Episode 6 Recap: Dream (and Nightmare) Kitchens
The designers took on the dreaded kitchen challenge this week, but the stakes were a little higher: The winning kitchen won a feature in HGTV Magazine, and the bottom two designers went home. Read on to see which kitchens turned out dreamy and which, well, didn’t. Plus, tell me what you thought of this week’s episode!
Danielle had a big advantage from last week’s win: She got to choose her partner and pair up the remaining 4 designers. She also got first pick of the sink options that would inspire each kitchen. She chose Britany (they’re back to being BFFs now) and the contemporary sink. They chose a cheery-if-safe pale turquoise and yellow palette and a “collected” vibe for their space.
The judges loved the eclectic, lived-in look of the room, from the well-chosen accessories…
…to the right furniture pieces, like this weathered buffet. “You captured how people live today,” Vern said.
Britany was jazzed about the photo frame backsplash, but Anthony Carrino of Kitchen Cousins thought it wasn’t very practical — photos look better without grease stains. The art she chose also wasn’t very impactful — a blown-up photo backsplash would have made a bigger statement.
Despite a few complaints, the panel unanimously agreed that Danielle and Britany were the co-winners of this challenge. Then, there was everyone else.
Stanley and Hilari’s kitchen inspiration: a black apron-front sink. Mr. “If You Build It, The Panel Will Come” and Ms. Versace Glamour had trouble deciding on a theme at first, and then decided to go bold. Gulp. I was worried for them as soon as they paired bold blue walls with red countertops. In their defense, it definitely didn’t turn out boring. But as Kitchen Cousins star John Colaneri said at evaluation, “Step out of the box doesn’t mean jump off a cliff.”
Case in point: Stanley’s “handy” cabinet pulls. Theoretically, this works, but the cabinets still need to function…rouge thumbs and pinkies actually keep you from opening the cabinet doors. Instead, why not use a couple of these as accent artwork or even a towel hook? The panel definitely gave this element a thumbs down.
One element I loved in Hilari and Stanley’s kitchen: The blown glass pendant lights over their kitchen island.
Then, there was Team Rachel and Mikel, whose kitchen inspiration was a printed country sink. Unlike last week’s Victorian debacle, Rachel was confident that she could deliver a cool country kitchen; “I’m from the Midwest,” she said.
After floundering for a couple of weeks, Rachel knew she couldn’t play it safe. Enter the idea to wallpaper the back wall of the kitchen. She and Mikel struggled to find the right pattern and, well…they failed. The pink toile is too overwhelming with no wall cabinets…Genevieve called it “a punch in the face.” Also, functionality-wise, why a completely blank wall? I wouldn’t sacrifice that much space in my kitchen, even for an amazing wallpaper. Open wall shelves would have helped a lot here.
The panel loved Mikel’s pick of an ornate chandelier tied up with rustic twine, although they lamented that it was hard to see against the crazy, pink toile wallpaper.
Genevieve said she would “lay on a railroad track” for this tressel table, but otherwise, the panel wasn’t impressed with this room’s overall look…or its cramped space plan.
In the end, Rachel and Stanley both made fatal errors that, alongside another round of lackluster camera challenges, put them at the bottom of the pack. They were both sent home last night.
Check back tomorrow for David and Meg’s reactions to tonight’s episode.
Now it’s your turn: What did you think of last night’s designs? Did the right designers go home? Tell me in the comments below.
I think the right designers went home. Loved Rachel in the beginning, and her ease of drawing, but she quickly lost herself. So happy to see Britany and Danielle win, and hopefully they will be the final two. My fav is Britany's designs, she always adds that touch of 'glam', and did awesome in the TV challenge tonight. Danelle is my 2nd fav, but I think her designs lack the luster that Britany presents! BTW the way Britany and Danielle added color using the flowers-they placed them so well that you saw the spots of color, not a vases of flowers.
Stanley is a bit rough around the edges, but I enjoy his creativity and thought his kitchen with Hilari was the best of the three. The hands were a great idea, I could cook in that kitchen no problem! Red and blue are my favorite colors, although I would have chosen a different shade of blue. Mikel stepped it up this week but Rachel…. that toile was nauseating and she never found her comfort zone in front of the camera. Danielle and Brittany are the fan favs it seems, which is fine and if one of them wins, I'm okay with that. Beige/gray/yellow with "pops" of hot pink would not be my color choice (very bland and boring) but the accessorizing pulled it together.
I also agree with Debbie on keeping Stanley around. Would love to see him again… may be on the sister channel, DIY…. Just sayin…
I vote for a TV show hosted by Britany with Stanley as her carpenter. Now THAT is something I would watch. There would be bold patterns, awesome colors, and some really good times every week. I bet they would be hilarious if they got to be themselves. Riiiiight??? Love it.
Ohhh, I love that idea and totally agree!
I also love that idea!!
Great idea! I'd watch that, too!
Are you listening, HGTV???
The right designers went home. I was rooting for Britany until last week's episode she threw that tantrum about not being selected as the winner, she acted like a 5 year old brat, I lost a lot of respect for her. She is a very strong designer but not strong with character and personality, I like Danielle a lot but she is a little boring, but she is also a strong designer. Hilari has the funnest yet most arrogant personality. I think I'm rooting for Danielle though. Mikel's Hollywood room was a disaster and should've been much better for a design star.
I 100% agree with everything. But, I am still rooting for Britany. She has the best personality and design style. She was blessed with a gift. Britany is also pretty and has a very bubbly personality. In order to have a show you need the looks, the personality, and the gift of great design. Here is how I like the designers:
1- Britany
2- Danielle (almost tied with Britany!)
3- Hilary (too arrogant and does not have the looks so much)
4- Mikel (the world needs girl power!!)
I am so incredilby ready to watch HGTV with Danielle; she is extremely poised, a wonderful speaker and doesn't seem to be easy to "flap" in a situation. She retains her cool, doesn't make snotty statements (who needs that kind of behavior) and can design a room that seems almost effortless to her. I would DIE to have her come to my home and design a room for my husband and I!!! My vote is for Danielle, all the way!!!
Does anyone know what store Hilari purchased the letters that spelled SOUP? I've been trying to find letters like those forever! Thanks –
Hey David,
Hilari purchased the letters at H.D. Buttercup.
Hope this helps!
-Liz
source for danielle's "baker's rack" please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You might try Ballard Design. Also, Restoration Hardware has even nicer ones, but they are pricey.
Hi dan'l,
The baker's rack/bookcase was purchased at Reed's Furniture in Agoura Hills, Ca. You can find a link directly to the product here and also more products from all episodes of Design Star here.
errrrr… sadly, that's not the same shelf… http://hgtv.sndimg.com/HGTV/2012/07/02/HSTAR706_B…
Great show. The judges decided wisely this time. Glad to see that three of the four finalists are black.
I have liked Danielle best all along. She has such an adult manner and designs brilliantly.
Meg’s new show is great.She creates stunning rooms for real people and has a wonderful personality. She was an excellent choice to win last time.
I watched Meg a few times. She makes off-color and sexual references all the time. One of those episodes, she made *three* sexual references, two of them direct to her male colleague. In the real world that would be sexual harassment and ripe for being fired and/or a lawsuit. In the TV world, that is a poor example of being a boss and a colleague. In all cases, it is disrespectful to the audience. I will never watch her again for that reason.
I agree. Love Meg's show. She puts together great rooms for normal families. Each episode is very different. Love her sense of humor. WIsh it was on more often.
Also like seeing Chicago.
Adding that the rustic buffet made the winning kitchen. What a gorgeous piece.
I thought Danielle and Brittani's kitchen was beautiful. I loved how eclectic, yet put together, it was. I loved the yellow door. It added some bright color to a sort of bland space. The pops of yellow make it stand out. Danielle is my stand out favorite, I am rooting for her.
Stanley and Hilary I thought did a good job with just a few errors. I hated the hand pulls. But I loved how they weren't afraid of color. The red countertops were bright and beautiful and they were the only ones to add color to the counters. I also loved their glass blown chandelier. Stanley was too much of a carpenter, not enough designer, so even though I'm from Pittsburgh, his time to go had come. Sorry Stanley.
Rachel started out so strong and I loved her white box, but as soon as she said don't put in upper cabinets, I knew that was the end for her. Why didn't they do wallpaper with a beautiful backsplash? I actually didn't mind the wallpaper, there was just so much of it. A small amount would have gone a long way. I'm also not sure, what did Mikel contribute?
Mikel conviced Rachel that they needed upper cabinets. He got the chairs and the chandelier. He might have done some of the accessories, don't think they showed who got what.
But remember that it was Brittany who put the yellow on the door! Danielle would have made it a little more colorless.