The Knot That Changed the Keys: Where HGTV Dream Home 2008 Got Its Name
If you check out HGTV Dream Home developer The Shore at Islamorada’s website, you’ll notice the homes all have names. The Dream Home is known as the Albright, and during a trip down to Islamorada for the photo shoot last month I found out just how much Florida Keys history is behind that name.
I had the pleasure of chatting with Sandy Moret, who moved to Miami for a business opportunity in 1972 but wound up a full-time fisherman in the Keys by the mid-eighties. Today he runs Florida Keys Outfitters in Islamorada. (That’s him in his shop over on the right.)
Moret has immense knowledge of fly fishing and the history of the Florida Keys, and he said Albright came from Jimmy Albright, a fishing guide who moved to the Keys in the 1940s and later developed a method of joining two pieces of line of substantially different diameters.
“He came up with the Albright Special knot, a basic bread and butter knot, but it was a major breakthrough in light tackle and sport fishing tackle,” Moret says. “It revolutionized a lot of light-tackle angling as monofilament line was becoming into use.”
Basically, Albright’s knot enabled anglers to go after huge tarpon in the waters of the Keys with fly casting gear by tying a heavy-gauge leader onto the end of 16-pound line. “Tarpon has a raspy mouth like sandpaper, if you tie a fly on a piece of 16-pound test line he’s just going to chew through that,” Moret says.
If you’re in Islamorada, stop by and visit Florida Keys Outfitters. They’re next door to the historic Green Turtle Inn at mile marker 81.5 in Islamorada.
Stay tuned, we’re launching the HGTV Dream Home 2008 tour in just a few weeks. You’ll be able to explore every room and outdoor area of the home with 360-degree images, video design tips and much more. And remember, starting Jan. 1, 2008, you’ll be able to enter the HGTV Dream Home 2008 Giveaway for a chance to win the fully furnished home in Islamorada and an all-new GMC Yukon Hybrid.
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I am in the business of selling homes and I must say this is by far the worst marketing photos I have seen. The initial photos do not do the home justice. It is hard to navigate this website and get a complete picture of each room. The 360′s are very poor. I have a great photographer who does my virtural tours, keep it simple and you get better results. Who ever came up with this format should give you a rebate .
Why would HGTV spend two million dollars to build a dream home in an area that is destined to be swallowed up by global warming? Pull the plug now…this one is going down the drain.
I love This dream house i will prey every day for this beautiful home Please pick me I love every thing you do please i love you please just pick me
I was lucky enough to grow up in the keys, and although I’ve lived in a number of beautiful cities since then, the keys will always be home. I love visiting my sister in Key West when I can. To have a chance to live there again would certainly be a dream come true. To heck with all the worry about hurricanes and global warming. No shopping? That’s all part of the bonus of island living! True Conchs, like myself, understand the true beauty of the keys… the manana lifestyle! Wish me luck, sis! I wanna come home!!
I think it’s a little deceptive that you don’t really own the waterfront property as teh pictures make it look. That area to the water is a shared courtyard. Homeowner’s dues must be huge and no privacy with all the houses going in. The lot that beoongs to the house is tiny and not on the water.
I absolutely love this years Dream Home. I want a job on HGTV working with the site development and making the homes more GREEN. Like solar or wind power down in the Keys would really be cool. Plus when I win the house, I will have to pay for a large electric bill, so can I please have an upgrade. I watched the intro to the Dream Home and didn’t see Solar panels. Maybe I overlooked them. Next episode: Gabriele Schwartz meets Living with Ed at the new beach house.
I’d like to address this to the people who are complaining about this sweepstake. First, when was the last time anyone GAVE you a house…? Next, if it isn’t good enough for you, don’t enter, and let the people who truly would appreicate it have a better chance. But you did enter, didn’t you…
If you didn’t, could I interest you in beautiful time share off the Florida coast this December?
HGTV is the only place I know where you can still have a dream come true, without having to PAY to win something. Has every one forgotten about the cash prize and car the last winner was given with the house?
What is wrong with you people? They are GIVING AWAY A HOUSE…! And if people like you keep reacting like children who got the wrong flavor for the free ice cream they just got, maybe they won’t give them away any more…!
Maybe you could be more constructive with your opinons and direct HGTV with a REQUEST for a sweepstake that allows the winner to “PICK YOUR DREAM HOME in YOUR DREAM LOCATION” with a cash prize that pays the taxes and fees…
That would be far more polite…Hmmmmmmm
In the mean time, if you do win this one, just give it to me, I’ll figure out what to do with it so you won’t have to…
Dear HGTV,
I would LOVE to win this house! My family and I would enjoy everything about it, especially it’s location. What a fantastic vacation spot!
As for the expenses, TIME SHARE…!
That would be an excellant solution for costs, and it would give others who didn’t win a chance to enjoy one of your prizes…!
This has been my FAVORITE “Dream Home” thus far. Occasionally I enter the contest, not really hoping to win, but thinking that it would be fun…this year I am in love! My husband and I would figure out a way to afford this home. I am in awe…the designer’s had me in mind when they built this! The ONLY thing I would change is the kids room location…but that seems to be the general concensus. Great Job HGTV! You must have been thinking of me! KUDO’S!!
This is the dreamiest home I have ever seen! I can’t dream of all the wonderful times I would have there! It would be magical to own it!
I love this house I dream of winning it everyday I admit I’m scared of the taxes but if theres a will theres a way-As a single parent I work 2 jobs and have at times worked 3 to make ends meat. I would love to be able to retire here and for once just relax and enjoy life.
Does anyone know what the taxes would probably be?
Forget it you guys! Get out of the way! I’m winning “Albright.” I’m a divorced mother of three. I neeeeeeeeeeeed this!
CB
They say Heaven is a little closer in a house by the sea. That is certainly true of this years dream home.
This home is truely a dream. My wife and I toured the home on a recent trip to Key West and it was a fabulous home. The views inside and out are the stuff of dreams and you can understand why writers such as Hemingway, Tennesse Williams, etc. drew such inspiration from the Keys. For all the naysayers that think this home is not up to par as a dream home.. you need to look up some information on Florida keys architechture and style. This home draws much of its inspiration on the island lifestyle and history of the keys building style. The views and airyness of the rooms are exactly what a person needs to enjoy living in this home. The only thing that i think HGTV needs to do is to find a way that the winner can keep the home. After all what good is a dream home if you can not maintain posssesion. A true dream would work out like this.. HGTV think about it!!!!
Hello one and all. for the ones who spoke about complainers, folks like Lisa, from Ma. and Linda, KY “BE QUIET”. Jim you hit the nail on the head, taxes and insurance, the upkeep, 700.000 thousand dollars. And as far as be grateful, there is nothing ungrateful abut being realistic.
Everyone whom can read, look up the word free, what does it mean, mmm… let me tell you, it means, no cost, nothing, zilch, nada. Get the point. The reality of this is that as Jim and so many others spoke, these winnings are not geared towards the haves not, but the do haves.
Yes this would be an awesome giveaway for me and my family, and I am talking about 7 brothers and 4 sisters and about 15 hosts of neices and nephews. My father and brothers alone would love fishing. Me, I have been looking to move to Florida for years. My youngest sister just move to Tampa, Fl.
The bottom line is, it’s okay to dream, but in HGTV operating in reality. No they are not. It is as if they are discrimating against those who can’t afford to keeping there winnings.
When someone gives you a gift that they paid for, whether its’ what you want or not, it doesn’t cost you anything, now doesn’t?
Yes, HGTV, needs to start thinking in realistic terms, the general population believes in the so call American Dream, but HGTV should think about as Jim said, as myself, and others, that homes that are given away should not cost that winner a dime.
HGTV should think about series like Extreme Makeover, Design on a Dime, Vern Yip, Clean House, and so many more of those people reach out to other and make a change in their lives, and it is realistic, and conceiveable.
I take my hat off to the people who win these homes just to have to sell them. The winners of the 2007 home acted like the house was due him, and there wasn’t any excitement what so ever. There is nothing wrong with dreaming, but guess what when you wake up, you are back in reality.
And yes, I would sell it asap, and go and purchased the true dream home of my dreams, and a reasonable price, and the rest of the money would be for my tithes and offering, so that God can continue to bless be abundantly, more than I could every imagine or think.
This is Our Absolute Favorite Dream Home that was Ever Built! My Husband and I Would Consider it an Honor to Call it Our Home. As Clearly Evidenced, this home has been Painstakingly Crafted and Superbly Decorated. It has Everything We’d Ever Want/Need and/or Desire in a home. Kudos to Everyone who has Worked Tirelessly on its Design in All Respects~it’s Nothing Short of a Masterpiece! Strategically Placed in A Haven from the Hustle and Bustle of the Rat Race World~A Place of Peace and Tranquility. If you have to ask Where the Shopping Malls are~You’re Totally Missing the Point of the Entire Concept of This Oceanfront Dream Home and Island Living. We’d be More than Happy to Support the Locals in the Little Shops and Markets there. If you have to ask What there is to do in the Keys~Perhaps it’s Not the place for you.
Notice to his 32 Year Job~We’d Jump in Our SUV and Drive on Down. As a Friend Once Said to me regarding my 90+ Hour Work Week “No One Ever went to their grave wishing they would have worked More”~So True! After a Lifetime of Hard Work and Long Hours~What a Fine Place to Hang Our Hats in Our Retirement Days~TO RELAX~BE REATIVE~READ,DREAM and WRITE.
If we found out that we were the Winners of this Fine Home, my husband would give his Today (not 2 Day~Rather Today
Life is a Playground~What a Place to PLAY!
My Husband and I Love to Fish~What a GREAT Fishing Room to sit and Record Your Catch of the Day! We Enjoy Walks on the Beach, Listening to the Gulls Squabble with One Another and watching the Waves Crash against the Shore. We have an Immense Love of the Ocean and its Surroundings~Our Absolute Favorite Place in the World to be! We Enjoy Meeting the Locals and are Most At Home on the Coast. My Husband has his Captains’ License~this would be the Perfect Time in Life to Actually make Use of it and Enjoy! Watching the Sunrise and Set~Truely Breathtaking in the Keys!
We are Both Writers~What a Place to let Our Creativity Flow! I’m a Professional Cook~and Would Thorougly Enjoy Spending time in the Dream Home Kitchen Preparing an Elegant Meal or Afternoon Snack~Enjoyed with a Glass of my Husbands’Homemade Blueberry Wine~Yuummy!
This is Our Absolute Dream Home~Would Be Our Dream Retirement Lifestyle.
If Anyone Out there is the Winner of this Fine Home~and it’s Not the home for You~For Whatever Reason~Please Do Contact Us. Thanks So Much!
Fair Winds and Bright Blue Skies Across the Miles!
Lori
This dream house is gorgeous! It’s also one of the few that would fit our family(we have 4 boys and 2 girls all under 16). My husband and I have also worked hard all our lives. Oh What an extraordinary way to share love and time w/ your children and extended families! Can’t afford it?! The possibilities are endless w/ a liitle imagination and alot of faith in God. Even if we don’t win, we have jobs,blessed by children, and we own a home(as tight as it is right now). We have wonderful friends and family – if we did have to sell we’d throw one hell of a party for them first. We could use a new car, by the way! So thank you HGTV, thanks for giving us something more to DREAM about. If we don’t win, we are still thankful for all we do have! God’s Blessings, colleen
Oh my God, Oh my God, this home is my home in paradise. I live in Florida and every Spring we stay in Isla Morada for Easter Weekend. We always chat among our family how wonderful it would be to move to the Keys. It is truly a magical place to relax. I love it! I love it. I love it! Once I win this home and my dream comes true I won’t have to look from the outside in on this dream, but rather I will enjoy this lovely home in all it’s splendor. Everything is possible to all those who believe. I believe my dream home in paradise will be a reality soon. I can’t wait to receive my dream home keys in the Keys! Wheee. Yahoooo.
Hello from Alaska. I always tell everyone I was meant to be a beach girl but have lived in Alaska for 30 years. We plan on retiring to Florida so the Dream House would be prefect. I love the design and it has everything you could ask for.
Greetings from Montana. The home is beautiful. Very different atmosphere…have never been to Florida. Looks warm and inviting!! An escape from the snow and cold is desired this time of year. However, with that said, how can an average person ever pay the taxes involved with such a prize? Any creative thoughts? Out of reach for most. Do only the wealthy get to win such a prize? Is this a reality check for us dreamers…
Wow this is just the most matched of your dream homes to ME. I love all of it the landscaping with fruit trees and watercolor designs throuh out the home and the white kitchen Pink and green are my fav colors too. My dog would love it.. Its all I want in a Place I was ment to be there in the first Place ..I was sent to the west coast for the first part of my life and I would love to be in Fla where all my fathers family was I only got to visit them a few times in my life and call myself a Floridian…I love all to do with the water and would love to be a photo stop for folks on there way south to key west..I would share it all if I could win. I need a fresh start to my second half of life..So pick me for the dream giveaway. Thanks for building this fine showplace. I m saying a prayer for whoever Is the lucky willner Its ok if its ME…B
The contest ends on my Birthday. Wow what a wonderful Birthday gift this would be if would be the lucky winner!! It is just beautiful…. Thanks for giving me the chance to enter.
This is like a dream for sure. I spent many great time in the keys with Larry and Barb Griffth in Key West. Having just come into enough money to pay the taxes and reaching retirement age at the same time…….ummmmmm, this sure does look good for some lucky soul. It’s always great to have a chance to get out on the water.
Frank
I agree with several comments on here but am blown away that ANYONE thinks this is a beautiful home! This is, hands down, the most ugly atrocity HGTV could have put together!! There is NO practicality here. A ONE CAR garage! Who in the world who could afford a home this big only has ONE car?!? And the color scheme alone would make me sell it. Incidentially, for all concerned, I am not entering this year, not even for the “GREEN” home. It would be nice if HGTV would revise their Dream Home policy and let REAL people submit possibilities for a floor plan, style and decoration!
I also am in TOTAL agreement with an earlier comment re “free” home. What is wrong with giving away something that a family could truly make their home in for the rest of their lives?!? I don’t watch much HGTV anymore as I have lost interest in the home decoration direction you have taken. I know that my comments don’t matter much to you as you still have thousands who don’t agree with me. But really, how many more do think agree with me and just don’t bother to tell you? Come on HGTV, come back to the REAL world!
This HGTV Dream Home is wonderful.
If we win my daughters would have a backyard to play in, because we live in a small apartment without backyard and it is cold. THANKS HGTV FOR LETTING US ENTER!!!
COME ON NOW some of you have given some comments like you are being forced to enter something to enter a giveaway that would deprive you instead of being thankful for the privilage to enter. I think the house is lovely for the one that fits the home. Remember that “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. “Location Location Location”. This home would fit a lot of people that is why homes have been built in unbelivable vacation type settings. If you continue to watch hope and dream maybe one day your dream may be answered in your little neck of the woods where ever you are. I too would like to win my dream. Come and call me to my new home anytime I’ll be waiting. I love all of the HGTV programs and will watch as long as i can afford cable. HA!HA! Please don’t post my email address. Love and Gods blessings to all. Betty in Calif.
Thank God that I was born in a free country where dreams do come true. Dare to dream of winning this home and when you win, trust in the Lord to help you find a way to keep it. Be thankful that you have an opportunity to enter this contest. Be positive.
Pleeeese let me be the winner!! I know God would provide a way to keep it or if I wanted to sell could buy my own dream home in Alabama!!!!
Either way I would be a winner!!
Single mom of one fantastic son!!
Sharon
i know i have won the house because i prayed for it ,i believe its already mine in the name of jesus.i can turn my whole life around and my sister which is blind .it will make a difference,in both of our lifes and i feel like i can wash the big boats that are near the house ,a perfect job.it is so great i really believe this house is mine ,i wont believe anything else,thanks so very much,carolyn
Love the Keys, grew up in Key Largo. In Virginia now, however we went back last week and stayed in a beautiful home in Islamorada. My 95 year old grandmother would love it if we moved back -she stills lives there today.There’s nothing better than to be getting on “the stretch” and heading back to the Keys!
MY FAVORITE IS THE FLORIDA KEYS.I WAS PRAYING I WOULD WIN BUT IT DID NOT HAPPEN. HAVE ALL OF THE WINNERS KEPT THE HOMES TO LIVE IN? I CANT IMAGINE LIVING IN A HOME LIKE THIS. YOU GUYS WENT OVER THE TOP WITH THIS HOME. ANN THOMPSON NORTH CAROLINA