I can see a lot of things that I'd do, like the gray stripes in the fifth photo. And I love the gray cabinets in the kitchen. And overall, I'm sure that people are able to actually live in these places as long as they could keep them clean. And the first photo's stairs make me reconsider carpeting all of the stairs (I like the idea of a runner).

I'm sorry, but between the pictures here and what was in the Washington Post last week, I think the whole house is design fail. My mom even made a point of saving the Local Living section for me so we could be horrified together. And the amount of money wasted making it that ugly (like $60,000 <--- not a typo on that horrid lucite table for example) should qualify as a crime.

What is that style of ottoman called? Where might I find one?

I think it's pretty awful, too. The only room that works for me at all is the "teenagers' lounge." It looks like a place teens might actually lounge. But then you learn that the curtain fabric costs $844/yard.

That kitchen (shown more fully in the Washington Post) feels so joyless. Who would want to cook in there? And the little boy's room is the grimmest thing imaginable. Was it designed for a zombie boy?

I LOVE LOVE the little boys room! I've seen that tree bookcase before but where did they get that bed? The striped legs are so cute! *SIGH* it's probably "custom", but I can dream. I love how it goes with the striped walls!

@PhoebeK -- having seen it in person, I have to take issue with your description of the kitchen as joyless and the boys room as grim. I'm sorry that I wasn't able to convey it through my photos for you because they were two of the most luminous, refreshing, and peaceful spots in the house. I wanted to linger in both forever. Having 3 kids of my own, I'm surprised at how often I find them wanting to be in the more calm spaces of our house. Not all children need neon or bright primary colors all over the walls to be happy. I know my kids love bright colors in their own artwork, but they also like to regroup in peaceful spaces. Our craftroom is pretty neutral and some of their coolest artwork is created right their. In design, so much comes down to personal taste, but I wouldn't be so quick to label something as "designed for a zombie boy" just because it's calm.

oops- "there" not "their"

Personally, I don't equate "calm" and "grim." I am fine with calm spaces, for people of any age.

For me, this design fails because there is nothing about it that says a "boy" would live here. (Zombie or otherwise, actually, lol.) Nothing distinguishes it (for me) as a room for a young person. If it were designed as a guest room or master bedroom, my reaction would be different. But that's not what the designer was asked to do.

I have children myself. It's true, not all children like primary and neon colors. Still, I don't know any little boy who would pick out gray floral fabric for window treatments or a gray checkered bolster. But it's not just the color palette that fails for me, it is the elements as well. Take the chairs. Children want armchairs they can sprawl in. If they aren't old enough to flop down in a chair with a book, then they are small enough that their parents usually want chairs sized and shaped for sitting comfortably with a lap child. Those chairs would serve neither purpose well, so what in the world are they for? Will this little boy be having tea with a young prince?

The bedspread and the lamp also make little sense in a young boy's room, IMO. In my house, that bedspread would be a complete mess almost instantly. (My children's bedding has been exposed to ink, magic marker, contraband chocolate, dirty hands and feet, drool, urine, vomit, and blood.) And that lamp would come crashing to the floor in no time.

Putting a baseball and mitt on a shelf does not make it a child's room.

The bolster fabric is blue. The fabric on the windows is more forest/antelope than "floral". The duvet fabric is pre-washed linen and very affordable and forgiving. Not pictured is the reading chair. Maybe, I guess, lamps could be glued to nightstands, but other than that, not sure what would make that lamp so much more likely to come crashing down than any other lamp. I'm not sure Phoebek understands that Design Showhouses should inspire. Nobody wants to tour a house filled with the ordinary and mundane. Thanks for the coverage, Apartment Therapy, and for the compliments! All of this, of course, benefited a wonderful cause which makes all the work the designers and our sponsors donated well worth it!