There’s change in the air at Jeff Lewis Design. On last night’s Flipping Out, Jeff scrambles to find a place to live while trying to please tough clients whose design aesthetics don’t mesh with his. With Gramercy sold and Jeff and Gage Edward on the cusp of parenthood decisions, Jeff is working at a breakneck pace to get his affairs in order. At the Finley property, work is still underway to get the bungalows ready before Gramercy, now in escrow, closes. Jeff and Gage plan to move into Finley while they plan their next move. So, what is their plan? Jeff and Gage will live in one bungalow, Zoila Chavez in the second, and Jeff’s employees will work in the third. But there’s still a lot of work to be done at Finley, and Jeff is getting nervous about the time crunch.
Raznik, the giggliest delivery man to ever grace a TV screen, is at Finley arguing with Jeff over leaving electrical supplies at the property overnight before Francisco can install them the following day. Jenni Pulos describes Raznik as being in “the top 5” of “interesting types” on these job sites. Raznik grabs the phone from Jenni to bark unintelligibly into the phone to Francisco, finally striking an agreement to leave the expensive supplies behind. But not before Jeff steals Raznik’s gum. Of course.
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On lunch break at Gramercy, Intern Joe regales the group with riveting tales of his “platonic” group hot tubbing weekend. Zoila, for one, thinks: platonic, schmatonic. She quips, “a lot of accidents happen under the water.” Jeff and Jenni just want to know what hot tub Joe broke into used so they can avoid hepatitis in the future. Joe doesn’t understand “keep out” signs, or that giving any personal information to the likes of Jeff Lewis is like giving an ax murderer and ax. This weapon will be used against him in the future.
Jeff and Jenni visit George and Monika Eads’ home. Jeff has been working with the Eads for two years now, and has learned when and how to use the couple against each other to push his design choices forward. Jeff helped Monika rebuild George’s old man-cavey house into a modern dream house for their new family. It looks gorgeous already, of course, but now Jeff is ready to install final furniture choices. More to come on this later…
It’s T-minus 8 days before closing on Gramercy, and rain is in the forecast. Which means that work on Finley may be slowed to a halt. There’s not a huge inventory of property for sale that Jeff is interested in buying right now as potential houses for his next flip, so he and Gage are putting all of their eggs in one basket with Finley as their next stop.
Joe is at his desk talking on the phone about snakes and hamsters and holes in the ground to some sort of exterminator, which is the most responsibility we’ve seen him take on thus far. He then goes on to discuss why inhaling carbon dioxide is not harmful, because that’s what “we breathe.” Welcome to Planet Joe!
At Sierra Towers, Jeff checks out a potential condo property in one of their high rises, which is a huge departure from the properties we’ve seen him buy in the past. Jenni “gets a little tingly” between her legs up on balconies this high, but thinks it would be a sexy property to buy. Jeff bemoans the fact that the market is priced so high right now, he’s hesitant just to buy something just for buying’s sake.
Former client Lisa G. makes an appearance to talk to Jeff about Phase 3 of her home remodel. After complimenting Jenni’s new mom-a$$, she talks the world of house flipping with Jeff. Flipping talk turns to baby talk. Jeff snarks that he wants Lisa and her hubby Gary to be the godparents, to which she responds, “Does that mean I have to see them?” Good to see Lisa G. back!
The rain is coming down in sheets as Gage, Jenni, and Jeff traverse over to Finley. After a historic drought for a year, the past three days of rain spell potential disaster for Finley, which is getting minor flooding in places. Water is puddling, work has entirely shut down, and the mud situation is approaching Woodstock conditions. “There really is no Plan B,” worries Gage, if Finley isn’t ready in time.
Jeff takes Monika furniture shopping (yay!) to get some sleek, modern pieces. Jeff says it’s not uncommon for him to sell a million dollars’ worth of furniture in a year, so he’s got long-standing good relationships with many surrounding furniture stores. He also has a little ADHD thing going on with the word “squishy” today, which he can’t stop repeating throughout their shopping trip. Megan Weaver has picked up his quirky habits, as have most of the people in his office, says Jeff. Squish.
Speaking of squishy, the rain has stopped, but Finley is still a mushy mess. While Gage’s assistant Matt takes silent iPhone notes off to the side, Jesse delivers the bad news that his paint job won’t be finished by the weekend. With the driveway washing away, the fence unfinished, and the units almost (but not yet) ready, Jeff has a reality check: Finley is not going to work out in time. They need to move elsewhere after Gramercy closes.
Gage tugs out his eyelashes in a sudden fit of trichotillomania while driving Jenni and Jeff around, stressing about what their next move will be. Jenni does not want to get divorced again, so they can’t move in with her. They check out a potential rent-to-own property in Hollywood that Jeff actually owned 13 years ago. It’s a time capsule for Jeff, who notes that nothing has changed since he left. “It couldn’t be more perfect,” says Jeff, while Gage stares in wonder over how much Jeff’s style has evolved since he redesigned this house 13 years ago. Word. Is that an olive green wall!? Oh, snap! Yes, Jeff Lewis has come a long way since this early 2000’s moment of “accent walls” and burnt orange Spanish tiles. Jenni is so excited, she hugs random strangers, then Jeff – in their joint interview. Jeff feels like he was guided here, full circle, just at the right moment. So, sounds like a done deal. I love it! Hollywood re-do, part deux!
Intern Joe is given his next Big Task: taking photos of a celebrity’s house…by driving by like a creeper and snapping shots from the window. Joe doesn’t understand the complicated task of 1) driving to a predetermined address, and 2) taking photos. But Jeff is Done.Explaining.Things.To.Joe. So, he’ll have to wing it. Meanwhile, Jeff is giggling about Zoila’s latest note stuck to the dishwasher which reads, “Please, No Open.” Zoila is not taking his razzing kindly, however, probably because she her dreams of a separate Finley bungalow have been deferred for a boomerang move back to Hollywood. Dang, Zoila almost got her own pad! Now, she’s relegated back to a bedroom she thought she’d left behind over a decade ago.
Out on the road, Jeff gets a call that Joe has failed at number 1 of his complicated 2-part task. He’s taken photos of the wrong house, so he needs to read the address back to himself aloud, and very slowly, so he can conquer his #ExtremeConfusion. He finally sends the correct photos with the note, “Here’e the right one, LOL!” To which Jeff rages, “NO LOL! NO LOL, Dipsh*t!” Jeff admits he might be keeping Joe around just out of spite because Gage initially warned him what a moron Joe was from the beginning. So, he can’t give in now.
At the Eads‘ residence, Jeff’s team shows George and Monika “audition” pieces (furniture and accessories on loan) to help them make buying decisions. Monika is thrilled with the choices, but George is a grumpy pants about everything from the couches to the throw pillows. George admits this whole process is a huge shift in the way he lives, and that the original demolition of his home was “so final” and it was hard to let go of everything, including his crazy tacky fireplace. He’s bummed out about the loss of his old life, but understands that his life has changed and his home needs to change with it. He also takes issue with how insulting everyone was about his old design choices, which he chose with love. Aww. I hear that. Change is hard. But, dayum! You know Jeff Lewis is going to tear you down before he builds you back up, Papa George! Just get on the white and gray train, because your house is going to look AH-mazing once Jeff is through.
George reiterates his style choices range from a love of bean bags to shag carpeting, which Jeff hears and takes into consideration. But let’s get real: ain’t no bean bags entering a Jeff Lewis design scheme. Jeff does agree to a couple more ottomans and “cozy” furniture choices to make George comfortable. In the end, Monika and George are thrilled with Jeff’s work, which reflects form and function in equal measures. “We were able to create a good balance for them,” Jeff says, which makes his clients happy. And happy clients equal a happy Jeff!
TELL US: WHAT DO YOU THINK OF JEFF’S DECISION TO MOVE BACK TO HOLLYWOOD? DOES INTERN JOE NEED TO GO? WHAT’S YOUR OPINION OF THE EADS’ REDESIGN?
Photo Credit: Bravo
