox, don’t forget to subscribe. Which room was your favourite? I’d love to hear your comments and feedback below.
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