‘Trading Spaces’ is building on its success

More than a few home remodelers have fallen prey to the “While we’re at it, why don’t we ... ?” syndrome, in which a simple bathroom redo can morph into a new addition and an in-ground swimming pool. So it should be no surprise that a show about revamping rooms would also believe that more and bigger are better.

An unqualified phenomenon, the Learning Channel’s “Trading Spaces” -- in which neighbors have two days, $1,000, a designer and a half-share in a carpenter to redo rooms in each other’s homes -- has spawned several offspring.

There’s TLC’s Sunday-night “Trading Spaces: Family,” in which parents and children work together; NBC’s Saturday-morning “Trading Spaces: Boys vs. Girls,” from Discovery Kids, in which parents are not allowed; and “Trading Spaces: $100,000,” a highly rated two-hour special in October that had budgets of $50,000 per room.

On Sunday, TLC will show the finale of the latest spinoff, “Trading Spaces: Home Free,” in which eight sets of neighbors have competed for the chance to pay off one family’s mortgage, with viewers choosing the rooms they like best.

As the competition progressed, designers threw challenges at the homeowners, who, unlike regular “Trading Spaces” participants, were in charge of designs, budgets (which, in this show, spiraled as high as $20,000) and shopping. The finale recaps the competition and reveals the winners.

“I’m not a homeowner yet,” carpenter Carter Oosterhouse says, “but I relate it back to my parents’ house in Michigan. It’s the house I grew up in, that they still live in, and if they had the option to just pay it off, it would be much better than having another house in Traverse City. It means more.”

Of course, putting the homeowners in the driver’s seat made for a different experience. “People usually listen to what the designers say and the carpenters say,” Oosterhouse says, “but now, they’re so much more intense. They rise to the occasion.”

As for what it means for him to work off the homeowners’ plans, Oosterhouse laughs. “Well, come on now, you’ve seen the designers’ plans. It’s not a bad thing. It’s just different, because now you’re dealing with somebody who is not really sure how to put together a piece of furniture. They’ll just bring pictures of what they like. I usually end up drawing it up.

“Some have had outlandish ideas, and I’ve said, ‘That’s not going to work with the budget we have and the time we have.’ But I definitely want the homeowners to have their full input. It’s their opportunity to shine.”

On “Trading Spaces,” designer Doug Wilson is known more for staying true to his design vision than taking a lot of homeowner input. But that doesn’t mean he hasn’t enjoyed the “Home Free” experience. “When people do come to the table and bring a concept, well thought out and ready to execute, I think that’s fantastic,” he says. “I really welcome that. If I think they’re doing something wrong and they need to rethink, I’ll tell them. It’s been a great experience to have people come to the table with something to lose or gain.”

The ever-expanding universe of “Trading Spaces” doesn’t stop with “Home Free.” At a recent meeting with advertisers, TLC unveiled a slate of prime-time specials, starting with a bloopers special, “Trading Spaces: Unglued,” on June 12; then, on July 11, “Trading Spaces: Inside Out,” which visits cast members’ homes and reveals how an episode is made.

But there’s more, starting in the fourth quarter of 2004, and Wilson plays a large part in the plans.

“I’m signed on to ‘Trading Spaces’ for three more years,” he says. “I’m making TLC my home, so people know where to tune in and find me. So, I’ll be hosting four two-hour quarterly segments for TLC called ‘America’s Ugliest Rooms’ -- big-budget, lots of fun.”

Included are bathrooms, kitchens, bedrooms and living rooms. “They will start ugly and, hopefully, by the time I’m done, they will end ugly ... “ Wilson dissolves in laughter at his slip.

“I mean, they will end pretty. They’ll end pretty.”

Wilson says there are plenty more specials under the “Trading Spaces” banner. The first takes advantage of the musical talents of Wilson, host Paige Davis and carpenter Ty Pennington (and some Broadway guest stars).

“We’re doing ‘Trading Spaces: The Musical,’ ” Wilson says. “We’re going to be redoing two castles in Scotland in ‘Trading Spaces Goes Medieval.’ We’re also going to let the viewers choose the next new designer; that will be coming up this fall in ‘Trading Spaces: Choose the Next Designer.’ So the show’s not getting stale at all.”

One upcoming show resonates on a personal level with Wilson, whose urbane persona belies a rural upbringing.

“We’re doing a show on my family farm in Illinois,” he says. “It’s been in the family for 125 years. It’s going to be my brothers, who live three minutes apart. My four brothers will switch rooms. That’ll be interesting, because people will be like, ‘What?’ Juxtaposed against my brothers, I don’t know where I came from.”

With any luck, Oosterhouse will also get to have a family affair on “Trading Spaces.”

“There’s a possibility we might go to Michigan in the summertime,” he says. “I push for it every day.”

While he says an emphatic “no” to the question of whether it will be in his parents’ house, Oosterhouse allows it may be in the home of a friend or relative. “It would be a blast,” he says. “Hopefully in August, we’ll be able to.”

Kate O’Hare writes for Tribune Media Services.

“Trading Spaces: Home Free” finale airs at 8 p.m. Sunday on TLC and is rated TV-G (suitable for all ages).

Cover photograph is by George Lange.