As seen on TV
Not a set steak knives, thigh-burner or tub of Tarn Off; but two tradie-ladies shaking things up in the land of upholstery.
My partner-in-grime Kerri from Antiquate and I have been holding our tongues impatiently after filming on-set for The Block 2020 earlier in the year (pre-masks, remember those days!). After the wheels of planning, filming, post-production, cutting, slicing & dicing (or whatever they call it in showbiz), the final “upholstery” challenge has finally been aired.
Our Interwoven Expression
Wedged in between our collaboration chairs “Interwoven Expression”, fittingly Kerri & I collaborated once again to help guide the BlockHeads to victory. I have to give Kerri a major call-out for her vision & for pitching the challenge to Channel 9, inviting me along to lend my skills, and also The Block production team for listening, co-ordinating & enabling the vision.
The set-up
The calm before the storm with a dash of humble marketing.
Who would have thought my warehouse of orphaned chairs would come in handy for some Channel 9 props dangling from the roof. The three week lead up to filming was an absolute whirlwind; planning the details of the challenge, preparing the tools & supplies, stripping the props, liaising with the team to source the chairs & condensing the course notes (might have been a few steps strategically obscured). Kerri & I were burning the midnight oil.
Bossy boots (me, not Shelley)
I’m sure my boys can relate to picture above, not so much Shelley looking gorgeous up front, but me behind keeping everyone in-check. Trust me, I’m flush with experience in this department. Jimmy & Tam I must admit, took it in their stride. Smashing it.
Let’s do this Jimmy!
My “Chair Amnesty” Upholstery Courses works through this entire process; not a staple gun in sight, all traditional techniques, tacks & hammers baby. Stripping the chair to frame, rebuilding & reupholstering over three days; 18 hours. Now just imagine, condense this into 5 hours, 5 couple, 5 chairs & add a mix of blaring production lights, cameras & a buzz of distractions. Kerri & I were on our feet all day, minds switched to over-drive - multi-tasking ninjas, adrenaline pulsating, adapting techniques, saving disasters & guiding as best we could with non-negotiable deadlines.
Eclectic Boogaloo & Antiquate
What can I say, the whole experience was such an eye-opener to the world of reality TV. Seeing first hand, the massive scale, coordination & teamwork required for all the pieces to come together for just a single episode of television. It was a privilege to have been a cog in the machine, even if just for a couple of weeks.
And one last call-out, a final kudos to the 2020 contestants Harry & Tash, Sarah & George, Daniel & Jade, Luke & Jasmin and Jimmy & Tam for rising to the challenge, I doff my hard-hat to you for smashing through this week after week.
I need a G&T.