A woman raged ‘this is disgusting!’ after a nightmare home makeover so terrible she ‘almost wets herself on camera’ in dismay.
Trading Spaces, an American home renovation show which aired on TLC from 2000 to 2008, sees two neighbours redo a room in each other’s homes on a budget.
The series, hosted by American TV personality Paige Davis, was famous for its expert carpenters and designers making wacky transformation suggestions to guests.
One old episode saw a particularly awful moment, where a woman grew incredibly angry her one request had not been considered in her home’s renovation.
Terri and Cornell Butler agreed to let their neighbours, with the help of notoriously outlandish designer Hildi Santo-Thomas, redo their basement for $1,000.
They had asked the design to include a nod to the late American musician Prince, who they loved – but this was nowhere to be seen in the big reveal.
A woman raged ‘this is disgusting!’ after a nightmare home makeover so terrible she ‘almost wets herself on camera’ in dismay
Trading Spaces, an American home renovation show which aired on TLC from 2000 to 2008, sees two neighbours redo a room in each other’s homes on a budget
Terri and Cornell Butler agreed to let their neighbours, with the help of notoriously outlandish designer Hildi Santo-Thomas, redo their basement for $1,000
The large room had been zoned into several areas, including a dining area, sitting room, bar and a spot for the pool table – where wooden cues covered the wall.
In a slightly bizarre combination, grey stone wainscoting lined the bottom half of the walls while a pale pink tropical leaf wallpaper covered the top.
Despite this, the makeover was quite smart overall – but Terri, who had her heart set on a Prince room, was incredibly disappointed not to see this executed.
As host Paige told her to open her eyes to see the new room, she immediately opened by exclaiming: ‘What the f***? What? Hell to the no, I’m sorry.’
Her husband Cornell could only laugh, absolutely speechless at both the room and his wife’s reaction. She soon asked: ‘Where is the pool table?’
Paige and Cornell pointed it out, concealed under a detachable ping-pong table cover.
The presenter said: ‘The pool table is right there, this is just a topper, it comes right off.
‘So, it’s great for your grandson and it’s, you know, multi-purpose.’
As host Paige told Terri to open her eyes to see the new room, she immediately opened by exclaiming: ‘What the f***? What? Hell to the no, I’m sorry’
Paige was making a valiant effort to reassure the couple as Terri simply stood in stunned silence, her eyes flicking around the transformed room
Paige was making a valiant effort to reassure the couple as Terri simply stood in stunned silence, her eyes flicking around the transformed room.
She could only speak to say: ‘I’m about to pee myself, literally.’
The host did not quite know how to respond to this, saying incredulously, ‘You’re about to what?’, before Terri stuck to her guns: ‘Pee myself.’
The presenter quickly changed the subject: ‘OK, something else I really want you to see is they did do a really cool bar over here.
‘Your old cabinets and shelving things that they’ve retrofitted and recreated out to make a whole bar area.’
The Butlers both said about the area, ‘I love this’ – but Terri could not help but add: ‘All I asked for was a Prince room.’
It got even more strongly worded when she said: ‘Hmm, the walls gotta go. This is disgusting. We’ve got a lot of work to do.’
Referring to one of the neighbours who had redone the room, Paige said: ‘Crystal was concerned you wouldn’t like it.’
It got even more strongly worded when she said: ‘Hmm, the walls gotta go. This is disgusting. We’ve got a lot of work to do’
The large room had been zoned into several areas, including a dining area, sitting room, bar and a spot for the pool table – where wooden cues covered the wall (pictured)
Commenters on social media have since rediscovered the dramatic clip – and expressed their own opinions on the shocking makeover
And in an ice cold response, Terri said: ‘She should be. Hmm.’
Commenters on social media have since rediscovered the dramatic clip – and expressed their own opinions on the shocking makeover.
One said on discussion site Reddit: ‘I would be mad too. I hope they paid for a fix.
‘The bar area really is cool then you look to the right and it’s like I’m in an old couple’s Florida home from the early nineties. I don’t think she’s trying to be there lol.’
Another added: ‘In her defence, it does look ugly as f***.’
Someone else said, ‘Every inch of that room is hideous’, while another chimed in: ‘This actually hurt to watch.’
One person wrote, ‘It looks like an aged care facility from hell’, while another penned: ‘Lol the host was like, “Please don’t hate the bar, I don’t know what to do”.’
The couple took part in a reunion episode in 2019, telling all about their experience on Trading Spaces.
The couple took part in a reunion episode in 2019 (pictured), telling all about their experience on Trading Spaces
Terri explained her extreme response to the transformation: ‘Some people agreed that my reaction was open and honest’. Pictured: The couple in the basement during the reunion episode
Terri explained her extreme response to the transformation: ‘Some people agreed that my reaction was open and honest.
‘Some of the fans were like, “No, she’s being nasty”. I guess people would just have to be in our shoes to understand.
‘After three days, having to work almost 24 hours, lack of sleep. We drive over in the pouring rain and I’m like, “Alright, we’re going to walk in and it’s going to be a nice basement and finally, we’re going to get what we want”.
‘And I open my eyes and I see what looks like a million leaves on the wall.
‘All I was thinking was how much paint am I going to have to buy to get these leaves off the wall?
‘I wasn’t looking for a Prince statue or even a purple wall or a purple room, just something that resembled Prince would have been fine and I was really disappointed that was not something that she even considered.’
She said they actually ended up liking how designer Hildi had switched up the layout of the room – and they even kept the wall decorated with wooden pool cues.
Terri said: ‘They kind of grew on me a little bit, I wish there was a little bit more purple but it’s fine.’
As well as keeping the wooden blinds that were put in to cover the door to the room, the couple did also actually stick with one wall of the leafy wallpaper. Cornell joked: ‘Got to have a conversation piece’. Pictured: The couple during the reunion episode
Since the show, the couple have bought a new sofa, pillows and coffee table for the lounge area – as well as an all-important purple blanket (pictured, in the reunion episode), in a nod to Prince’s hit song Purple Rain
Her husband Cornell admitted what might have been the real reason for keeping them: ‘It would have been more work to take them down.’
The couple have changed various parts of the basement, adding a fireplace and some bar furniture.
They also bought a new sofa, pillows and coffee table for the lounge area – as well as an all-important purple blanket, in a nod to Prince’s hit song Purple Rain.
But they kept the carpet and one of the lamps chosen for them.
Terri has really grown to love the lounge area: ‘This is my favourite spot in the entire basement…
‘Since we replaced the furniture, it’s really cosy, really comfortable, I like to come down here with my laptop, watch TV and just be in my own space.
‘We entertain a lot down here at the bar area now, it’s one of our favourite places.’
As well as keeping the wooden blinds that were put in to cover the door to the room, the couple did also actually stick with one wall of the leafy wallpaper.
Terri said: ‘We entertain a lot down here at the bar area now, it’s one of our favourite places’. Pictured: The bar in the original episode
They were able to have a laugh about the makeover, with Cornell quipping, when asked what his favourite part of the basement is: ‘Well, upstairs, for me’. Pictured: The original episode
Cornell joked: ‘Got to have a conversation piece.’
His wife responded: ‘OK, well, I’m still not happy with that but I have to give him something.’
They were able to have a laugh about the makeover, with Cornell quipping, when asked what his favourite part of the basement is: ‘Well, upstairs, for me.’
Terri summarised their time on Trading Spaces: ‘Overall, the show, it was a great experience, again, the cast, the producers, the directors, they were all great.
‘I just wish the design was just a little more what we were looking for.
‘For right now, we’ll probably keep everything the way it is.
‘There might be some changes in the future as far as colouring like changing the walls or changing the pillows but we’re really comfortable with how the basement looks right now.’
It comes after Trading Spaces fans rediscovered another old episode which saw a woman storm out of her property in tears after a home makeover from hell.
It comes after Trading Spaces fans rediscovered another old episode (pictured) which saw a woman storm out of her property in tears after a home makeover from hell
Pam and John Herrick agreed to let their neighbours, with the help of designer Doug Wilson, redo their family room on the set budget of $1,000. Pictured: Presenter Paige with designer Doug Wilson
Pam and John Herrick agreed to let their neighbours, with the help of designer Doug Wilson, redo their family room on the set budget of $1,000.
Their one condition was that they did not touch the fireplace – but this was exactly what they found had happened when the final result was unveiled.
The characterful feature had been covered by wood to make it a plain, smooth white, with contemporary slate grey and metal finishes.
The rest of the room was similarly monochrome, with dark wall panels, denim furniture and a rug, with both the floor and wainscot made completely plain white.
Modern geometric art, an enormous number of candles and artfully placed stacks of books completed the spare, stripped back look.
Host Paige gripped the couple’s hands and arms tightly and somewhat nervously as she led them into the room with their eyes closed.
John said, ‘Wow’, as an excruciating pause unfolded before Pam reacted, as Paige looked at her expectantly with a cautious smile.
She started by saying, ‘Well’, with a short laugh, trying to find something positive: ‘I really like the wainscoting.’
Their one condition was that they did not touch the fireplace – but this was exactly what they found had happened when the result was unveiled (pictured)
The characterful feature had been covered by wood to make it a plain, smooth white
The presenter seemed momentarily relieved, asking, ‘You do?’, before Pam confirmed: ‘I really do.’
In a damning comment, John said: ‘It’s different’, as his wife clutched for something else good to say too: ‘And the furniture needed slip covers.’
But everything began to deteriorate as John shook his head disapprovingly, while Paige asked: ‘The big question is what do you think about the fireplace?’
The couple gave a calm but shockingly telling response, with Pam opening: ‘You guys are going to be fixing that in a little bit. So…’
John followed up: ‘Yeah, I just see a lot of firewood.’
As Paige looked crestfallen at their disappointment, Pam became overcome with emotion, saying twice quietly: ‘I’m going to have to leave the room.’
She was then heard off camera sobbing, as her husband remarked to Paige: ‘Boy, she’s not happy, she’s really not happy.’
The presenter tried to be positive: ‘Is there anything you can see in the room to fix certain elements of it to make it better for the two of you?’
The couple gave a calm but shockingly telling response, with Pam opening: ‘You guys are going to be fixing that in a little bit. So…’
She was then heard off camera sobbing, as her husband remarked to Paige: ‘Boy, she’s not happy, she’s really not happy’
But John struggled to answer her question: ‘I don’t even know where to start.
‘I mean, I see one piece of furniture that looks remotely like the way I left it. And the rest of it is just so not us.’
Despite the extremely disheartening transformation, he found a positive way to end the chat as the presenter asked if he had enjoyed the filming experience.
‘It was wonderful’, he said: ‘I loved it.
‘These two minutes I would go through again just for the experience, yeah, but it’s really too bad.’
Paige concluded: ‘Let’s go comfort Pam, shall we?’
