They were pretty impressive all round last night, don’t you think? I’d be happy with any of those en suites in my house, apart from Ayden and Jess’s effort (sorry guys, you know I love you, but it was too much!). So while I agree with the judges’ first (Josh and Charlotte) and second (Dee and Daz) places, I think perhaps Tim and Anastasia should have come third rather than last. Their bathroom, dodgy finishes aside, was pretty gorgeous, if not up to scratch. So it’s a tough one.
Nice work by Charlotte and Josh with their second win in a row and no more money worries! I absolutely loved the black and white contrast, the plantation shutters and the timber vanity.
Here are all the images if you missed the episode. Which was your favourite?
What excellent viewing last night was! A return to my favourite Sunday night Block room reveals and not three but SIX with three by the newbies and three by the returning all-star couples. Plenty of emotion (mainly from a tearful Bec, bless her) and some honest judging that spanned from downright harsh through to glowing. This is what reality TV’s all about!
Controversial Darren and Dee won the all stars’ contest
Judges Darren Palmer (we love his new specs!) and Neale Whitaker were joined by real estate guru John McGrath for the big task this week. The winners of the newbie round were my current faves Ayden & Jess and Bec & George and Matt & Kim went home, despite producing great rooms, while Darren & Dee got to stay and become the fourth couple.
Ayden and Jess were judged best out of the newcomers
JUDGES’ COMMENTS
First, to the newbies. The judges didn’t think any of their rooms were really good enough. The judging was pretty harsh but, in my opinion, warranted. It’s early days though!
Charlotte & Josh (second place)
Charlotte spent up big at Coco Republic but expensive furniture was not enough. Darren said there was a lot of stuff in the room and loved the wall finish, the simple linen and smart choice of flooring. The bedside is one of his favourite pieces out there at the moment but he felt it too big for the room. Neale had an issue with the art, even though it referenced the neighbourhood (too young and poppy to go with the furniture). The art jarred with the neutral look and feel. John agreed the decor didn’t quite work. Darren and John hated the built-in doors and handles (a bit dated). No more Mr Nice Guy with Darren tonight who said the window dressing was a bit asylum-y. Eek! Neale said their elimination challenge rooms were better and he was disappointed. John said it seemed they hadn’t realised the competition had started. Ouch all round!
The automatic blind impressed Darren and John who said it was what buyers in this market were looking for. Not surprisingly, the judges spotted the hideous toy cat on the windowsill (why?!) and they were NOT impressed. Neale said he felt he’d seen everything in the room many times over and called it generic. John said it felt decorated out of a seaside gift store. Cringe! Neale was again disappointed. John found the crosses theme “annoying” and said the room was not all things to all people and rather nothing to no one. At this point, Darren declared himself definitely cranky Daz! Distinctly awkward!
Ayden and Jess’ dynamic continued to make me giggle this week. They’re definitely my favourites to watch. Darren said the room was off to a good start. Neale said it had soul to it and personality. They all liked the wing-backed bedhead and even Darren said there were too many cushions on the bed (nine!) and he didn’t love the pendants. Darren said the flooring was a little plasticky. Neale concluded it wasn’t perfect but had a sense of creativity and flair. Darren said they had shown a fighting spirit and tried to up the ante.
Then onto the all-stars… The judges were not told who did each room or even which all-stars they were judging. It seemed so mean that two of the three had to go home when they all did so so well and in a class above the newbies (and let’s face it, they’ve had a lot more experience). I picked the winners straight off though: Dee and Darren. But wow, they were all good! Painful!
Bec & George
Darren immediately said “we’ve stepped into a whole different level of the game. There is no comparison to the rooms we’ve just been in”. John said it proved a great idea was all about execution not budget. Neale said the room said experience and it was in a different league. The flooring was amazing. Neale said the artwork was stunning. Darren loved the warmth of the timber and the lights. Neale said it said modern luxury. John said it spoke to the market. All the judges like the custom gold leaf plant holder. Bec was so wowed by the positive comments that she cried, saying even if they didn’t stay they’d achieved everything they wanted to. Which was just as well as sadly, they did end up going home.
This pair really seemed to take the opportunity seriously too, making brave choices. I loved their paneling and elegant choices. The judges were wowed by the different aesthetic and approach. Neale thought it felt very romantic and elegant. He said the detailing was very special. Darren liked the timber floor on a diagonal. They said it was a room that would appeal to anyone with design savvy. Darren said it felt like a jewellery box to him and that when the newbies walked through these all-star apartments they would freak out! Darren said whoever went home, it was a big shame.
Darren said the apartment was beautiful and he loved the grasscloth wallpaper. Neale said it was seamless, calm and relaxing and this was the room he felt like unpacking his bag in. Darren said it was the first bedhead he’d seen that he really wanted to sleep in. John said it was neither harsh contemporary nor classical and steered a nice road down the middle. Darren loved the dropped ceiling and the shadow line (Daz’s choice, which wasn’t popular with Dee!) and said they looked expensive. Less is more definitely won!
I have to say I agreed with pretty much all of the judges’ comments this week. All three all-star couples did brilliantly. I was most surprised and impressed by Matt and Kim in a way, taking into account their attention to detail, effort and the huge difference to anything of theirs we have seen before. The paneling was fab and the lighting was perfect. Winners Dee and Darren had my favourite room but Bec and George’s was also great (that floor worked much better then I predicted).
[contextly_sidebar id=”LLyvoP3LOeooSBEuodjPlUTbe7JzgC62″]It seems pretty unfair that the newbies’ work had to be compared to the more experienced former contestants’ this week as they were never ever going to match up! I really didn’t vibe Tim and Anastasia’s room at all and the soft toy dog they left on the windowsill killed me (I don’t care if it was your neighbours’ kid’s! What were you thinking?!). A tacky toy on the windowsill of what is supposed to be a high-end apartment is never going to go unnoticed or go down well. I found the colour scheme a bit jarring and the styling uninspired. As the judges said, Josh and Charlotte’s room was a bit too much about the art, which I didn’t love, and I hated the opaque glass built-in doors. I still have high hopes for this pair though. And Ayden and Jess, my favourites at this point, did the best in my view. Their room looked less embarrassing compared to the all-star couples’ slick efforts. The floor was a bit wrong though.
And before I go, can I just say, once again, how disappointing and ridiculous I find the huge amounts of bitching on The Block Facebook page and elsewhere (Darren and Dee’s page too) about the result and the show supposedly being rigged. And people being massively over the top about winners being announced on social media before all states have had a chance to see the outcome? Calm down, people, it’s just a TV show! I personally couldn’t watch the show last night because I was having dinner with my in laws. So I recorded it and then deliberately stayed off Twitter and Facebook until after I’d watched it a few hours later (in order to write this post and for my own enjoyment). Had I accidentally found out before I watched, well do you know what? It’s really not that big of a deal. Sigh. I just wish people would put as much effort and passion into fighting some of life’s real injustices rather than spouting venom about a reality TV show and its contestants.
So, what did you think? I’m sure the all stars’ winner decision will be controversial being that Dee and Daz are a bit love ’em or hate ’em! And simply because all three couples made top efforts. Poor judges, that was hard! But that’s reality TV for you! Roll on this week!
Last night’s was an altogether calmer episode of The Block and we got to the room reveal action quickly, which is always good! The poor remaining contestants were so worn out, they tried to get away with sitting down for judging but Scotty was having none of it! Luke and Ebony reckon they’d only had about six hours’ sleep in more than 50 hours. Ouch. Onto the judging…
Tim and Anastasia. Came 4th and stayed in by the skin of their teeth.
Shaynna Blaze, who was absent from last week’s judging, said it was beautiful, a knockout and an incredible start. Seriously, will the judges stop being so damn nice?! Neale Whitaker was wowed at what had been achieved in 48 hours and both judges said the attention to detail was great. Neale said we’d never seen anything like this in an elimination round and it felt really lovely.
There was criticism though: using a nest of occasional tables as the main coffee table, a wonky pelmet and no TV. The paper pendant light was a hit but Shaynna said there wasn’t enough lighting for the evening overall.
Cabinet maker Ayden took a risk making his own table in limited time but it paid off. Neale said the couple had a great sense of fun, a bit of edge and cool. Both judges thought the styling was simple and fun. The couch was a good size, the lighting choices were spot on and it had a Miami feeling. In fact, they struggled to find anything wrong.
I really liked this ditsy pair last week, but this week found them a bit too cocky and didn’t like the snide comments they made about Ebony and Luke’s pink wall. Neale said their look was consistent with last week’s bedroom and he liked the couch and artwork. Shaynna had a good first impression but on closer inspection thought the furniture’s proportions were all wrong with the too-chunky entertainment unit and too-small lounge. I’d have to agree.
This brother and sister are growing on me all the time. They just seem like decent people who aren’t too full of themselves, even though they do seem to have a really good idea and more of a clue than some of the others. They came fourth last time so this was an improvement! Their calamine lotion pink wall was a risky move but personally I loved the overall look and how it worked with the Katie McKinnon art (which they also used in their bedroom). Shaynna said it was a very dividing colour but they more than pulled it off. Neale added: “The return of pink. Wow.” There were tiny criticisms like a few drips of paint on the wall and the underneath of the pelmet being unfinished.
Charlotte and Josh. Came 1st, second reveal in a row!
Again, another risk that paid off, these two decided to exposed their brick wall. Even though it was a weird mustard colour, they recovered from it by painting it white and still making a real impact. You know Neale really likes something when you see a big grin rather than his more usual half-smile and this is what we saw last night. “Wow. Unbelievable. Stunning,” he said. I think we knew they were going to win! Shaynna said it was a whole different look to the other rooms and Neale agreed they’d taken a box of a room and given it soul, a “stroke of genius”. I didn’t like their artwork or the rug at an angle, which of course Shaynna couldn’t go past either!
Last night’s episode drove me a little bonkers. HURRY UP! I wanted to shout! Seemed like most of the contestants were on a go-slow and nobody seemed to care enough. And when you consider how many people must want to get on the show (I am definitely not one of them, unless they’re offering a guest judge spot!) that’s a little frustrating.
So I was the last person to expect Neale Whitaker to be saying it was a tough call when six rooms of a high standard had been delivered. That’s clever TV editing for you I guess! And I have to say, when it came to the end results, despite some dodgy finishes, I was eating-my-words surprised! I think most of the viewing public expected the ditsy cousins Brooke and Aimee to be a dead cert to be eliminated but oh, how wrong we were! They ended up in second place. So, all in all, it was a good episode!
So, in order of judging…
Tim & Anastasia. Came 5th and stayed in the competition by the skin of their teeth (half a point!):
Tim & Anastasia’s room
Darren and Neale said completing this room in 24 hours was mind-boggling, but then at this point, they had nobody else’s to compare it to. Neale said the artwork was a bold, good choice and set the tone for the whole room. Both loved the timber walls but the dodgy finishing where they met the ceiling didn’t escape Darren’s beady eye. The powerpoint and TV aerial socket in the middle of the wall were also clangers. But Neale said overall it was a pretty strong start.
Pre-judging, Ayden described the room as “us on a platter,” and said they wouldn’t change a thing. I liked his confidence! The judges said it was very fresh and inviting. Darren loved the linen (I have the same on my bed from Aura as it happens), cushion and art choices. Neale said it was young, cool and sophisticated. They both raved about the open-shelved wardrobe but Darren said the paint work and plaster work were a dog’s breakfast! And those curtains certainly needed ironing!
Mark & JJ came last and were eliminated. I bet she’s glad she doesn’t have to be called JJ anymore:
It was clear from Darren and Neale’s comments, by the end of the judging, that these two were heading home. Neale said it was hard to know where to look first. Although the wallpaper was very brave and very well done and the mix of retro and contemporary was good, there were too many styles going on and nothing tied together well. And the deal was sealed with terms like “chaos” and “panic styling”. Bye bye, guys!
Brooke & Aimee. Came 2nd despite looking like they wouldn’t even finish:
Brooke and Aimee’s room
And their door didn’t shut either! But Neale really liked it, coining the term ‘industrial country’ and both judges loved the vintage style, mint green bed. they even said the wardrobe was an extraordinary achievement in the timeframe. But nobody could ignore that black curtain rod, drooping in the middle!
Ebony & Luke came 4th and were visibly shocked to still be in the game:
Luke & Ebony’s room
The blue wall went down a treat and the judges noted the rest of the room was subtle and restrained. Darren was not happy with the chest of drawers as the only storage option, or the poorly finished skirting and bedhead. And no window dressing despite a pelmet! Darren said though, that it was a well designed room with good choices, just bad finishes. Neale found it frustrating that some bits were so right and others so wrong.
Charlotte & Josh took out the top spot and came 1st with their subtle scheme:
Josh & Charlotte’s winning subtle room
Josh was confident too, saying before the judging that he thought they’d get through to the next stage. On entering the room, Neale and Darren both said wow and they were even more impressed when they realised the timber wall was real and not wallpaper. Neale loved the pared back glamour and called it ‘industrial glam beach house’! There’s a new one! And Darren said the wall was magnificent for so many reasons. Neale rounded the compliments off with “superb”! The only downsides were the lack of window dressing and the seam of the lampshade facing out to the room.
