Comments on: The Block 2021 Laundry and Hallway Reveals: From Divine to Dog Grooming Parlour

By: Karen Wheeler

Karen Wheeler — Thu, 14 Oct 2021 00:28:13 +0000

I don’t even watch The Block (my husband is a builder and I work in the design space so in the evenings we don’t feel relaxed to be on a building site watching people bicker lol) – BUT I love your recaps and seeing the spaces the contestants come up with. I agree with your thoughts overall. I think black toilets work best in bathrooms or powder rooms that are going for a dark moody vibe – and same for the dark sink and tap in Tanya and Vito’s powder room. Perhaps they could have gotten away with just the toilet and tapware, or just the sink as the wow/contrast element of the room. I could have maybe accepted the mirror if it was the only stand out feature of the room, but it just had too many things competing for attention for such a small space. And the joinery in that study space. Yeah, not good. I am very function focused though and would never compromise function to achieve a look (eg, lets do that thing where they use pipes as shelves) especially in a space that is for getting shit done.
In our home, in order to add a walk in pantry we had to make the entrance to the laundry off it, and it works fine in our house. I love the person above’s comment about teenagers bringing their dirty laundry through the kitchen hahahahahahahahaha, I have teenagers – they rarely bring their laundry out of their bedrooms, although they do their own washing, and have a basket for it. It’s not really an issue. I like having the laundry near the kitchen as that part of the house is where I am during the day, so when the load is done, it’s not far to go to get it out, and I can easily hear it beep. Sure beats where it was when we moved into our house 23 years ago – a washing machine and a trough in a dusty, dirty, very old garage. Outside!! And I had two little kids. It was horrifying!!

By: Kerry

Kerry — Tue, 12 Oct 2021 10:29:15 +0000

In reply to Andrew G. Totally agree. There's a reason you need to study 4 years at university to become an architect!

By: Catherine M.

Catherine M. — Tue, 12 Oct 2021 05:10:42 +0000

I agree 100% with your comments regarding all 5 houses. I’m not a fan of Tanya and Vito’s black toilet seat and green handbasin a,d that awful mirror is yuckie…

By: Robyn Shields

Robyn Shields — Tue, 12 Oct 2021 03:09:52 +0000

Im writing the following only because I had such strong views on the room reveals and this space isn’t big enough lol. The block is all about the drama, they choose contestants which will add to tv appeal and they don’t have any design talents. They take advise from the sponsors, eg Kinsman, Velux, Beaumont etc so they can promote their business and get more customers after the show. It is definitely catch 22, how do you get drama, a bit of bitchyness and get stunning homes to sell to pay for the money outlaid in buying and renovating the properties, I’m sure most of the contestants are listening to the experts and going with their advise and this is where the problems lay. In the past shows contestants all ways got money to complete the house and the best possible prices at Auction, so the work behind the scenes have it all worked out. BUT it leaves us with some judgement on the outcomes, I’m sure not two people could come to the same agreement, which creates such interesting discussions. Your forum is a perfect place for people to come together and discuss trends and layouts, the likes and dislikes and this creates our future design choices and together we are creating the next Aussie style. maybe the sponsors should cast their eyes over this site too when it comes to new creative products.

By: Margaret Maguire

Margaret Maguire — Tue, 12 Oct 2021 02:53:28 +0000

In reply to Debbie James. Debbie, I agree with you. I think House 1 has a much more appealing entrance. I do wonder about the skylights fading the artworks though. The bench seat in House 5 just looks out of place in an entrance to me.

By: KERRY

KERRY — Tue, 12 Oct 2021 02:47:36 +0000

So love reading your comments each week Chris. The Block this week was a mixed bag, some good things mixed with some bad. Nothing excellent, none worth 10 points. Why would you want your teenagers walking past your friends having a coffee in the kitchen with their dirty, smelly laundry? I loved the boys dark cabinetry, so over R&G’s magazine copy styling. Their styling is “safe”, I watch this show to get ideas, not what I can get by buying a magazine. Agree, get rid of that mirror please Tanya!
Look forward to your next weeks recap.

By: Maxine

Maxine — Tue, 12 Oct 2021 02:36:49 +0000

Once again you’ve nailed it Chris!

Tanya & Vito couldn’t put in a skylight above their study nook due – apparently it would have meant changing the whole roof? Personally, I don’t think a skylight could have saved this study anyway – its just ‘cheap’ and nasty and in the wrong spot

By: Maxine

Maxine — Tue, 12 Oct 2021 02:32:33 +0000

In reply to Andrew G. 100% nailed it Andrew!

By: Shelley Findlay

Shelley Findlay — Tue, 12 Oct 2021 00:15:30 +0000

I totally agree with what you are saying. I don’t like the grey tiles in the shower of Kirsty and Jesse’s powder room, they’re a bit busy for a Hamptons style. A continuation of the blue theme tile would have been nicer.
I’m also wondering if you are wearing a dress and walk on that glass floor can the people below see up? Eekk!

By: Matt

Matt — Mon, 11 Oct 2021 11:50:34 +0000

I totally don’t understand that “study nook” thingie. OK, so…mini home office…OK. But at the end of the hall like that? So this means every Zoom call is going to have people moving around in the background, the TV echoing down the hallway, kids beating each other up over the remote control from their sunken living room etc. Meanwhile, flip it the other way – if that’s your mini-study…papers start piling up on it, laptops are left running, wires get involved…and suddenly the hallway has an ugly mess as its “feature wall” at the end.

Meanwhile, over R&G’s way…I find it just a bit weird. That “45 metre” hallway that provides no access to the bedrooms etc. Sooo….end of the day, I have to walk those 45, then make a U turn…and walk 40 of those meters back to get changed at the end of the day. That seems, I dunno…annoying?

By: Veronica Muir

Veronica Muir — Mon, 11 Oct 2021 11:29:33 +0000

I feel for the boys
They are trying hard and have had harsh comments
I think the producers have got this season really wrong
The cheating bs has gone in far too long
In a time when we should support people not bag them constantly
Don’t like it at all

By: Dorothy Curtain

Dorothy Curtain — Mon, 11 Oct 2021 11:12:38 +0000

Loved the Winning Hallway so glad the Nasty Pasties didn’t win .

By: Ingrid

Ingrid — Mon, 11 Oct 2021 06:19:55 +0000

Spot on yet again. Loved Kirsty and Jesse’s rooms, especially the bathroom and hallway. I did like the laundry, but not that wallpaper. The hall pendant light is beautiful.
Agree with all your comments about Ronnie and Georgia’s reveal; the hall was too long and narrow, the artworks were individually beautiful but not necessarily together.
Their laundry was good and functional, wrong location.
Mitch and Mark’s spaces were great, they would have benefited by planning an entrance hall as well. Loved their laundry, especially the raised appliances.
I like the idea of a study nook in Tanya and Vito’s hallway, but not sure if they pulled it off.
Hated the mirror in the powder room. It needs to go, before buyers come to inspect.
The twins laundry was good, didn’t like the dark cabinets.
I’m looking forward to see all the interior rooms when they are done.

By: Dana

Dana — Sun, 10 Oct 2021 23:31:05 +0000

Gold. Pure gold.

By: Andrew G

Andrew G — Sun, 10 Oct 2021 23:01:57 +0000

I think you’ve brought up the main issue with this season of the Block (which I’ve been trying to get my head around all season): making the contestant’s design their own floorplans has hands-down failed. Hard.
Not one team has an ideal, workable floorplan. The thing with all previous seasons of the Block is that despite furniture choice, paint colour, cabinetry choices etc, one thing is guaranteed, and that’s a floorplan that has been designed by professionals. As a result, the floorplans inherently work. None of these do.
Kirsty and Jesse’s upstairs bedroom is an awkward shape with awkward windows and the bed in the wrong spot. Ronnie and Georgia’s 7,000m long hallway is ridiculous, and a laundry through a kitchen cabinet (which you have to open and close each time you go through it) and a butler’s pantry away from bedrooms and the garage is awful. Josh and Luke’s master suite will always look like a garage conversion when you view the floorplan. Mitch and Mark’s lack of entry foyer and hugely wide waste of space between kitchen and living/dining. There are so many more examples of poor layouts.
It’s not that the contestants didn’t do their best, they just had a couple of days to do it all for this season’s ‘twist’ and the result is an architecturally designed home, with floorplans that don’t work. Hopefully it doesn’t stuff anyone around too much on auction day.

By: Lyndall

Lyndall — Sun, 10 Oct 2021 20:57:08 +0000

Your recaps are the highlight of The Block for me!! I think you could get a second job as a writer (in case you weren’t busy enough ).

By: Eva Burgess

Eva Burgess — Sun, 10 Oct 2021 10:58:39 +0000

You do make laugh. Read your results blog rather than watch the results at the end of the week.
Usually agree except on the below.
I have a laundry you get to through kitchen butlers pantry & it works just fine.
But I get that close to the bedrooms can be practical too

By: Debbie James

Debbie James — Sun, 10 Oct 2021 09:52:48 +0000

I feel Kirsty and Jess entry was more like a back door entry with the bench seat. Everyone has there own style but I prefer Georgia and Ronnies overall their whole home just flows and if I was paying big dollars I would expect that. I thought also the hallways were a bit narrow.