Before & After: Living Room Goes from Bland to Glam

Spoilers for “Best Room Wins.”

While we’ve been in a golden age of TV for awhile now, but only in the past few seasons have we seen more variety in new home and design programming. If you want something besides another flipper taking over their hometown or another pair of questionably employed folks complaining about paint colors, there are actually other options out there.

One such new show is Bravo’s “Best Room Wins,” in which two interior designers face off against each other as they try to recreate a million dollar inspiration room in real clients’ homes for less. Budget, however, is relative—each designer has $25,000 to make their clients’ dreams come true—and possibly win a spread in Elle Decor. The results, while not exactly affordable, are decadent eye candy. They’re judged by host Genevieve Gorder, Elle Decor’s Editor in Chief Whitney Robinson, and a rotating cast of celebrity designers.

In the series premiere, the theme is Hollywood Regency, and designer Ryan Saghian is tasked to take this charming but bland California living room from basic to bold, using guest judge Martyn Lawrence Bullard’s posh Palm Spring pad as inspiration. The clients’ space has great bones, like impressive tray ceilings, lovely arched windows, and a fireplace just begging to be the focal point.

Ryan, who describes his style as “contemporary glamour,” gave the couple, parents to a toddler, a regency-inspired yet accessible space by focusing on mostly high contrast black and white with emerald accent pieces, some brass, and a whole lot of shine (and no corners to bump into!). In fact, if you look up, you’ll see a mica wallpaper that turns the ceiling into a glittery disco ball—the clients’ favorite part of the room, he tells Apartment Therapy via email.

If you love Hollywood Regency and don’t have a large space or $25K to spend, Ryan suggests focusing on high contrast and bold patterns which work for any size room or budget. And while he says he’d go back and change the bookcase if he could, we think the art mounted on the front is a great way to elevate a simple pair of BILLYs.

You’ll have to watch the episode to see if Ryan’s room wins with the judges, but it’s definitely a clear hit with the homeowners.

“Best Room Wins” airs Wednesdays on Bravo at 10pm ET/PT.