Pop Culture Princess

Pop Culture Princess
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Thursday, November 06, 2008

The winner of Top Design,True Blood heats up and TAR's Bickersons are about to hit a Speed Bump



Season Two of Top Design wrapped up last night,leaving us with one last image of Judge Kelly Wearstler in weird wardrobe mode. I don't know which was stranger,seeing her walk around those townhouses in that frilly nightgown of a dress or just realizing that she has those bizarre brightly colored high heels on.

At least during the last Judges' panel,she did finally dress like a grown-up and her hair looked normal. Don't get me wrong,I'm not saying that she shouldn't showcase her personal style but when it becomes a distraction from the main event,it ought to be toned down a little.



Anyway,as I predicted,we didn't see the last of Eddie last week. He came back as one of the three former contestants to help the finalists out. Preston wound up with Eddie,due to random choice(Nathan had Natalie and Ondine worked with Andrea)and while Preston had nothing but praise for Eddie,the compliment was definitely not returned.

At one point,Preston had to go out and shop,so he called Eddie(who was left in charge of the townhouse and the carpenters provided by the show)to go over some of the details. Eddie wasn't even where he was supposed to be,he had gone over to Nathan's to hang out with Natalie and mocked Preston's conversation big time. Eddie even had the nerve to leave his cell phone on the stairs and just walk out,while Preston was still talking! So not cool,Eddie.



Despite that nonsense,Preston did create a nice house. The crown molding that he had put up in the den was lovely and set off the room just right. Most of the touches that he added to the house were extremely elegant and he did listen to what Jeff Lewis said about the furniture in his signature room;that red bench which blocked the way went elsewhere in the house.



I also liked what Preston did with the master bedroom. The idea he had for draping that white linen across the top framework gave the bed set a tone of chicness and understated privacy. It was my favorite bedroom out of the three that were created in this challenge.



The big problem with Preston was his color scheme;the whole place was done in dark,heavy colors except for the office. That room had all the bright tones that the rest of the place needed hoarded up in one space.

It would have been better if Preston had added some more accent colors to a few of the other rooms instead of having them explode in one spot. Judge Margaret really wanted him to win,but I think she was outnumbered there.



Ondine had a nice retro flair to her overall design,especially with her funky wallpaper choices and furniture selections. Judge Jonathan Adler loved the pink couches in this lounge and that glittery wall sculpture suited the space to a T.



She had a lot of strong inventive concepts for many of the rooms that worked well,like this charming window bed for a little girl's room. It was very sweet and smart to put an additional bed in that area,particularly for sleepovers.



Unfortunately,it took a very long time for Ondine's carpenters to get that window bed finished before the showing,along with the mirrored headboard for the master bedroom. Ondine has a very strong sense of style but she has to put just as much strength into the execution of her ideas as well.



Nathan got over his bout of the blahs and really knocked one out of the park with his completed townhouse. The foyer alone immediately put you on notice that this was not going to be another stage setting for a homeowner's sale. No way,Joey,this place has a real personality to show you.



I wasn't sure about the painting he created for this dining room at first,but once I saw it displayed,it convinced me.

That paper plate lighting fixture gave the space a good dreamy,creamy vibe to it and didn't appear to be a quickie project at all. The whole house had a sharp,cohesive look to it that flowed through each room and gave the impression of a secure stylist at work.



The only fly in the ointment was the placement of a huge dark wood chest in one of the spare rooms(it took seven guys to bring that thing upstairs and despite his second thoughts about the piece,Nathan didn't want to make them lug that sucker downstairs).

I really don't think it was that bad;the chest either needed to be set in a better spot in the room or given a splash of color somehow(with a couple of knickknacks or a jewel toned table runner)to perk it up.



This year's winner of Top Design was Nathan,who I feel really earned it. He hasn't always been my favorite person this season but he has shown true knowledge of his craft and a secure and steady hand during the competition. Congrats,Nathan!

Next week,Top Chef returns and the gang's back in New York,so we should be in for some serious fun and food fury,just in time for the holidays.



On True Blood,Sookie gets quite a eyeopener when the cute little dog she names Dean who spends the night with her turns out to be a very naked Sam in the morning light. This little discovery comes on the heels of Sookie inadvertently catching a glimpse of Sam and Tara sharing a nice make-up kiss in his office(I like the way that relationship is developing,btw).

Since I've read the books,Sam's shape shifting skills have been known to me and I like the way the show's been setting it so far. With Bill passing the protective torch to Sam due to his going on trial for saving Sookie from Longshadow's clutches,it would be in her best interest to get over Sam's secret as soon as possible:



Meanwhile,Jason is making a serious wrong turn with this Amy chick,whose sweet little hippie girl persona is a mask for her truly vicious V junkie nature. Even Eddie,the vampire they kidnapped to drain his blood,can see that crystal clear. Hopefully,Jason's better nature will rear itself up and save him from getting in deeper into this mess:





There always seem to be a married couple in trouble trying to work out their problems on the Amazing Race and this time out,it's Ken and Tina. They've been separated since Ken cheated on his wife and the two of them have been working on their trust issues here.

They have actually been doing very well,despite some bickering,and have come in First on a few of the legs. During this latest round in India,however,the two of them came in last to the Pit Stop. Lucky for them,it was a non-elimination leg.

Ken and Tina now have to face a Speed Bump for the next leg(a task that only their team has to complete before moving on,which could pop up at any time). Keep your spirits high,folks,it's the best way to get thru this:



RANDOM NOTES:

THE CHEF JEFF PROJECT: I've been watching this series on Food Network for a few weeks now and have been very impressed with both Chef Jeff Henderson,who is giving these six young people a chance to improve their lives via this crash course in culinary cooking on a professional level,and the group of would be chefs enrolled here. Projects like this have more than just entertainment value for a TV network,they're setting an excellent example for others to follow:

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