The Coachella Valley has a wealth of real estate options – everything from palatial mansions to modest condos – depending on your taste.
HGTV will showcase a few of those homes on Saturday’s airing of “House Hunters Renovation,” a spin-off of the wildly popular “House Hunters” series.
The first half of the one-hour show follows Susan Hunt, a voice over announcer who has worked in radio and television for years, as she searches for a desert dwelling. She is shown a few different homes located in cities across the desert by friend and desert resident KC Kiner and then ultimately decides on one of them.
The second half hour of the show is then dedicated to the renovation of the home. That’s when Palm Springs-based designer Christopher Kennedy joins the cast and makes his HGTV debut. At that point, it turns into a typical makeover show with the before and after format.
“It really wasn’t much different than my normal design job. We just had cameras following us around,” said Kennedy.
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Kennedy is an interior designer and modern furniture designer based in Palm Springs. He is known for creating the Christopher Kennedy Compound Show Home during Modernism Week which brings together prominent interior designers and tastemakers to renovate a home.
According to the HGTV website, Kennedy and Hunt’s episode is called “A Heated Reno in the Desert.”
Here’s the provided synopsis: “After years of visiting friends and playing golf in Palm Springs, California, Susan is ready to make the commitment and buy a home and settle there. Once renovations begin, major problems come up, including structural issues and a black mold infestation, challenging Susan to stick it out to the end.”
Kennedy’s work for Hunt wasn’t without its challenges, he said, which is the case for most renovations he undertakes. And he had to do it all within a specific budget, which is something he said many people may not realize about him.
“People don’t necessarily think of me as working in the confines of a budget. I do all the time,” he said.
Hunt said the renovations took about six months and cost about $80,000, which was a bit more than she had anticipated and longer than expected.
But, she said she was happy with the homes Kiner showed her and the design job Kennedy delivered.
“Working with Christopher was a real eye opener. My vision of what I thought was mid- century was perhaps a little bit more predictable … and he think more outside the box,” said Hunt.
“Because he is aIso a trained architect he saw things in the kitchen area I certainly would not have imagined. He loves color but he also loves white. He used wood and very traditional mid century style but he gave it such a different flair.”
The work Kennedy did for Hunt included construction and design. While the kitchen was the main focus, he also worked on the master bath, guest bath, living room and patio as well.
He took the older kitchen and expanded it for a more contemporary feel, he said. The overall approach was creating that signature Palm Springs lifestyle for which he is known.
It was “lots and lots of work. I think people will be shocked at the transformation,” he said.
If you watch:
HGTV’s “House Hunters Renovation” will feature the Coachella Valley and desert designer Christopher Kennedy on its show at 10 p.m. on Saturday. The show will replay at 1 a.m. Sunday.