I know I predicted that Antonio would win but that wasn't because I thought he should. I think HGTV needs to stop calling the show, Design Star. It should be called HGTV Host Star. After watching the show last night I think Dan got robbed (unless he gets the show being voted on by the public). Am I crazy? The only misstep for him was the kitchen back splash. I thought Dan's house overall functioned much better, solved every client concern, and looked great. The space plan in Antonio's living room wasn't executed well. I wasn't feeling that fireplace either. That, however is a personal decor preference. Providing a proper space plan is fundamental in design. If you fail at that, how do you win something called Design Star? I thought the furniture placement in the master wasn't that great and the scale of the toddler bed in the little boy's bedroom was pretty awful. What the heck was that? A dog bed? The issue isn't that Antonio is without talent. The problem is, he would fail Interior Design 101. Calling him a "Design Star" is a gigantic stretch. He really struggles with scale and that isn't something you can always learn. It is intuitive and in good designers, inherent. I did like the color palette in the master (my guest bedroom is almost the same) and I loved the red chairs. Taking down the walls and changing the entrance to the bathroom was smart. I liked how they styled him all up. He looked nice. I'm just simply baffled. Maybe I'm just struggling with semantics. What did y'all think? Will you watch the Antonio Project, his new show? HGTV thinks you will.
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Kristin, I agree with you. Dan was the better designer of the two. He has such great ideas and just really completed each room with thought and design talent. Antonio however is the new Design Star. This is television and I think there is much less emphasis put on “Design” than on “Star”. I am hesitant to say this, but I think Dan was passed over because they had already found an extremely talented, happy, handsome, smiley, gay host in David Bromstead. They were looking for something different that they think will draw viewers, not necessarily for the best designer.
I’ll watch it… but only to critique it. I thought he was the weaker of the two also but it was obvious for weeks that he was going to win by the way they talked to him after every room. The show’s really lost it’s edge for me and I think they really had an overall weak group of designers this year to start with. There’s not one of them that I’d let into my home.
Stephanie, I think you are right. Dan, lost because he was too similiar to the only successful DS host to date(Jen has yet to be proven), David. They are both cute and I think they have a similiar design aesthetic. Dan, could still be the one to get his own show through the viewer vote. Maybe they knew that too.
Some of us still can’t get over that Pergola disaster, I’m afraid.
The Offspring and I have loved Antonio all along, and he’s managed to pull out some amazing elements like that US map. But Dan’s nursery was fabulous, and we like his house, so we agreed that if he won we wouldn’t feel robbed. Nonetheless, Antonio’s already reserved on the DVR.
I was stunned when Antonio won. I guess for me, Dan was the clear winner. He solved problems in every room (hid the t.v., fixed the washer/dryer issue in the kitchen, added storage in the daughter’s tiny bedroom, and resolved the MBR layout). The house flowed beautifully and met the clients needs. The space plan worked and other than the backsplash, it was hard to find fault in anything he did. Given the time constraints, I felt he did a fantastic job. I would love to live in that home and adored the color palette.
The home Antonio did lacked a good space plan. From a design standpoint, there wasn’t any flow to the home. The kitchen was pretty bad-the color choices for the wall, the cabinets and floors were a bit disjointed. Even if he would have watched one episode of “Spice Up My Kitchen”, he could have made better choices. The MBR pictures on the wall were tiny-it’s not the first time he’s made errors in terms of scale. There were “zero” accessories in the MBR bath. Zero. How do you win Design Star without even so much as a flower in there? His personality is abrasive and all of his designs are “eclectic” because nothing works. The whole living room wasn’t my style but it certainly didn’t look professional either. He missed opportunities to solve problems-like storage in the little boys room. And haven’t we already seen little boys room almost identical to that? And that tiny bed for the child-did the side come down so he could get out to run to the bathroom in the middle of the night? I mean, these are real issues.
In the end, I was really disappointed in the selection of Design Star. I felt like the whole series was a bit of a “con”. Candice Olsen, who has impeccable style, was all over Antonio and I can’t believe that she rarely commented on his major design gaffes. It made me think like the network decided what they wanted and forced the judges to concur or something like that.
I also was very disappointed in the fact that the best person didn’t win. It’s not much fun to be in a contest or to watch a contest where the best man doesn’t win. Dan was robbed. Interestingly enough, I went to the Design Star board forums and tried to log in and I couldn’t. I did send an e-mail to HGTV expressing my disappointment. I have no interest in watching Antonio’s show. It also seemed uncomfortable to have a show promo immediately following his win. In the end, I really felt for Dan. He did his best and didn’t win. That stinks. I finished watching the show feeling kind of dirty-like when you know someone has lied to you-you are disappointed and thought they had better character than that. It also affected how I felt about Candice Olsen. I absolutely love her designs and her show but felt that she was trying to “sell” us on Antonio.
I think in the future, they need to go back to the original three judges. Having all three judges from HGTV is rather suspect.
This season’s finale was my first ever viewing of “Design Star.” Just going by the two guys’ performances on the final challenge– I think that Dan got robbed. He really listened to what his clients liked and wanted and executed it well. I could really see myself in his space. . . not so with Antonio’s. . . and I couldn’t picture that family really being comfortable with some of Antonio’s elements. Just me, but I thought that cabinet didn’t fit at all. I agree with you Kristin that the toddler bed looked ridiculous! When I saw it I said that my dog wouldn’t even fit on it! LOL.
Kristin, I already posted on the HGTV site. Their comment section was overwhelmed on the night Antonio was announced the winner, and I don’t think it was with positive comments. This whole thing has left a bad taste in my mouth. I think HGTV used the show as a vehicle to promote Antonio and it was NEVER a competition. I cannot believe that Candice, whose designs are very similar to Dan’s, would have ever voted for Antonio (unless, she voted for him so that his show would not be in competition with hers). I would never take design advice from Antonio or ever let him into my house. I’m not sure what demographic HGTV is shooting for with this host, but basically they have lost me as a consumer generally and I have to really question the decisions being made by their executives.
Clearly, they definitely are both great designers, I totally agree with Antonio winning. The toddler bed was a step up from his crib, using the same size mattress. Haven’t you seen those size toddler beds before? I certainly have. We had one for our son. I think a big part of design star is the hosting. I don’t care how good of a designer, if you can’t connect with your audience, your show is going to flop. Antonio connected with the audience.
I think that Antonio won because he is different. I think he can design but as you pointed out, he needs some help with the basics. Perhaps HGTV will or has recognized that and will give him help (assistants and what not) but he will attrat a different segment of the population since he is a straight, tattooed, desk slamming kind of guy. That’s maybe what HGTV is going for but they will give him help if they want the show to last.
I couldn’t agree with you more. What you wrote was EXACTLY what I was thinking. I think at one point I even yelled at the TV Sunday night. That toddler bed was pathetic to say the least and that mantle thing….ugh, just bad. Dan was way WAY better from the start. I think HGTV liked Antonio for her personality because his design skills suck. Dan’s the winner in my eyes.
I know I’m a little late on commenting here, but I’m in total agreement. He started off on the judges good side with the hot pink birds and perhaps that clouded their judgment. I did watch the Antonio project out of curiosity and it was an absolute train wreck.