Just days into this year’s Block and the contestants already have had a window into the stress and pressure of trying to turn a bombsite into a decorator’s dream house.
While some, like Tash and Jimmy and Jade and Daniel, rose to the challenge with a well-organised plan of attack, others like father and daughter duo, Harry and Tash and husband and wife Sarah and George, had a baptism of fire.
MISSED EPISODE 1? Catch up with our recap
With the judges scores in on the beach box challenge, the contestants were finally able to find out the addresses they’d be calling home (and torturous toil) for the next few months.
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Jimmy and Tam’s slice of the Sunshine Coast won over the judges.
Jimmy and Tam wowed the judges with their styling and workmanship and got the first pick of properties; House 5, a 1950s home which is at the far end of the site.
Daniel and Jade chose next, securing House 3, which was originally built in the 1930s.
With their top pick now occupied by Jimmy and Tam, Jasmin and Luke swooped on House 4 instead, which shattered the dreams of George and Sarah who believed the 1910 property was destined for them.
Poor George and Sarah instead took on House 2, a 1940s period home.
They had thought House 4 had their name all over it — literally. When they spotted an old newspaper article, which mentioned the George Hotel, on the home’s floorboards they believed it was an omen. It seems fate, and some bad decisions on the beach box challenge, had other plans, leaving Sarah in tears… again.
Sarah and George’s glorified cell block cost them the house they thought they were fated to have.
Harry and daughter Tash drew on their Greek heritage with their blue and white beach box, but it didn’t bring them any blue ribbons.
Their dodgy workmanship left them the last pick of the daym but the pair had the last laugh, however, as the 1920s house that nobody else wanted (House 1) was in fact their first choice.
The contestants didn’t get too long to celebrate (or bemoan) their property picks because it was time to get down to the business of clearing out the debris to begin work on the guest bedroom.
Host Scott Cam also advised the shell-shocked contestants that this year they would be given a weekly budget as opposed to a huge lump sum at the start of the project to spend at their whim.
Jimmy and Tam won the 1950s House No. 5.
Clearly the producers are eager to avoid a repeat of last year when the contestants overspent and were left with next to nothing in the kitty to finish the final rooms.
Within minutes of opening the front door on their new home, a flabbergasted Harry and Tash were expected to make major decisions about their bedroom floorplan as the cabinet-makers from Kinsman arrived to take measurements for the built-in wardrobes.
“We had five minutes to decide where our wardrobes will go and the style of them without having had any time to make a plan,” a stunned Tash explained.
“Big decisions, first thing Monday morning having not even had time to stand in the room and get a feel for the room.”
Tash and Harry discover they have a window where they thought they had a wall.
Soon Tash is spiralling into tears because, after a quick Google investigation into 1920s homes, she is overwhelmed and fearful about how to incorporate the period features into a modern aesthetic.
Worst of all, she fears that she may have to resort to using stained glass windows in the renovation. Heaven forbid!
Speaking of windows, the non-stained-glass variety shattered Tash’s guest bedroom lay-out. Realising she hadn’t read her plans properly and not accounted for an extra window in her floorplan, she was forced to rearrange everything she achieved on day one, including those pesky early morning wardrobes.
Unfortunately, despite a barrage of calls to Kinsman accommodating the unseen window would now mean her wardrobe doors would collide with the door to the bedroom itself unless she made them significantly smaller. Tash was devastated and frustrated by her dad with his “she’ll be right” attitude. Harry was worried whether The Block would take a toll on his little girl’s mental health.
Coming last didn’t stop Harry and Tash getting the 1920s House No 1 they wanted.
George and Sarah also fell at the first hurdle, realising they’d put the wrong insulation batts in their ceiling and would need to redo the whole thing, putting them behind on the job yet again.
Next door, a more organised Jade, had already cleared a room to use as her control centre for the project, complete with a desk and inspirational architectural drawings posted on the walls.
More than $1 million in debt after drought and bushfire ravaged their farming property Jade and Daniel are throwing everything they have at this competition.
They tearfully revealed they have another motivation for going on The Block. Their youngest daughter suffers from a rare disorder that has required a lot of costly intervention to help her survive and thrive. They hope The Block will bring them more financial security to support her and enjoy time together as a family.
Second place getters Daniel and Jade chose the 1930s House No 3.
It was full steam ahead at House 5 too.
Fresh from their beach box victory, Tash and Jimmy believed they have come up with another winning move for their Palm Springs-inspired guest bedroom that involves hiding the entrance to the ensuite behind a wardrobe door.
It’s not exactly a gateway to Narnia, but their bathroom inside the wardrobe is sure to impress storage loving judge Shaynna Blaze (as long as it doesn’t come at the expense of hanging space).
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Episode 1 recap: The tears started early on The Block 2020
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