Designer Hilary Farr is famed for speaking her mind, and on the latest episode of her show “Tough Love With Hilary Farr,” she really lets her clients have it.

In the Season 2 episode “Color Clash,” Farr meets Jennifer and Jason, who are parents to 11-year-old Jax. They have $90,000 to redo their great room and kitchen, and they want the style to match their colorful personalities. But Farr is more about tasteful moderation rather than unfurling a rainbow of vivid hues.

As we watch these people work together, you can learn a lot about adding pops (or great swaths) of color to your own home—and much more. Find out what your color and clutter boundaries really are by reading these tips below.

Donate unwanted items to charity

Step into Jennifer and Jason’s home, and you’ll find large bags of sundry items piled by the front door. Jennifer and Jason explain that all the unwanted items that need to go out get stored there, but they can’t decide what to do with them.

“We go back and forth with the value of a yard sale,” says Jennifer.

“I’d rather get rid of all the stuff,” says Jason. “It’s not going to make enough money that the effort is worth it.”

He prefers to take it all to the dump, but Jennifer argues that most of it will have value to someone.

The solution? Take it to a local charity/resale store. They’ll sort through it, keep what they can sell, and throw out the rest. In short, they do the work for you so you can let go of stuff you don’t want without feeling guilty.

There is such a thing as too much color

The walls in Jennifer and Jason’s house are painted mostly in bright purples and oranges.

“My favorite color is orange,” says Jennifer. “We gravitate toward stronger, brighter colors, and we’d like our home to reflect that.”

“I have to say I am a fan of lots of color,” says Farr. “I am a fan of orange. I’m not a fan of too much color or too much orange. This falls into the latter.”

That sets up a struggle that’s fun to watch.

Your island is your canvas

Farr has chosen a light blue for the kitchen cabinets and a darker, dusty blue for the island. The couple are OK with that, but they’re not sold on the flat white countertops she’s selected.

“So your island is your canvas,” Farr explains. “You will set it up when you’re having people sitting around it with plates and settings and napkins and flowers and pots and whatever you like that are every color of the rainbow. That’s what that is. It is not the star of the show.”

“Couldn’t we make it the star of the show?” asks Jennifer hopefully, as she caresses bright orange counter material.

“No,” affirms Farr.

They go with the white counters and come to a compromise on the backsplash—that can be their moment of bright color, and they choose a brilliant lime green.

But then Jennifer sneaks back to the cabinet maker and selects a brighter blue for the cabinetry. Farr is not pleased, but what can she do at this point?

Carve out a dining space

Jennifer and Jason’s living/dining/kitchen area is not huge, so Farr designs the space to have a large dining/prep island, with no room for a dining table. But then Jennifer tells her that a table that family and friends can gather around is essential.

Farr is reluctant to give up space for the table, and there’s quite a bit of discussion, but Jennifer stands firm, so Farr vows to fit one in. She does this with a cute breakfast nook with a banquette in the corner.

Don’t let your designer push you around

This is something that Farr, Jennifer, and Jason all learn from this somewhat fraught process. Jennifer sticks to her guns on color, the kitchen table, and moving the basement staircase, even though that adds $25,000 to the project.

Farr does a lot of pushing back; but in the end, she gives them exactly what they want. And she comes to terms with it. In the end, everyone is satisfied with the outcome.

“This has been one of the most difficult experiences in design that I’ve ever, ever encountered,” Farr concludes. “But I’m absolutely thrilled. I think we have really, really nailed this. We have just enough quirky.”

Jason and Jennifer are happy, too.

“We got the color in there. It feels like a reflection of who we are,” says Jason. “It feels like a house for Jennifer and Jason and Jax.”

“Orange you glad the renovations are over?” jokes Jennifer.

The post Hilary Farr Shows Off Her True Colors—on a Home You Must See To Believe appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com®.

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