For Sale: "Extreme Makeover" homes

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You know those great big houses the team from the ABC series "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" builds for deserving families?

Well, sometimes those big houses turn out to be just too darned big.

That's what happened in Sandpoint, Idaho, to Eric Hebert. You can see Eric standing in front of the 3,678-square-foot home built for him and his late sister’s 11-year-old twins, whom he is raising.

According to an article in the Bonner County Daily Bee, Eric works all day and spends most evenings taking the kids to basketball and soccer practice. Keeping up the big house is just too much for him, he said.

Plus, Eric said, heating the big house was costing him hundreds of dollars a month in electric bills, and that was on top of the home's gas bills.

And so, hoping not to seem ungrateful to the neighbors who helped build the home for him, he put it up for sale. The house has been appraised at $552,244, but he's listed it and the acre of land it sits on for $529,000.

Here are other "Extreme Makeover" homes that have been put on the market:

Pennsauken, N.J. — The utility bills for this home were said to be from $700 to $1,200 a month, and property taxes were more than $6,000 annually.

Atlanta — The ad for this palatial "Extreme" home says if you buy it, you can own a part of history.

Miranda Hobbes, I knew ye not

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Did I not watch "Sex and the City" reruns for the past four years?

Did I not come to feel in some TV-induced mania that I knew Carrie, Miranda, Samantha and Charlotte? Did I not notice who they were and how they would decorate their homes?

So how in the world did attorney Miranda Hobbes' home come to look like this in the new movie? Miranda is tightly wound, a control freak and quite sophisticated. How could she live in a place like this?

An article in the San Francisco Chronicle says this decor is a window into Miranda's personality, a personality which, I suppose, is really confused.

However, the Miranda I "know" would use her decor to hide such a personality, or to influence her personality toward a more put-together state of mind.

What do you think? Does this room look like the Miranda you know?

Also, rate Carrie's new space.

(Photo: San Francisco Chronicle)

Rate This Remodel: Carrie's 'Sex and the City' apartment

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I guess the apartment where Carrie Bradshaw researched and wrote her columns in the "Sex and the City" television show probably did need a makeover.

Several years had passed from Carrie's life on the small screen to her promotion to the big screen, and we all need to evolve. Carrie's guests needed to stop sitting on the floor around her coffee table, right?

But I'm not sure the new apartment (see "after" photo above) is quite right for her. The apartment is attractive, no doubt about that. But it seems too streamlined for Carrie, too coordinated, too balanced. That's not our Carrie! And it doesn't look comfortable. And that big TV. What's that all about?

(Photos: Apartment Therapy, Chicago Tribune)

Famous folks at home: quiz

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Which TV design star owns this Los Angeles kitchen?

What to notice:

Ikea cabinets.
Carrera marble counters.
Subway tile backsplash.
Cork flooring.
Vintage stool.
Really cool stove.

Give it your best guess, then click here for the answer.

TV Review: Is 'Extreme Makeover: Home Edition' too extreme?

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Sunday evening, after watching the "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" team blow up a house with a radon issue, I began thinking about the whole concept of the show.

When the series began in 2003, I thought the idea was to give houses a makeover. But as I would learn, it's really about annihilating the old house, as violently as possible it seems, and then putting up something completely new.

No matter what the problem — mold, radon, lead paint — the solution is the same: raze the house.

I can't help but be happy for the folks who got a new home, but I wonder if the show gives the wrong message to the rest of us. What if we have mold, radon or lead paint? Should we dissolve in tears in front of a video camera in hopes the "EM: HE" people will save us?

Or should we find a way to fix what's wrong, to prevent radon from getting into the house, to solve the moisture and ventilation problems causing mold? I believe so.

Members of the National Paint & Coatings Assn. had similar thoughts recently. In reaction to a May 4 show that focused on the dangers of lead paint, the association president, J. Andrew Doyle, wrote a letter to the show that said, in part:

"The misconceptions conveyed during the show were so glaring that they surely warrant a broadcast and web site correction prior to airing your next episode, so as to avert putting millions of viewers at risk.

"First, the show gave the impression that any home containing lead paint would require total removal of lead paint from all surfaces before the home could be safe. This absolutely is not true in the majority of cases. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) acknowledges that intact lead-based paint is not a hazard, when preventive maintenance such as paint stabilization or repainting is properly done. In such cases, lead cannot 'seep through 20 layers of paint' as show host Ty Pennington claimed!"

Plus, the show's team made a big deal of scooping up several feet of soil, which, according to Doyle, is not a typically required precaution.

I contacted "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" to get a reaction to this letter, but did not get a reply. The whole issue got pushed to the back of my mind until Sunday, when I saw the house with radon gas being blown up (the show was a repeat).

So I'm wondering: Is "Extreme Makeover" too extreme? Would it not be in our best interest to understand some of the alternatives to a tear-down? Wouldn't it be responsible for this show to at least mention some alternatives?

With the economy and home prices still in the toilet, most of us are not moving anytime soon. I'd like to think we can fix the things that are wrong with our homes to make them safer.

Because here's the big news: No matter what the problem with your home, chances are that the "Extreme Makeover" team is not coming to the rescue.

What do you think? Is the show too extreme? Or does it get a pass because it's "just" entertainment?

(Photo: Turbo Squid)

TV Preview: "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" in New Orleans

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As much as I regret missing "60 Minutes," I will do so this evening in order to catch the two-hour season finale of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," which begins at 7 p.m. (6 p.m. CST) on ABC.

This show is the culmination of a 50-state tour by the Extreme crew, and storm-torn southern Louisiana seems a fitting locale for that.

In this episode, a tornado-ravaged house is rebuilt for an extended family and a flooded church is rebuilt for a congregation. Read the full press release.

Here's what I'll be looking for:

• Some sense of how very hard it is to rebuild down there with the shortage of skilled workers and materials, rising crime rates and the rain, heat and humidity. I mean, you can't just run down to the corner hardware store for some extra nails because the store is boarded up and abandoned and the owners relocated to Houston or wherever.

• A sense of historic preservation. Most "Extreme Makeover" homes are simply mowed down. And if a house is totally ruined, that's fine. But with buildings from the 1700s and 1800s in southern Louisiana, too much of that would be a national tragedy.

• Ever more blatant product placement. Have you noticed how the long, lingering shots of store names and manufacturer logos have become more pronounced on this show over the years? Someday, this might be how all TV is done: You pick the products being advertised, and then build the script around those.

• And finally, the emotional payday with tears and cheers. You can't help but feel for people whose lives are changed with a new home. (I'd love to write a book about what happens to these homeowners when the cameras have left. Here's an Extreme Makeover home for sale in Atlanta.)

If you watch the show tonight, come back here and share your impressions.

'Extreme Makeover: Home Edition' in New Orleans airs May 18

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Watch amateur video from the final day of the build:

Watch the day of the reveal.

Want an Extreme Makeover? You'll need to answer a few questions

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To the list of extremely difficult jobs in this country, I'd like to add the task of deciding who gets a new home on ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," starring Ty Pennington (pictured here). According to the network, thousands of applications are received each week.

Also among the tougher tasks one might take on in life: filling out the extremely long "Extreme Makeover" application form. Not only do you need to submit photos of the family and a compelling video of your home-related needs and desires, you also have to answer a long list of extremely personal questions. Among them:

— Does anyone in the household have a MySpace or Facebook page, blog or website of any kind? If yes, please list all the addresses.

— Do you receive state aid for foster care, disability, adoption subsidy or any other benefits of this kind? If yes, how much and for whom?

— In the event you are selected, will you be able to provide W-2s and/or your tax returns for the last three years?

— Are you current with your mortgage payments? If not, why?

— IMPORTANT: Have ANY members of your household ever been convicted of or been charged with a crime? (It could be as simple as a driving violation or as serious as armed robbery.) Be honest. We will find out sooner or later through our comprehensive background checks. If yes, please describe (include dates).

— Have you been or are you involved in a lawsuit? If so, list date of judgment or settlement and the amount.

— Do you have any debt other than your home mortgage? If yes, please describe.

— Are you friendly with your neighbors?

And there are many, many more. That neighbors item would be important. Imagine living near the ruckus involved in such a makeover operation, with no direct benefits coming to you as a neighbor.

If you're into some full disclosure and want to apply, here's the full application form in PDF.

(Photo: Ty Pennington Style)

Eco-decorating is suddenly hip

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I guess my friend and co-author Kitty Bartholomew is a visionary. For many years, long before it was eco-hip, she was finding new uses for old things that have served their purpose well and that deserve more than a slow ride to the landfill.

Old leather belts are a case in point. Consider how much service a nice leather belt has given, with countless wearings and outings until one day the belt is either worn at the buckle or too wide or narrow for current styles or simply the wrong color.

Next, consider a wooden chair that has lost its cane or leather seat to wear and old age. While the chair and the belt might ride in the same trash truck to their final resting place, it takes a creative mind to say, hey, why don't you two get together and make something new?

And so I bring you Kitty's belt chair, pictured here.

What you need is a wooden chair with or without a seat. You lay out the belts on top horizontally and vertically, then weave them together and buckle them on the bottom. The nice part about old belts is that the buckle area wears out, not the back, and this is the part that will end up on your chair seat. The smaller the chair, the easier it will be to find belts long enough.

You can find belts really cheap at yard sales and thrift shops. Plus, if you have the unpleasant task of clearing out the house of a loved one who has passed away, and you find a collection of belts, making a belt chair for your home is a way of keeping a connection with that person and his or her life.

Also, hanging on the back of this chair is a quilt made of used men's suits. Did you know that quilting is the latest craze? Combine quilting with reuse of quality fabrics and the hipness level goes off the charts. Happy Earth Day!

(Photos: Sharon Cavanagh)

SoCal remodels: the music video

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To see some SoCal remodels set to music, click below.