The whole point of this show is not that it's a home improvement, DIY on a budget show. (Though sometimes you get pretty inspired design ideas) The show has a high cheese/kitsch factor. With the squealing, overly perky new host of the second season (Paige Davis) and some of the overly pretentious, under-trained designers, Trading Spaces gives you drama, conflict (between traditional, middle-American homeowners and "avant-garde" designers), laughs and snarks. The final reveal of the newly designed room is one of the more entertaining moments of the show. Like a scene from Monty Hall "Let's Make a Deal", do you get what's behind door number one: a beautifully designed room or what's behind door number two: a moss-covered wall, a hay-covered wall or, worse yet, a room painted completely black (all of which have occured on the show)? Seeing the homeowner's barely contained (or not!) disappointment or enthusiastic love for their new room is great.
Watching Trading Spaces is a guilty pleasure and while I've gotten some interesting ideas that I might want to try out someday, I don't kid myself. I watch it for the entertainment. It's like a train wreck you can turn away from.
Watching Trading Spaces is a guilty pleasure and while I've gotten some interesting ideas that I might want to try out someday, I don't kid myself. I watch it for the entertainment. It's like a train wreck you can turn away from.