Room to Improve.

Poor_old_gill · 26-03-2018 06:52AM

She was phenomenally rude and she made a constant stream of b*tchy, passive aggressive comments.

She just didn’t seem like a nice person and also seemed to mistake outright rudeness and borderline bullying for being ‘assertive’.

Addle · 26-03-2018 06:53AM

I've forgotten what the house ended up looking like already.
Did we get to see any of the upstairs?

GT_TDI_150 · 26-03-2018 07:06AM

Did we see the stairs even?

freshpopcorn · 26-03-2018 07:20AM

I didn't hate the woman. I found her annoying in a over the top school teacher way but the couple were a bad fit for show and the producers shouldn't have picked them.

freshpopcorn · 26-03-2018 07:20AM

GT_TDI_150 wrote: »

Did we see the stairs even?

we did!

26-03-2018 07:51AM

Mountainsandh wrote: »

That's because he had gone ahead with his vision and disregarded whatever requests she might have had.

Say you're in a restaurant where the chef may decide what to cook, but he has to take on board your requests/needs.
You tell the chef you do not want beetroot or aubergine, but he comes up with beetroot and goat's cheese salad and moussaka on the menu and assures you everyone else loves these dishes, and you should totally go with it because he thinks you're going to love it. He's the expert, but there is a reasonable debate to be had on whether or not you want to go with it.

You’re determined to slate Dermot aren’t you ? In this episode he DID give the client what she asked for in his plans !! And she turned around and gave him 0 our of 10 - like the teacher she is . She seemed determined to go against his ideas and advice at every single turn -just to be right .

She came across as extremely immature and spoilt . There’s way of dealing with situations in life which she obviously hasn’t learnt yet. She wouldnt last long in the world of business and commerce or working in an office of adults, rather than a classroom of kids.

Dtp1979 · 26-03-2018 07:55AM

GT_TDI_150 wrote: »

Did we see the stairs even?

White timer rail, solid oak steps I think

prunudo · 26-03-2018 08:04AM

CH3OH wrote: »

I don't see the point is showing them this house at this stage into the build..

I would imagine in real time it was earlier in the build. The stud wall with sliding doors showed up before hand so maybe they got the inspiration from this house. I've noticed in other episodes some of the editing appears out of sync.
I liked what they did to the house, kitchen was nice colour. The open plan room would have been nicer but the comprise wasn't too bad.

raspberrypi67 · 26-03-2018 08:06AM

Well the hubbie was funny , 'a sure the house is fine, once its got a jax a bedroom, sure what else do we need. Basically

Poor_old_gill wrote: »

She was phenomenally rude and she made a constant stream of b*tchy, passive aggressive comments.

She just didn’t seem like a nice person and also seemed to mistake outright rudeness and borderline bullying for being ‘assertive’.

Minister · 26-03-2018 08:21AM

"She wouldnt last long in the world of business and commerce or working in an office of adults, rather than a classroom of kids.[/QUOTE]

Most teachers wouldnt. In my my experience of them, they do not understand the art of compromise - just like this lady.

Poor_old_gill · 26-03-2018 08:26AM

raspberrypi67 wrote: »

Well the hubbie was funny , 'a sure the house is fine, once its got a jax a bedroom, sure what else do we need. Basically

It's rare that you come across a lad who has been that beaten down- even when asked to rate Dermot at the end he nearly sh*t himself incase he gave the wrong answer and so just told her to answer instead

Windorah · 26-03-2018 08:27AM

Most teachers wouldnt. In my my experience of them, they do not understand the art of compromise - just like this lady.[/quote]

The poor girl is being torn to shreds on social media and now a whole profession are being generalised and stereotyped after a 50 minute home improvement show. Lovely.

Cheshire Cat · 26-03-2018 08:51AM

What I was wondering, with all that space, dressing room and so on, does she have a desk somewhere? Does she do her corrections, lesson prep at the kichen table?
Hubby has a desk in the boot/mud room, but what about her?
Seems strange that she didn't seem to think of that.

freshpopcorn · 26-03-2018 08:54AM

Cheshire Cat wrote: »

What I was wondering, with all that space, dressing room and so on, does she have a desk somewhere? Does she do her corrections, lesson prep at the kichen table?
Hubby has a desk in the boot/mud room, but what about her?
Seems strange that she didn't seem to think of that.

I know a lot of teacher and they generally they just correct at the kitchen table or a table in the house if they are doing corrections at home.

Penn · 26-03-2018 08:58AM

I thought the clients were great. Ultimately, you have an idea what you want before bringing in Dermot in order to give him a brief to work with. You have to be able to then compromise on what you can, and don't compromise on what you can't. They added 10% to the budget to compromise and get what they wanted, and Dermot still kept trying to get them to change things to the way he wanted even though they'd already agreed. Their requests and choices were never unreasonable or impractical like some other clients have been. They just disagreed with Dermot on a lot of things, which to be fair, is something you don't know is going to happen until you're already knee-deep in the job.

But I think a lot of Dermot's decisions did make it into the end finish, they were happy with a lot of things he did and I thought the house looked well by the end. People are calling the husband a walkover etc but I think he's just that casual a person that he really didn't care about a lot of things so long as she was happy with them. And she never really argued with Dermot, most of it was playful enough (and regarding the window frame colour, it was likely because it was so dark inside given walls were still bare blockwork etc that was throwing off the colour of the frame, which he should have pointed out to them).

I thought it was a good enough episode. Nothing too crazy or wonderful, though I'm guessing the rear extension was so plain and bland externally that that's why they didn't really show it at the end, just showing repeated shots of the front of the building.

Poor_old_gill · 26-03-2018 09:04AM

Windorah wrote: »

Most teachers wouldnt. In my my experience of them, they do not understand the art of compromise - just like this lady.

The poor girl is being torn to shreds on social media and now a whole profession are being generalised and stereotyped after a 50 minute home improvement show. Lovely.[/QUOTE]

The generalising of teachers is ridiculous- I'll agree with you.
However most people are judging her on her behavior & attitude- which seems like a reasonable enough thing to do.

I really dislike people who make constant belittling, bitchy, passive aggressive comments - as do most people.
The way she attempted to belittle & insult Dermot and his level of professionalism constantly was borderline bullying.

She shouldn't have hired him or any architect - the shout at the end of "Katie always wins" was fairly pathetic & sad but summed up the theme of the episode and probably these people's lives.

lawred2 · 26-03-2018 09:12AM

Greybottle wrote: »

Yeah, I thought it was a fairly starightforward one too. He should have the old parlour done up in such a way that it can be easily converted o a bedroom and back again afterwards.

Disabled toilet with wetroom downstairs and you're good to go.

Utility room with no windows is a big boo.boo Dermot, but he's done that a fair few times. The washing machine and dryer will cause a lot of condensation. He should swap that with the boot room.

we have no window in our utility - there is not a drop of condensation. Adequate mechanical ventilation and you're good.

Mountainsandh · 26-03-2018 09:12AM

the_pen_turner wrote: »

im not sure what your point is then.

if you go to a resturant the specalises in one type of cooking and the chef decides that the menu has 3 courses. betroot soup, aubergine mains and apple tart for desert. thats it . thats the menu.
when you see the menu you decide if you will order or leave.
dermot is like this he designs open plan, loads of windows in a boxy flat roof extention , white walls with amodern kitchen.

your saying that the chef as to change the beetroot soup for you. thats not going to happen. if you asked for white bread intead of brown then thats a small change thats posible.
if you dont like the menu go somewhere else.
if you dont like dermots designs get someone else

No, what I was saying is that an architect imo should not really be that confined in their own little niche of open plan boxy glassy metally extension.

At least that's not what my expectations of a good architect would be.

My example was that of hiring a chef, to cook, and giving them a brief. Not calling to their restaurant and making a fuss.

Anyway, the conversation could turn in circles for yonks.
It seems the default in Ireland, judging by the comments here, is to be happy with what the expert delivers whether you like it or not, and if indeed you don't like it and are not happy with it, you should
a) delicately word it to the expert that if he doesn't mind you would have preferred something else, and possibly gently remind him and respectfully explain that you have different needs than he does. In other words, tiptoe.
b) keep shtum and be happy.

Same as the well known attitude in restaurants/hospitality in general.
It's rude to speak your mind or be unhappy with the service.

Except that it's a house you're going to live in we're talking about, and a lot of money involved.
But hey, he's the expert.
Happy happy happy.

Sweetmaggie

You’re determined to slate Dermot aren’t you ? In this episode he DID give the client what she asked for in his plans !! And she turned around and gave him 0 our of 10 - like the teacher she is . She seemed determined to go against his ideas and advice at every single turn -just to be right .

Not really.
I'm simply making the point that if she rated his drawings 1/10 from the get go, it is obviously that he had not taken on board her requests.

Incidentally, I felt he was putting words in her mouth when he was saying the kitchen should be the heart of the home.

It all boils down to what you can reasonably expect of an architect, and whether this particular couple should have applied/been taken on for the show.

It was obviously a deliberate bad fit from the producers' point of view, for the sake of adding a bit of spice to the program.

I'm on her side since personally, I would expect an architect to be sympathetic to the needs of clients, and flexible and imaginative enough to apply his skills and deliver on something that suits.
If compromise and negotiations are required, the paying client should really be the one to rate satisfaction.
This is business and there is no obligation on a customer to make choices (that will impact their own lives) based on what the professional would personally like. Why she should have to agree to Dermot's plans to spare his feelings, or make him happy with her house, is beyond me.

There is a reasonable requirement for the professional to deliver on what the client wants. It was not a question of whether things were feasible here, it was simply what Dermot liked, and what she liked.

lawred2 · 26-03-2018 09:13AM

Alf Veedersane wrote: »

A China cabinet.

Ffs.

the only thing a china cabinet should be used for is target practice

lawred2 · 26-03-2018 09:14AM

Quazzie wrote: »

I'm trying to not be offensive, but why did these pair of sacks hire Dermot. He has a well established style, and they were 100% aware of it, so why did they sign up for this when what they want goes against everything he offers

you lasted a whole 4 words

Anne1982h · 26-03-2018 09:16AM

Re last nights episode I do think she came across very rude and disrespectful of another human being (Dermot). I do think this is in part maybe due to her profession as being a teacher you need to lay down the law to your class and not give any space for disagreement. Those of us working with adults however realize it takes more tact and being careful with your words to get your view across without being disrespectful to another person. This is a skill like anything else and not one she will have had to learn in her cocoon of teaching - home. Hopefully she will be more mindful of how she comes across and maybe modify her behaviors in future. Re twitter and people saying they know her/her father and she’s awful I think it’s a bit ridiculous. No one is universally liked. Depending on who you talk to someone could say I was the nicest person they’ve ever met or the worst.

Re the house design - I see her point about open plan. You definitely need to have a closed off room - if your kids have friends over down the line do they sit in the open sitting room part and parents in the open kitchen part! I wouldn’t like that. You need to have a room where kids can be in watching a movie with their friends in private and parents in kitchen doing their own thing. They have the parkour for that but if they want to turn it into a downstairs bedroom and they do end up needing it they’ve only one living space for the entire rest of the family!

Tiles throughout though I hate! So cold in a living room.

yabadabado · 26-03-2018 09:16AM

Mountainsandh wrote: »

Your perception of rude is not the same as mine then.
She did exactly what I often think whenever I do get to watch the show.

I think people started taking offense on behalf of Dermot when she gave him 1 out of 10 for the drawings.

After that she was just plainly speaking her mind, not sugarcoating things, and clearly letting him know that some of his gimmicks were absolutely not a priority for her, that they were the ones who were going to be living in the house, and that their needs and wants were more important than Dermot's enthusiasm for particular architectural features.

She never once insulted him, she just spoke her mind. That "S" word comes to mind when I see people getting all riled up about it.

Big difference speaking your mind and being passive aggressive and rude. I have no problem with someone speaking their mind but you can do it without being rude.

I definitely wasn't taking offence on Demots behalf, I couldn't careless that she didn't like his plans but you can go about things the right way.

The "S" word, has nothing to do with it, a bit of manners is the least you can show towards someone you are working with.

LirW · 26-03-2018 09:23AM

One thing I thought was absolutely mad of the couple was insisting on the 4 bedrooms upstairs. Seeing them they were absolutely tiny!
I liked Dermot's original plan with only 3 bedrooms but them being spacious enough to actually move in it.
It pains me to defend Dermot but he was right about a few things and the layout he designed was one of them, he knew otherwise it would end up cramped and not spacious at all.
Appreciated this effort.

Radio5 · 26-03-2018 09:25AM

mycro2013 wrote: »

Usually the bedroom downstairs is used to care for elderly relative or parent who doesn't wish to be placed in a nursing home in their later years

I can't see either of those 2 as the 'caring' type to be honest unless there is a major change of attitude in the next few years/decades. I'd guess that lady hasn't had too much experience of people saying 'no'to her over the years but there are people like that everywhere not just in certain professions. Her mother's comment about the wedding was quite telling.

Mountainsandh · 26-03-2018 09:27AM

yabadabado wrote: »

Big difference speaking your mind and being passive aggressive and rude. I have no problem with someone speaking their mind but you can do it without being rude.

I definitely wasn't taking offence on Demots behalf, I couldn't careless that she didn't like his plans but you can go about things the right way.

The "S" word, has nothing to do with it, a bit of manners is the least you can show towards someone you are working with.

She was not "working with" Dermot really, he was supposed to work for her.

I don't get the passive aggressive thing, and rudeness. From what I recall, Dermot tried to stir her in his direction every time she disagreed with something, and she just refused to be stirred.
Not from memory, but that's how I felt dialogues were going :

Ie. Dermot : an open plan room will be great, you will love it.
Woman : no I won't. I don't like open plan.
Dermot : but you will, you will love it, all my clients love it.
Woman : no I won't
Dermot : I've delivered hundreds of open plans, everyone always love them.
Woman : but I won't love it, I don't like open plan.

Is this passive agressive and rude ?
To me, it's just someone who knows what they like and dislike, and are just making it known.
Should she have gone on flowery explanations why she didn't like it ?

I think she did indulge in a few explanations here and there actually, but really is that a requirement of the client, to explain and justify why they don't like something ?

26-03-2018 09:28AM

Poor_old_gill wrote: »

It's rare that you come across a lad who has been that beaten down- even when asked to rate Dermot at the end he nearly sh*t himself incase he gave the wrong answer and so just told her to answer instead

I know what you're saying , but I'd guess this is his way, he's been like this long before he met herself, and I wouldn't comment on that. He was nice and he was harmless. Not sure if being with an extremely bossy partner will help though.

honeybear · 26-03-2018 09:29AM

Haven’t seen episode yet. Will do tonight. Teachers have come across terribly on some of the RTI houses...and I’m a teacher.

26-03-2018 09:32AM

Mountainsandh wrote: »

No, what I was saying is that an architect imo should not really be that confined in their own little niche of open plan boxy glassy metally extension.

At least that's not what my expectations of a good architect would be.

My example was that of hiring a chef, to cook, and giving them a brief. Not calling to their restaurant and making a fuss.

Anyway, the conversation could turn in circles for yonks.
It seems the default in Ireland, judging by the comments here, is to be happy with what the expert delivers whether you like it or not, and if indeed you don't like it and are not happy with it, you should
a) delicately word it to the expert that if he doesn't mind you would have preferred something else, and possibly gently remind him and respectfully explain that you have different needs than he does. In other words, tiptoe.
b) keep shtum and be happy.

Same as the well known attitude in restaurants/hospitality in general.
It's rude to speak your mind or be unhappy with the service.

Except that it's a house you're going to live in we're talking about, and a lot of money involved.
But hey, he's the expert.
Happy happy happy.

Sweetmaggie

Not really.
I'm simply making the point that if she rated his drawings 1/10 from the get go, it is obviously that he had not taken on board her requests.

Incidentally, I felt he was putting words in her mouth when he was saying the kitchen should be the heart of the home.

It all boils down to what you can reasonably expect of an architect, and whether this particular couple should have applied/been taken on for the show.

It was obviously a deliberate bad fit from the producers' point of view, for the sake of adding a bit of spice to the program.

I'm on her side since personally, I would expect an architect to be sympathetic to the needs of clients, and flexible and imaginative enough to apply his skills and deliver on something that suits.
If compromise and negotiations are required, the paying client should really be the one to rate satisfaction.
This is business and there is no obligation on a customer to make choices (that will impact their own lives) based on what the professional would personally like. Why she should have to agree to Dermot's plans to spare his feelings, or make him happy with her house, is beyond me.

There is a reasonable requirement for the professional to deliver on what the client wants. It was not a question of whether things were feasible here, it was simply what Dermot liked, and what she liked.

none of that excuses her rudeness. If I came across someone like that in my own job that I was trying to help professionally I would walk away. If people come to you for advice the least they can do is be open to it. They don't have to agree or like it, but they should be "open" to it and work on a compromise after that. She wanted to prove a point - that she was right and that she knew best. Getting an architect was a waste of time.

iamwhoiam · 26-03-2018 09:35AM

honeybear wrote: »

Haven’t seen episode yet. Will do tonight. Teachers have come across terribly on some of the RTI houses...and I’m a teacher.

I know a lot of teachers and they are all basically decent nice people . They all tend to be bossy and can be condescending but its aquired over years !

evolving_doors · 26-03-2018 09:42AM

honeybear wrote: »

Haven’t seen episode yet. Will do tonight. Teachers have come across terribly on some of the RTI houses...and I’m a teacher.

Ahh now let's get our stereotypes correct.

honeybear wrote: »

Haven’t seen episode yet. Will do tonight. -Primary School- Teachers have come across terribly on some of the RTI houses...and I’m a teacher.

:pac:

Room to Improve.

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