Teen Mom Chelsea DeBoer of ‘Down Home Fab’ Commits a Design Fail That’ll Make You Cringe—Take a Look
HGTV
Former “Teen Mom” star Chelsea DeBoer has been glamming up homes across Sioux Falls, SD, on her new show, “Down Home Fab,” and the results are, well, very her.
“I like cowhides, painting things black,” she says of her signature aesthetic.
While this style might work fine on many of the ranch-style homes in her hometown, we are seriously worried in the latest episode, when she’s tasked with making over a traditional Craftsman home.
In “Cozy Craftsman,” she and her husband, Cole, agree to remodel a 1920s house for clients Danny and Kansas. The couple and their eight children are trusting the DeBoers with an $80,000 budget, and you can’t help but be a little nervous for them when Cole confesses, “This is our first Craftsman-style home.”
“Craftsman-style homes were the bomb in the earlier 1900s,” explains Chelsea. “It’s all about built-in character, like bookshelves and window seating and extensive woodwork.”
OK, so at least Chelsea knows something about Craftsmans—but is it enough? Check out what she does to the house (including one fail that’s hard to miss) and decide for yourself whether these makeover moves are ones to love or leave behind.
Her latest style mashup: Cozy Craftsman
Chelsea DeBoer’s “cozy Craftsman” styleHGTV
Since Chelsea is all about combining different styles, or making old ones new again, she’s eager to try her hand at making this approach work for Kansas and Danny.
“I’m going to call my design for Danny and Kansas’ house the ‘Cozy Craftsman,'” explains Chelsea. “Cozy Craftsman is all about highlighting those original Craftsman elements to their home, but then adding in some warmth and updated elements to bring in that cozy feeling.”
While this sentiment makes sense—every old style needs a new twist now and then—not all mashups end up a good mix, so the devil’s in the details of whether this new design combo pans out.
Demolish whatever’s not original to the house
Craftsman-style woodworkHGTV
When they walk into the living room and see it awkwardly divided by wood columns, the question is whether or not to demolish them.
“One thing I did notice about the house is the columns behind you,” says Cole. “It does feel like they cut the space in two. Are you guys attached to the columns or can you live without them?”
“We can live without them,” says Danny. “They’re not original. I don’t know when they added them, but it’s newer wood.”
Phew! They can go.
“Everything that we’re taking out is not original to the house,” says Chelsea.
Dark surfaces show dirt
Chelsea and Cole DeBoer discuss flooring samples.HGTV
Chelsea thinks that luxury vinyl flooring is the way to go because it’s waterproof, budget-friendly, and easy to clean and maintain.
“This is a very high-traffic area,” she tells Cole as they survey samples. “I got some color options, and I can already see a couple that I’m not vibing with. The dark one is already showing all the dirt.”
Let the record show that this is the first time we recall seeing her rule out something black! But she’s absolutely right. Dark floors show every speck of dust, every dog hair, every little thing eight kids might drop and forget to pick up.
While Chelsea abstains from dark floors, she can’t help but add black countertops in the kitchen. Won’t these counters show every crumb? Perhaps, but at least they’re easier to keep clean than the floor.
Kitchen with light flooring and black countertopsHGTV
Add benches to maximize seating
Bench seating in the dining roomHGTV
The dining room provides a challenge because a table that seats 10 is needed, but it shouldn’t take up all the space in the room.
“We need something where we can maximize seating,” notes Chelsea. “Maybe a bench? Because that way you can fit as many booties as you can fit on the bench.”
They have the table custom-made, along with a bench that runs along one side. There’s room for two people at each end of the table. On the other side of the table, they put chairs with no arms—another way to fit in more seating.
Repurpose a wood door as a fold-up desk
This repurposed door flips up to make a desktop.HGTV
This is one of Cole’s better ideas. He’s closed off one door to a closet under the staircase (there’s an additional one in the kitchen) and saved that door since it’s made of sturdy oak.
“Remember this tiny door that was here before we filled it in?” he asks Chelsea. “Well, instead of getting rid of it, I thought it would be cool to incorporate it, making it a flip-up desktop that would fold back into the wall, so that way they can use it for homeschooling and whatever else.”
Their clients’ eight kids are being homeschooled in the house, so Chelsea is excited about this idea. “Anytime they can have some more counter space, I think, is going to be really cool,” she says.
But does midcentury modern wallpaper match this Craftsman house?
Midcentury modern wallpaperHGTV
“Since it’s a Craftsman home, why not bring in some wallpaper,” Chelsea says, “because back in the day, people used to put up a lot of patterned wallpaper. I want to put in some wallpaper that’s kind of reminiscent of the ’20s and ’30s.”
That seems like a good idea, until she shows Cole a swatch of the wallpaper she’s selected. The star pattern is clearly not from the ’20s or ’30s at all; it’s glaringly midcentury modern.
Still, this design fail doesn’t seem to faze Chelsea one bit.
“This is a room that you see first thing when you walk in the front door, so I wanted to do something bold,” she explains.
Dining roomHGTV
How does Chelsea DeBoer’s latest makeover turn out?
All in all, despite the weird wallpaper choice, this home’s new design is much better than the old. Danny and Kansas are impressed.
“It’s inspiring,” says Danny.
“It just feels bigger,” says Kansas.
Chelsea is thrilled, saying she digs creating an eye-catching space for this family to enjoy.
“So much is going to happen here for you guys and so many memories will be made here,” she says, “and it just is really incredible to be part of that.”
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