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  1. Walter the Wallpaperer has just told Sarah that he owes him double if they win. Bet the producers put him up to that.

  2. How Amazing! exclaims Shaynna as she enters the room. Absoultely beautiful adds Neale confessing that his favourite colour combination is midnight blue. Darren having consulted a thesaurus adds the room is “luscious”.
    Shaynna notes that the hydronic heating is a value add. (Now how is it they could afford that????? Plus commission custom stained glass?? They played the game well.)

    9.5 9.5 9.5 28.5

    • Don’t get those small lights protruding from the ceiling (look like lights to me). The bedhead can barely be seen since it blends into the wallpaper and it also looks small. Oversized bedhead would have been nicer.

  3. The judges feel it is a cosy room. They like the colour palette of grey blue and white. Darren states that they have employed is favourite trick of using a wardrobe flate pack when running low on cash. Shaynna and Neale cut to the chase. The room has a “Raiders of the Lost Ark” feel as the wallpaper and flatpack enclose the room. They need to get rid of the wallpaper.
    8.5 8 8.5 25

  4. The judges are always wowed by an ensuite. The room is a major sucess. It is absolutely amazingly opulent. The second hand wardrobe is described as cute. It is a very sexy space. #knockeditoutofthepark
    Course they were going to win. The producers can’t believe the gift that keeps giving is Jason (and a busted water main. Guess they don’t have Dial Before you Dig in VIC).

    10 10 10 30

    • Up there with the ugliest wallpaper ever. And it is amazing how one colour (dusky pink) and come into fashion and become drab and boring within the space of a single tv show.

      • I don’t generally like flowery wallpaper but didn’t mind this one that much although I would probably consider removing it or painting over it. It was better than CH’s wallpaper.

      • Whoever makes those fluffy pink cushions must be laughing all the way to the bank. They’ve been holding on to their stock since the 70s and it’s suddenly on trend again.

    • I just saw via facebook the pink basin is from Matt & Kim’s company. I quite like the effect, however I hate, with a passion, huuuuge flat vanity basins. They are so impractical if you want to plug the drain and use it as a water bowl.

  5. The judges struggle to enumerate the virtues of this room but to say the boys continue to find their inner hygge.

    9.5 9 9.5 28

    • Don’t like the TV coming down from the ceiling. I don’t think it would be comfortable watching that TV from that high location.

  6. Shaynna describes the room as glamourous, sophisticated and relaxed. Their room would appeal to the widest demographic.
    Darren observes their room is full of individual elements that seem counter intuitive but work well together. He loves the colour pallette of egg yolk and coral.

    10 10 10 30 (The prize is not shared but the get $10k each)

  7. Contrary to popular opinions, I do not mind R&G. And I loved their room tonight.

    J&S annoy me a lot. Unlike Ronny (who is a douchebag), Jason is an asshole. So is Clint. They are beyond greedy. As far as I can remember, it was Ronnie who helped out Jason with plasterboards and his plasterer. Oh well, R&G weren’t nice, but the behaviour the other two couples showing is vile.
    I had a peek at the FB site, so much hatred towards R&G… Wow.

    • RG caused their own issues with the other teams. They are arrogant and self-centered for the most part but Ronnie did help Jason out and RG along with the other teams agreed to let JS sit out the challenge. Has Jason ever helped anyone? Jason is definitely an a$$hole and Clint is following suit. Then there is Hannah who found the photos of the kid’s bedroom which matched Georgia’s and Clint sends those out to other contestants.
      Interesting that RG agree to give JS and CH $7500 and then Mitre 10 steps in with the $7500 vouchers.
      This is a sad season with too much drama and some really vile teams.

      • Ronnie’s biggest problem was he did not realise he would need to be mindful of the social game. RG were probably cast for their lack of self-awareness. They haven’t sabotage other teams like JS have. They should have let JE start only because JE had Dave Franklin. Any other landscaper they could get away with the stand they took.

    • There is a LOT of hate on FB for RG. We think it may be people only watch once a week. If they watched during the week, it was not only RG who objected to JE starting early but HC as well. HC just let RG be the fall guy.

      • But it was Georgia who was pursuing that aggressive stance in week one about how it’s a competition and they’re not there to make friends – all that was asked of them then was to approve one team planning early. It was a show from her and her husband so her foul language last night about “pulling it out of her F&&&ing arse” was over the top again.
        I’d ask for 20K

    • I think RG are clever in terms the rooms they have designed and not too many built in features that will be hard to change. And they obviously learnt very quickly it was important to keep Keith and Dan onside (I don’t understand why more couples don’t realise this) – shame they didn’t think about the other contestants too.
      As everyone has said their mistake was properly thinking through the consequences of saying no to JE, when they wanted to start their back yard planning. What I will never understand about that whole debacle is why none of the other teams said – “yeah we will let you start as long as we can too…”
      Ronnie is right thou – Jason and Sarah never do anything on the Monday anyways…
      Also they have clearly not heard of “dial before you dig”!
      And about all else, those yards look tiny and sunless, why they are wasting space and money on a pool, I’ll never know. Plus, they can be alot of upkeep, I would venture to suggest, in some situations they would turn people off a property, rather then be a selling point.

  8. Eeyore Sarah, along with horrid husband, have certainly turned things around. What a cocky, disdainful pair they have become. Hannah and Clint are riding on Jason’s coat tails and want in for the money too. Clint finally squeaks up! Mighty mouse did however, omit to tell Georgia that it was he who sent the Pinterest photo to horrid Jason. Oh, I hope Ronnie doesn’t call on Jason as his emergency plumber now that his water pipe has burst. Imagine the call out fee, I mean fine, from Jason for that!

  9. Mighty Mouse pipes up and wants his money from Ronnie paid into his account in the morning, and Scotty assures him it will be there. Doesn’t Elyse and Josh still owe R & G $8,500 from Week 1, yet Scotty hasn’t done a thing about that?

  10. C & H originally came off as a sweet couple although the “bulbs” within don’t shine that bright BUT they are very shady and two faced.

  11. Once again this show is all about the couples fighting instead of the renovations. Boring.
    And that dusky pink will date very quickly.
    Thanks for the recaps and screenshots of the rooms Maz.

  12. Ten Tonne Tessa didn’t make her long awaited debut. Instead Ronnie owes Clint $7500 + 6hrs x $500 = $10,500 and Jason $7500 + $2500 + 6hrs x $500 =$13,000. Expect that total to rise. About 75% of the episode was Jason playing at ‘gansta’ fanning imaginary cash. He even wanted $500 off Wombat for using “his” auger.

    Hannah’s true colours are shining through. She moans that she feels guilty about taking free money and offers Georgia a free cookie scabbed from the onsite McCafe.

    No-one has heard of Dial Before you Dig.

    Next season, if there is a couple like JS, they should be kicked off.

  13. I fast forwarded through 30 mins of Jason being aggro and 10 minutes of Ronnie digging a hole to bury him in. And another 10 minutes’ worth of them flashing up the graphic showing how the crane manouvers will work

    • Was a crap episode. And I’m wondering when the stairs were done. Or did I ffwd through that on another crap episode?

      • We wondered that too. We think they were started prior to master bedroom week and finished during hallway week.

  14. J&S are barely tolerable, however I am still amazed by Georgia expecting to get what she wants at huge cost to the other teams and it cost her nothing. And I don’t mean just moula. If it was me, and I wasn’t skint, I might just say no deal at all.

  15. Can someone actually explain to me what Ronnie and Georgia did to Jason and Sarah to make Jason so self-righteous and deplorable?

    He’s an extremely confrontational, aggressive man. I did read this earlier on from someone on T/TV, and I do also believe both he and Sarah have played the game of being victims and it’s worked for them with all the help and sympathy they gained. Academy Award winning performances there.

    I loved Ronnie’s response to Clint when Clint showed up in the backyard, and Ronnie responded to Clint that he wasn’t getting any more money. Classic.
    R & G’s pool looks like a fish breeding pool. The yards are way too small for any pool in my opinion. It also looks like very little natural light will shine down, due to the tall buildings and fences that have been erected. Jason plans are for a tree – good luck with that growing at all.

    When looking on the internet notice they “view” from the main parents retreat? Nice to see what all your neighbours are doing, along with viewing the birds on the rooves.

    • RG did nothing to SJ. Jason is just an opportunist. We saw that when he tried to get G’s child’s bedroom disqualified for plagiarism and again in kitchen week when he tried to wrest the win off JE.

      The beef is between JE & RG which JE is started.

      Ronnie did ask a pertinent question last night of Jason, ‘Where are you getting the money from?’

  16. The Block is a competition but it’s a reno competition and not a competition to see who can lie the most or extort the most money from other teams. This has become the Jason show and it’s barely watchable especially since I fast forward every time he is on screen and that’s most of the show. Too bad this vile, conniving team was not kicked off the block.

    Also shouldn’t the foremen be supervising/managing these pools going in and shouldn’t the crane and pool company be responsible for getting the pool there at the promised time. How much of this has been controlled by the producers/powers that be to create more drama?
    When it comes down to it the pool idea is stupid. These backyards are too small for decent pools. The overall layout of these homes is strange and they are too close together. Spend millions of dollars to be able to easily look into your neighbors’ yards or windows…not worth it.

    • Such a pity to have turned such lovely period homes into monstrosities. They remind me of the little house in Up which is eventually surrounded and overshadowed by everything around it. Hard to believe anyone will pay more that one million for them.

    • Re the time frames – set deadlines and taking responsibilities for times and then ignoring them is accepted practice in building. Almost nothing happens to schedule, and it is an unwise renovator who expects it and doesn’t have a plan B. It shouldn’t be like that, but it is a massive collusion that all time-frames are flexible. It is the main reason that anyone should expect their renovation to take twice as long as they think.

      In defence of the industry, many, many clients act as if they are the only client on the books, and that their job will jump to the top of the list as soon as they book it. And, it is very easy for delays to snowball once a single hiccup occurs. Imagine the people who had that crane booked the day after Ronnie – what will they do?

      One of the unrealistic aspects of the Block is that they often get fast-track service not available in real life. Working for a structural engineer, I always laugh at how they manage to get structural changes through in seemingly hours – of course, they are planned weeks ahead and the rest is all for show.

  17. Ten Tonne Tessie arrives. About 40min advertorial featuring RACV, Optus/NBN follows. Jason tries to sabotage JG’s outdoor shower.

    The producers organise the annual Girls’ spa trip via Sarah. Of course, Georgia says no.

    It is then changes to the Inge and Dave show. The advantage this affords SW is it appears that their craning costs will be covered by “Scotty”.

  18. Jason is being a dick again, making calls and seeing Dan, trying to get R&G is trouble over a shower that turns out to be legal. Go do some work, Jason!

  19. The producers probably set up the spa date for the 4 girls. Can’t believe that Sarah would actually think Georgia would want to spend a day with any of them especially her & Hannah.
    Jason has nothing better to do than spy on RG. Really hope that he gets the least amount of profit in the auction but the house actually looks nice based on the realtor’s photos.

      • It’s also a plus that their house is on an end. I hope that they don’t win because they are total a$$holes but I think you might be right Maz. I still don’t get why RG chose #3 except that it came with the safe but I don’t think it was the best choice.

  20. That outdoor heater Sarah purchased was beyond ugly and now that they have the extra $$ instead of budgeting she throws away $$$$$$ on it. That money could have been better used for other things.

    • I am with you on that. I like it the best. Plus most of the features are not built-in and can easily be exchanged. I know most people really hate on RG, but they created a really nice space. Second to that is JE. And it pains me to say, third SJ -.-. And I fear those two assholes will win. They were playing the game perfectly. Pretending to be the victims, but backstabbing the competition all along.

  21. Every night J&S get harder to watch. Don’t they make you want to hurl something through the TV screen? He is so, so, so lazy! Instead of running around pretending to throw money around, why didn’t he go and fix some defects? Don’t get me wrong, not really fan of R&G but Ronny is anything but lazy. You don’t get to flip 10 houses through laziness.
    Agree with above comments about house position though. Stuck in the middle would not be my choice no matter how good the property is inside. I hope J&E win.

  22. So let me get this right – 3 cars each house (possibly) x 5 homes = 15 garaged cars. All coming and going all times of the day and night. Is the only access coming in and going out going to be those miniscule , one way only drive ways running past JEs home and SJs home?? How can emergency vehicles, ie. a fire truck get through if need be?
    Hannah is delusional if she really can’t see what she has done to Georgia. There she was talking to the camera and acting oblivious, with the no flies on me attitude. I loved Shelley’s comments to her when she did the walk-around.

    Does anyone have any theories about the judges comments we saw in the ad for judgement day? They were in S&Js backyard it seems when they mentioned about rules being rules.

  23. So Sarah states she is relieved there’s no pool in their yard. Fair enough actually. However her thinking is that more people will gather on a cold Melbourne night outside to stand and sit around, and if you are lucky you will sit under, and be warmed by, their $5000, heated, XL glorified desk lamp?!! I’d sure rather be inside the warm cosy home with it’s fire and hydronic heating anyway. What a waste if money.

    • I’m tired of JS stating that they don’t have any $$ and yet the fool spends $5000 on that ugly outdoor heater and seems to forget that they extorted $$$$ from RG. Almost half of that money was wasted on the heater. Are JS putting in a bbq or just the smoker? The smoker is another waste of money.

  24. Did Channel 9 really just show a whole week of TV devoted purely to cranes, trucks and people getting aggro over money? I obviously missed the episode where they made the cubbies. I appreciated Inga’s honesty: “Oh my god; this is terrible.” I think S&J could benefit from not having a pool – having one eliminates half your buyers’ market. Bit different if it was a big block.

    • They made the cubbies several weeks ago. Aren’t they ugly? Why would they make it mandatory for them to put those horrible things in the backyard. Just donate them to a child care centre although the centres probably won’t want them.
      JS’s living room artwork would go well with the cubbie. They should move it there, return the overpriced outdoor heater and purchase some decent artwork.

  25. Where did the concept of high-rise pools come from? And why don’t they seem to have fences (note that they might have by reveal). If I wanted a pool in one of these properties, it would be one like JE’s – an attractive plunge pool that doesn’t dominate the backyard. The other two pools are just plain weird.

    • The above ground/high rise was probably viewed as a better idea as ‘noone’ has ‘dug, framed, poured, cured, tiled’ a pool in a week. Ever. As per Scott Camm. But we have another ‘Block first’ a la J&E. And not forgetting… Dave Franklin.

  26. R&G has stated that their pool is 180 cm (5 ft 9″) deep, all around. What happens if you can’t swim (to the step); drown?

  27. I won a tour of The Block houses via RACV, it was on last night and I took mum along with me. We toured with Greville Pabst (buyers advocate who has been on this and past seasons) he introduced himself at the start and told us to give him our thoughts at the end so we could give him feedback to pass on to potential buyers. A rep from RACV talked a little (one of the reasons they are a sponsor is because they are trying to move into more of the home insurance / home emergency assistance type of thing so sponsoring The Block is good for that.) Then were left on our own to roam through the houses one by one (thou we had to enter each house via the back garage because, they can’t keep the front doors open (there are lots of people going past in the street for a sticky beak!).

    I really liked JE house. Very clever changing the orientation of the island bench in the kitchen – it definitely flows better that way. The bedrooms actually look a lot bigger in real life. Whatever they did to make the pantry bigger paid off as well. The kids room with the balcony thing, I still don’t like, the balcony area is tiny! I know everyone dissed them for not having a proper wall / door on the master, but there were about 20 or so of us wandering around the house and I really wasn’t aware of lots of noise coming from downstairs. Thou, we weren’t screaming and shouting as we went and they didn’t have the tv blaring or music playing or anything. The pool looks tiny and for all the effort is a waste of space. What they have done well inside the house is keeping it very consistent, using the same finishes and styling throughout the house.

    Next was SW – I like all the colourful artwork they have used – and by using the same artist through out, it keeps it consistent. They completely overhauled the living / dining and it looks sooo much better. They also fixed the colouring / textures in the kitchen which look better too. It is quite obvious that it was two guys that completed the house but it was actually nicer that way – the other houses were almost too feminine! However they are lacking storage – the ensuite in the first bedroom they did is massive and a waste of space, and there is no door on it, you wake up and are staring into the shower! And they really haven’t used the space in for their study well at all. The shelving, they did use looks great, but when you think of this against the rest of the house, it wasn’t done well It was at this point I really started to notice how much the couples get caught up in designing to please the judges, rather than the end buyer… The container pool takes up a lot of room in the backyard and makes a lot of noise too, and they have a few other built in structures which make their yard look small.

    RG house, felt very monohrome, and a little dark – there is now some artwork on the blank wall in the kitchen which looks good. But they have gone for a black and white styling. The “anything but room” does look very dark. The childrens room looks good and is a good size and it wouldn’t take too much to change it for an older child. Their kitchen looks very dark and in the living area, the wall area above the fireplace looks like it needs something on it. The wardrobe in the most recent bedroom that the judges raved about – looks tiny! Tessie takes up a lot of room in their back yard, it is also very deep but not actually that big, and isn’t that well fenced off, you would really have to watch young kids around it. RG also put up other walls and such in their backyard, and didn’t really make good use of the space.

    On to HC – this house looks like it might be wider than the others – again I know I dissed the “extra” hallway a couple of weeks ago but the rooms they took the space from in order to do it, don’t really need the extra space. Their redo bathroom looks great. By now, it was also obvious that the couples favour the shops they get the vouchers from – multiple times we saw the same bedside tables or very similar furniture and light fittings in each of the houses. Being the first house we saw without a pool (only a spa) you could really see how much space was wasted by putting the pool in (Greville said many people have commented on this – he suspects the pools might actually be a disadvantage to those that have put them in – especially as you can compare with and without pool – if they were being sold standalone, maybe not). Thou HC did put a huge deck around the spa, so they didn’t really use the space well. This house was also by far the most inconsistent with regard to finishes… All different tapware and built-in cupboards and all sorts throughout the house.

    We finished in SJ house, and I begrudgingly say I did like it. There “anything but room” was probably the best use of space, and the styling in the whole house isn’t too over the top. The heater things they have put in are an eyesore – Sarah really mustn’t like the cold – we were there on a cool Melbourne night and the house wasn’t cold at all (the heaters weren’t on). Of course, it wasn’t exactly the middle of winter but I’m sure the aircon / heater system they have in would suffice. The jack and jill bathroom was also a good idea. The diagonal tiles in their mastersuite bathroom not only just look bad generally as in I don’t like them as a design choice but they are in such bad shape, some are scratched / chipped and I would almost say need to be pulled up and re-tiled.

    My overall thoughts are – if there was ever anything left in my mind about
    considering purchasing a The Block, properly – it is definitely all gone now!! Structurally the houses seemed ok (although the hallway in SW house felt a bit uneven) however the finishes don’t look fabulous, marks on walls, tiles that have seen better days, stains on carpets – the houses looked well worn / lived in before they have even been sold. I’m not sure how many groups have gone though by now – Greville said we were the 4th or 5th group he had taken through (but I assume there are others that go too) – but I would hate to see what the houses look like after the public open for inspection. A rep from Ch9 was there too and they did say they cover all the flooring and rope a lot of areas off… For the $2m+ price tag, I would want it looking pretty schmick – however you do get some pretty nice furniture as well.
    You can also see where the couples get caught out trying to please the judges and not thinking of the practicalities of everyday living – we kept looking for broom cupboards, bin cupboards, powerpoints, and just general storage options. Also I know I and others have commented on the skylights – I noticed in at least one house – they can be covered.
    I would also agree with other comments of people who have seen the houses in real life, the living areas don’t seem adequate for the size of the houses. The backyards, don’t look as small as what I thought they would even with the pools, thou I actually think SJ will benefit from not having one – we asked Greville about the pools and if they would add value, he actually suggested that as the properties usually end up as rentals – it might actually lose value, because they can be expensive to maintain. I really liked the studios, most were well thought out. JE and SJ put a wall up dividing the space – not sure how this will look on TV but they actually make the space look smaller. Everyone except RG set them up as bedroom / sitting area (and most included a desk / study area as well). RG have theirs as a study and lounge area only BUT they all have ensuites and wardrobes, so stick a bed up there and its fine. There were comments about renting those spaces out as Airbnbs but they don’t having kitchens – but stick a kettle and microwave up there and I guess its just like a hotel room.
    I know what was a long post I wouldn’t blame you if you clicked out ages ago but if you have an questions about something I haven’t covered – let me know ☺

    • Thanks for the the recap. Disappointing to hear about the finishes. There doesn’t appear to be a redo week this year(?).

      Greville sentiments regarding the pools seems to echo those of Alice in her weekly column. So again SJ are ahead (again).

      What about the space between the houses. How is the privacy? (Last month we went to our local Homeworld and the houses were orientated such that you could look into the neighbours’ bathroom from the living room).

      Sounds like there was no money left for a kitchenette and RG really suffered from the access fiasco.

      Who do you think will win now you have seen the houses in the flesh?

    • It looks like there is a redo week.
      HC the black flat pack wardrobe from the most recent bedroom has changed to white built ins, their living / dining is different as well (different lounge suite, dining table and chairs).
      SW living / dining, completey changed and I think masterbedroom restyled, they also changed some of the cabnitary in the kitchen.
      SJ new lounge suite in the living room and I’m not sure what else.
      JE and RG no major changes that I could see but It could be the backyard or studio. Also it was difficult to remember what had been revealed 6 weeks ago and they all have similar styles they kinda blended into one after a while!

      All the houses do appear very close together. I never noticed privacy being an issue in the front part of the houses, ie seeing into each other’s bathrooms or anything but you would definitely be able to hear the neighbours in the backyard. And from the mastersuites you could see down into your own backyard but not really into the neighbours. I don’t know the technical term but outside the big master windows that look to the back yard is a bit of a ledge and walls on each side that kinda block the view into the neighbours yard.

      All of the teams should have saved pool money for studio kitchenettes! The studio RG have created is more of a home office / sitting area rather than a guest room like the others have. I actually think RG house might be the smallest width wise so for their studio space not having a bed, does make sense. They must have really been struggling for cash as they only have a two seater couch up there, it could do with a 3 seater.

      I’m from the complete opposite side of town to the houses so really don’t know the area, but I think if JE get lucky in the auction order I can’t see them not winning. Probably the most neutral styling and the finishes were the best.
      SJ and RG next and then HC will struggle it’s a bit mismatch, SW have a lot of wasted space.

      Also they confirmed that the next The Block is at The Gatwick and filming starts in January.

    • Thanks for posting all of this Erin. Must have been fun seeing the homes up close. It’s really too bad about the finishes. Hopefully they will clean everything up and make them close to perfect before the auction. When I looked at the photos of the homes online the one that I liked the least was CH’s.

    • thanks Erin – such a great perspective. To me these houses are very unusual and huge. I wondered what it would be like in real life.
      I would love to know how those apartments in previous years held up as well. I always thought that the strata would be prohibitive given the common areas needing upkeep.

      thanks again for taking the time to write the post – I enjoyed reading it and it fed my curiosity.

    • You are welcome all.
      It was fun – it was a bit weird seeing it all in “real life” after only watching on TV. I’m not that big a fan that i would wait for hours on the public open for inspections but winning a VIP was great (thou i probably would have preferred the $10k major prize instead!!)
      I’ve heard RG are getting new grass in the backyard and other things fixed up. So i assume that would be the same for all the couples.
      Agree, the bedroom areas aren’t really in proportion to the living areas (and the “anything but” rooms aren’t really designed for everyday use). But I guess that is the disadvantage to building one room at a time like they do, and as I mentioned you can see where they get caught out trying to please the judges, rather than thinking of the end buyer / full vision of the house.
      Yes, it would be interesting to see what some of the previous seasons properties look like now. And how well they have held up.
      The one they did that had a pool in the basement wouldn’t be cheap thats for sure!
      Luckily this season, from what i can tell the common areas are just the drive ways up the side and around the back of the properties. So no too much upkeep.

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