So you think you know everything there is to know about HGTV Dream Home? Think again! In this brand new, exclusive video series, house planner Jack Thomasson and interior designer Linda Woodfrum reveal behind-the-scenes stories that may make your jaw drop (well, maybe not, but they are terribly amusing). We’re going back as far as 2001, so get comfy and enjoy the show!
To wish you all a Happy Halloween, I’ve got a special treat today: an early look at our new HGTV Dream Homes Favorites of the Past video collection! Go back through the years and tour the best of the best with a dozen clips featuring kitchens, living rooms, bedrooms and more. Watch all the videos then come back here and tell us which one is your favorite.
And remember, next week’s going to have even more surprises, including a report by the online team who will be on location in Sonoma shooting the home for the HGTV Dream Home 2009 online tour. Plus, we’ll be officially introducing our first-ever HGTV Dream Home Super Fan.
Have a fun, festive and safe Halloween. See you next week!
FC
Since I’m still waiting on those floor plans for the next HGTV Dream Home, I thought I’d try to find a question I could answer. DB Coop wanted to know if I ever get to visit the Dream Homes in person. OK, easy enough. Yes. The team that creates the online tour does visit the home each year, and so far I’ve been lucky enough to take trips to Lake Lure, N.C., Winter Park, Colo. And, of course, the beautiful Florida Keys.
Here I am in the woods at Lake Lure. For some reason we just thought that sign was hysterical.
Here’s a picture from inside the HGTV Dream Home in Lake Lure, one you didn’t see in the online tour.
Funny story about that picture above. For some reason we never did figure out, there were literally a hundred or so pillows in that house. Not throw pillows, just big fat white bed pillows. So when Bruce, the genius who shoots and creates the 360-degree panoramic shots for every HGTV Dream Home, needed to photograph the master closet, JP and myself had to move all these pillows and stash them in the master bath. Then put them back in the closet.
Speaking of Bruce, here he is at the Winter Park house.
It seems like there are always some cool animals hanging around. In Lake Lure, it was this great big black lab that belonged to the builder.
In Winter Park, we met Shadow. She belonged to a builder working on the house next door to the HGTV Dream Home, and would wander over to say hello occasionally. Here she is with JP playing with her favorite toy, a stick.
While Winter Park was a dog town, Islamorada was ruled by cats. There are cats everywhere in the Florida Keys, and they are exactly as laid-back and chillin’ as you’d expect cats to be when all they have to do is hang out in the Keys all day. This is Pistol. He literally moved right into our room at the Islander Resort.
Well, since he’s been there for 16 years according to the staff, I guess we’re the ones who moved into his room. Luckily, Mrs. FCole, who went with me, loves all animals and was thrilled that Pistol adopted us for our stay. Seriously — Pistol stayed with us for four days. Never left our room except to go outside for a bit to tend to his cat business. Most of the time he just curled up on the bed and napped. He may still be in that room, as far as I know.
We checked in with this year’s grand prize winner to find out what life’s been like since winning the $2.5 million HGTV Dream Home 2007 Giveaway. Find out what he thought when Joan Steffend showed up at that restaurant in Johnson City, Tenn., what it was like to travel to Chicago to meet Oprah and, of course, what they’re going to do with that amazing home in Winter Park, Colo. You can read all about it here.
In other HGTV Dream Home news, we’ll have updates soon on both HGTV Dream Home 2008 currently being built in Islamorada, Fla., and next year’s HGTV “Green” Dream Home. Stay tuned!
MORE ABOUT HGTV DREAM HOME
Video: Jack Thomasson Cruising the Florida Keys
The Shore at Islamorada: Site of HGTV Dream Home 2008
HGTV Dream Home Central
HGTV Dream Home 2007 Tour
HGTVPro: Exclusive Construction Details
Hello again, HGTV Dream Home fans! This week’s update is Robert Reed of Richmond, Va., talking about what he’s going to do with his winnings from the HGTV Dream Home Live Special $100,000 Giveaway.
Also, I talked to house planner Jack Thomasson today and construction on HGTV Dream Home 2008 is proceeding nicely down in the Florida Keys. And since newcomers are still asking, HGTV Dream Home Giveaway 2008 starts on Jan. 1, 2008. That’s when you’ll be able to enter for a chance to win the home in Islamorada, Fla.
And we’ll have more information soon about the HGTV “Green” Home Giveaway coming in 2008. Stay tuned!
MORE ABOUT HGTV DREAM HOME
Video: Jack Thomasson Cruising the Florida Keys
The Shore at Islamorada: Site of HGTV Dream Home 2008
HGTV Dream Home Central
HGTV Dream Home 2007 Tour
HGTVPro: Exclusive Construction Details
Hi All!
I am the son of Bob Sr. and wanted to say thanks to all of you that gave us your blessings.
It’s scary to read how many people are bitter they did not win, or that my father was not excited. As of today, he is still in shock, to say the least! Trust me, my father will have his break down period now that the news cameras are gone, papers are signed, phone calls are slowing down and so on.
It’s just so unreal, as he says right now. He’s been giving phone interviews, press conferences, and has not had the time to just sit and think of what he has won. My father is a very smart man, and trust me, he will be able to handle all the winnings. I know we all think we deserve it but trust me, out of any man I know, my father is great and really deserves this.
He has gone thru a lot of hard times losing his son in a car accident, his wife to cancer, then his mother-in-law and brother-in-law. My father knows pain, as he knows being happy.
Putting all this aside, he could run circles around most of us. My father has worked hard his whole life in giving his family what they needed growing up. My father has also given back to all his communities he has lived in. And trust me, if the man above is watching, he picked my father for a reason.
For those that wished us well in the comments, thank you so much. For those that had mean things to say, shame on you!
Robert O’Neill Jr.
MORE ABOUT HGTV DREAM HOME
Video of HGTV Dream Home 2007 winner Robert O’Neill Sr.
Video Postcard From House Planner Jack Thomasson
HGTV Dream Home Central
HGTV Dream Home 2007 Tour
HGTVPro: Exclusive Construction Details
Robert O’Neill Sr. from Johnson City, Tenn., is the winner of the $2.5 million grand prize in the HGTV Dream Home Giveaway 2007! The prize includes a house at the base of the slopes in Winter Park, Colo., plus a GMC Acadia crossover SUV and $250,000 cash. Congratulations, Robert!
Check back tomorrow to watch videos of the moment we surprised O’Neill and an exclusive interview with our winner. And a bit later this week, we’ll have one more clue before we reveal the location of HGTV Dream Home 2008!
Video Postcard From House Planner Jack Thomasson
HGTV Dream Home Central
HGTV Dream Home 2007 Tour
HGTVPro: Exclusive Construction Details
It’s finally here: Sunday night someone out there is going to be surprised with the news that they’ve won the grand prize in the HGTV Dream Home Giveaway! Don’t miss the LIVE giveaway special this Sunday on HGTV, starting at 9pm ET/6pm PT. Remember, we’ll also be giving away $100,000 to a home viewer during the live special.
And here’s the next clue to the location of HGTV Dream Home 2008: If you win next year’s HGTV Dream Home, you’ll be inspired to create these projects!
There may be one more clue before reveal the location of the next home, so keep checking back.
MORE ABOUT HGTV DREAM HOME
Video Postcard From House Planner Jack Thomasson
HGTV Dream Home Central
HGTV Dream Home 2007 Tour
HGTVPro: Exclusive Construction Details
Hello! As promised, here are five more states that despite your many convincing arguments are NOT going to be hosting HGTV Dream Home 2008.
New Hampshire
“My ideal home would have a huge wraparound front porch and be in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, where waking beneath a beautiful clear blue sky and crisp clean air happens everyday. A place my children would beg to come home to.”
Montana
“Actually, I now think that the bridge in the game room of the Colorado Dream Home could be of any bridge and not of one in particular. It could be just a bridge representing the many bridges found in Montana. I’ve also settled on a specific place in Montana of where the 2008 Dream Home could be: Bozeman. It would be wonderful if the home was built in a ski resort there. And of course there’s wonderful fishing in Montana, too!”
Idaho
“North Idaho is the place to be! Pend Oreille Lake, the second largest lake west of the Mississippi; over 1,000 ft deep with land-locked Salmon. Resembles Lake Tahoe in surrounding terrain but is five times larger. The Navy has a five-acre base at Bayview, and has tested submarines in the lake. Sandpoint is a beautiful little town with the Symphony in the Park, famous artists galore. The area has a ski area, excellent hunting of elk, moose, and deer.”
Oklahoma
“A great place would be the Centennial State of Oklahoma with a lot located on Grand Lake of the Cherokees, an area with solitude and wonderful views. Oklahoma is celebrating her Centennial 2007. What a great way to close out the celebration than to have the Dream Home built in this great state!”
Indiana
“I think you should build a ‘Dream Home’ in Indiana. We have one of the most beautiful natural lakes in northern Indiana: Lake Wawasee in Kosciusko County. Many famous people own summer homes there. Give it a look.”
Thanks again for participating in the blog, I really appreciate it. And remember, tomorrow is a new clue and I promise at least 50 percent less vagueness than usual!
MORE ABOUT HGTV DREAM HOME
Find out who wins the HGTV Dream Home LIVE on HGTV March 18, plus we’re giving away $100,000 to a home viewer during the show!
Video Postcard From House Planner Jack Thomasson
HGTV Dream Home Central
HGTV Dream Home 2007 Tour
HGTVPro: Exclusive Construction Details
The comments have ranged from poetic odes to a sophisticated computer analysis of the clues, but the following states are not getting the next HGTV Dream Home.
Vermont
“How bout an old fashioned farmhouse overlooking the beautiful Lake Champlain in the mountains of Vermont?”
“I believe the 2008 Dream home will be in Beecher Falls, Vermont, home of Ethan Allen Furniture and Ethan Allen the Vermont Woodsman.”
Oregon
“My guess is Oregon. It has beautiful mountain views and plenty of great fishing.”
“Oregon coast, crashing waves, picturesque coastal scenery, rugged cliffs, impressive sand dunes and vast sandy beaches.”
Alaska
“I think the next location for HGTV dream home is going to be Alaska. It is truly a mirror looking back at you, with its beautiful cool blue and white eyes, full of interesting things, outstanding fishing, and land that never loses its ‘wow’ factor.”
Minnesota
“From the clues, Bullwinkle-like moose and ‘Don’t Look on Rocky Top’, it could be Minnesota. Rocky and Bullwinkle live in Frostbite Falls, which is a parody of International Falls, Minn.”
“Near the Twin Cities in Minnesota, overlooking the beautiful St Croix River.”
“Minnesota is known as the North Star state (like the star in the garage). It has great scenic byways, fishing, trails, snowmobiling, golf and canoeing just to name a few.”
Michigan
“I think Michigan’s Upper Peninsula would be a beautiful place to live. The fish and wildlife, the spectacular scenery, people who leave there always want to go back to the peace and serenity.”
“I think Torch Lake, Mich., is just as beautiful as Hawaii and no volcanoes to blow you up!”
“The lodge room mirror is very cool. It eliminates both Alaska and Hawaii. Our computer programmers took every letter from the mirror and wrote them out and inscribed them into a simple computer program to analyze the letters. We did not come up with the letters for either state. We did find Michigan numerous times. We are now certain it has to be Michigan.”
MORE ABOUT HGTV DREAM HOME
Find out who wins the HGTV Dream Home LIVE on HGTV March 18, plus we’re giving away $100,000 to a home viewer during the show!
Video Postcard From House Planner Jack Thomasson
HGTV Dream Home Central
HGTV Dream Home 2007 Tour
HGTVPro: Exclusive Construction Details
