That's tomorrow. I'm Ally Langdon.
SCOTT CAM: Previously...
Did you need a bucket, Steph? (LAUGHS)
..we had some nervous Blockheads in HQ last night
because the prize for best studio space was a whopper.
There's $50,000 up for grabs.
$10,000 from Ford,
a $20,000 upgrade from Kinsman
and a ridiculously, stupidly expensive handbag...
(LAUGHTER) ..from Hermes.
$20,000!
But the judges were brutal.
I think the styling is so bad
that had it have been empty, I would've been happier.
And the punches kept coming.
This is giving me, like, a real estate showroom kind of vibes.
SHAYNNA: I don't feel the soul connection to the bathroom in here.
This isn't hitting the mark from a buyer's perspective.
LEAH: I actually don't know how to continue in this competition.
But one room came out on top.
The winner is Steph and Gian!
House four took the loot.
STEPH: I can't believe it!
I didn't think we were gonna win anything!
Tonight, our Blockheads start ripping into the old original houses
for the work-from-home spaces
and these 1950s charmers very rapidly lose their appeal.
KEITH: Treated pine stumps.
MAN: That's throughout the whole house.
Oh...
There's a lot of faces going, "Oh."
I've got some bad news.
And it's Keith's job to deliver some disastrous blows...
Ash. Yo.
We've got a bit of a situation... Yeah, we...
..which isn't good for you guys.
..that'll impact two houses for weeks to come.
It'll eat into lots of my time.
So much more work.
Lost a day every week.
Meanwhile, Liberty goes into a tailspin...
I just don't know what I'm doing.
..and makes a crisis call.
Hi, Mum. (CRIES) WOMAN: What's the matter?
I just feel so overwhelmed and I just don't know what I'm doing.
(GULL CRIES) (THUNDER CRACKS)
It's another Monday morning in Melbourne...
(BIKE BELL RINGS)
('FOR REAL' BY MALLRAT PLAYS)
However, this one's a public holiday.
But in this little suburban pocket of Hampton East,
it's the start of work-from-home week on the Block.
And after last night's judging of their studio spaces,
a new start is just what some of our Blockheads need.
PRODUCER: How are you feeling at the back of the judges' comments?
I'm feeling like I have no will to live.
(LAUGHS)
Oh, mate.
Oh, the confidence last week was absolutely squished
and now this week there's just nothing there left.
Just squished.
I'm still quite concerned and just confused
what we've done that was so bad.
Shaynna thinks you backed off too far on the sense of soulfulness.
I don't feel the soul connection to the bathroom in here.
Mate, any more soul and I'll be a skeleton.
ASH: I think we've been really overthinking everything,
really overthinking it and...
Really? ..yeah, to come last, like...
Imagine if we didn't overthink.
I forgot we came last. (BLEEP).
I forgot we came last!
Also struggling with last night's feedback in house five is Liberty.
Yeah, when you're told from one of the judges
that they'd rather see nothing in the room than what you put in it,
it's kind of, like, defeating, isn't it?
I think the styling is so bad
that had it have been empty, I would've been happier.
(SHAYNNA LAUGHS)
LIBERTY: For me, it's, like, personal
'cause, like, I did the styling.
It's just really hard, though, because you lose, like... I...
Eliza said to me yesterday, like,
"Oh, you've finally found your groove and you're in, like,
"a really good spot and you're having fun with it and everything"
and I kind of felt like that too.
I kind of feel really good about everything.
And then to hear that feedback, you're, like, "Oh..."
It just brings you back down so many pegs.
I was, like, "You should do this as a career."
(BOTH LAUGH)
Oh, god.
How embarrassing.
Well, not everyone is embarrassed this morning.
STEPH: I still can't believe that we won.
I think that's the doubt that we're just, like,
"Oh, are we good enough?" you know.
That was last week.
To be honest, I thought it was a dream, though.
Like, and when I woke up, I was, like, "Did we actually win?
"Was that us?" GIAN: Yeah.
We wanted to deliver a room that we were proud of
and we tried to execute on a lot of the detail
that we weren't able to in week one.
PRODUCER: And you won a nice bag.
Yeah, nice bag.
That Kelly bag is very nice.
It's definitely gonna add to that master robe...
so the buyer will be very lucky.
SCOTT: The buyer will be lucky
because that Hermes bag now comes with the house,
all thanks to this - Steph and Gian's cosy guest studio.
The judges absolutely loved the warmth of their space
and awarded house four 24.5 points, which gave them the win.
Oh, look at the fire!
DARREN: No wonder it's warm.
Love it. That's gorgeous!
And now the beams work. And now the beams work.
If they apply this type of style to the rest of the house,
I mean, what a stunning home.
Let's see if the other Blockheads agree with the judges
at this morning's...
Domain open for inspection.
Oh! I like this.
This is so stunning!
I love all the colours. Very earthy.
Mmm. She's got a really earthy style.
That fireplace is awesome, though, isn't it?
Like, you walk out from being on a building site...
I know.
..and it feels like you've just walked into a home.
It's absolutely beautiful.
I knew when the judges said soul, this is what they want.
They want pillows. (SCOFFS)
I don't know, I think it's a beautiful room
but for sheer scale of our area...
We can fit three of these in our space.
Maybe four.
Yep, Kyle and Leslie's studio last week
was significantly bigger than everyone else's space.
In fact, it was two rooms, a guest bedroom and a Pilates studio
and it came in second place with a score of 23 points.
(APPLAUSE)
Wow!
Look at the size of this!
Are you serious? (LAUGHS) This is insane!
What they did in a week is mind-blowing. Mmm.
And Steph's not taking her eyes off her treasured Hermes Kelly bag,
so she's taking it on the tour.
Oh, yep. Oh, wow.
BRETT: Wow! This is cool! KRISTY: I actually really like this.
It's a great guest bedroom.
Wow... I'm about this room, man. KRISTY: Mm-hm.
LIBERTY: Are we allowed to take photos?
We're obviously not gonna copy stuff but they did say we had to...
Take note. ..take note of the styling.
GIAN: Love that artwork.
STEPH: And then this space is just stunning.
LEAH: Oh, so awesome! God, this is gonna market well!
It will... ASH: Holy!
..photograph amazing. Won't it just!
Coming in third place on 21.5 points,
Eliza and Liberty's multipurpose studio
copped some brutal styling criticism from Marty Fox.
It just seems like they have missed the mark on who the buyer is.
The finesse and the styling, it seems very juvenile.
STEPH: Wow!
LESLIE: Oh, this is nice.
STEPH: It actually feels really nice too.
I personally think that comment of delivering an empty room
was so unbelievably harsh.
ASH: Yeah. Yet we still came last.
Mmm. I'm not understanding it.
What have we done that is so, so bad?
In equal last spot with 21 points was Leah and Ash's studio.
SHAYNNA: We've got five side tables, we have two chairs
and no-one can talk to each other.
It's a really odd placement of furniture.
This isn't hitting the mark from a buyer's perspective.
Some very tough feedback, gang.
Oh, cute!
I really like this.
So, is this, like, a sitting room or...?
It's sort of feels like that, doesn't it? Yeah.
But I guess their thing is they've got the drop-down bed.
KYLE: I'm keen to look at his bed.
LESLIE: Oh, that's cool, isn't it?
GIAN: I do get what they did with the murphy bed
in terms of saving space
but then they've cluttered
where the murphy bed would otherwise come down,
so to kind of have the murphy bed set up,
you're kind of closing this off completely.
You know what, it's a very tricky space...
Yeah.
..that needs to be organised
while thinking about what's happening in the rest of the house.
Correct.
So we can't fully comment on layout.
(LAUGHS) That's just how I am. I know.
(LAUGHS) I can't.
It doesn't make sense to me without seeing the floor plan
and what's happening everywhere else.
I completely reason with the kind of soul comment
and I just think that's been amplified
by the type of textures and materials they've used. Yeah.
# Boring and old are the things you're told... #
SCOTT: Also coming in last place on 21 points
was Kristy and Brett's New York loft studio.
Great views.
The steel balustrade.
The study, the olive...
It's got a really nice feel to it.
But if I'm actually going to be in here for more than just sleeping,
what do I do?
I mean, this should be a lounge. It should have the sofa bed.
It's just not actually utilising the space.
LESLIE: It smells like a losing room.
(KYLE LAUGHS)
The four Veluxes are gonna be awesome, though.
Oh, so good.
GIAN: Right. STEPH: Put the bag down.
It does feel... Multipurpose.
..multipurpose. It's definitely self-contained.
Like, there's everything.
You've got your study desk,
you have your, like, kitchenette sort of situation.
I assume bar fridge under here? Yeah, bar fridge.
You have... Is it? Yep.
You have the robe.
So maybe a small table.
ELIZA: The only thing I would think is, like, would you do, like,
a reading nook there?
LIBERTY: 'Cause it's a lot of space. ELIZA: Yeah.
I mean, that's the only thing.
I mean, look at the cushions, like, right...
Yeah, I love the bedhead. I love the art.
We just have no idea what we're doing because...
We just love everything.
LEAH: I love it.
ASH: These guys are on a trip.
100%.
This is so, like, lovely and cosy and gorgeous.
Dead last is so not deserving for this.
STEPH: Really like it. This would look amazing with the light.
It's a beautiful space. GIAN: Yeah.
It's a beautiful space. I like the skylights.
Steph and Gian won last night,
so they got a $20,000 bag as part of the prize
and so she wouldn't let it out of her sight, with the 10K inside,
so 30 grand she walked around with all day today,
doing Domain open for inspections.
STEPH: Morning!
Oh, look at you, you little... Oh, yeah.
I love that you're doing it.
LEAH: Yes, we noticed the red Hermes bag.
You're just oozing Grace Kelly.
Is that, like... Is she, like, rubbing it in or...?
(LAUGHS)
Are you gonna walk around holding that all day?
No. KRISTY: Yes, she is.
'Cause I'm gonna (BLEEP) snatch that.
(GIAN LAUGHS) Do you want it?
No, no, no, I don't actually want it.
(BLEEP) looking bag, anyway.
(LAUGHS) Whatever.
And Steph's not backwards in coming forward with her opinions either.
STEPH: So I just came back from yours. I really, really like it.
Now, on the styling bit, you know how they mentioned that,
I actually think the styling and the colour palette's,
like, really, really good.
I think they may be referring to
is you know how they probably potentially wanted everyone
to sort of make it more, like, connected to the pool?
Yeah.
Maybe they would've wanted it to just be more...
'Pooly'. ..'cabana-ey'. Yeah.
I was trying to help people see, especially for, like, the girls...
they were, like, really, really down on their styling
and I said, "It's not that your styling was bad.
"Maybe your styling was bad in that application."
So don't feel bad about your styling
'cause the styling actually really works in that situation.
Maybe he's talking... That comment is about...
Where exactly... ..where it is.
Yeah, yeah. Do you know what I mean?
Being an architect, I'm able to visualise the spaces around
before they're even there to influence that space...
GIAN: Yeah. ..and that's how we design.
So that was my advice that I was sort of trying to give people.
It's not your style. Your house is very modern.
I have timber outside of my house. LEAH: True.
I'm reflecting on that. Yeah.
I've always been super open about being able to give advice.
Maybe they don't want the advice but I'm just happy to give it.
(LAUGHS)
But Leah has had enough of advice, especially from the judges.
LEAH: And they go, "There's no soul."
I'm, like, "What do you mean?"
I thought that artwork was soul.
I thought the lighting was soul.
The styling comment cut me deep.
I actually don't know how to continue in this competition.
Yeah, you do. You do. It's fine. It's fine.
I don't know how to... It's fine.
(CRIES) You're fine. Don't worry about it. Yeah, I know.
I definitely took it very hard,
so I was very emotional, feeling all the feels.
And she cried on the shoulder of crew, contestants...
LIBERTY: I've cried twice this morning too. Don't worry.
We're just... Our confidence has just been shot.
Yeah. Completely shot. I know. Agreed.
And perhaps the most surprising of all...
(SIGHS) ..Keith.
KEITH: You alright?
What was the feedback? Brutal or...?
Long way to go. Week two. Early days.
(CRIES) Yeah.
Are you listening to what they're saying, the judges, or...?
(TEARFULLY) Well, I...
Well, so far you're, like...you are making good rooms every week.
And they... Yeah.
But just the feedback gets the contestants early days.
You've got to listen. Mmm.
Yeah, exactly. Long way to go.
I'm trying to listen. Don't get caught up in it.
I know. A lot of areas to go. It's just emotional.
Long way to go. Last night, I was...
Last night, I was, like, all good about it
but I just think, yeah, the walk-arounds... (CRIES)
are just starting to make me feel like
I've completely gone in a wrong direction.
(GULL CRIES) (THUNDER CRACKS)
# Baby, now, let's go Drive me away
# Get your body back to the rock of the fray... #
SCOTT: It's the start of week three on the Block
and for the first time, everyone will be working
in the original part of the house.
That means our Blockheads should be demoing
what will become their work-from-home space.
But there's no power tools today,
which means everything has to be done by hand.
In house four, Steph and Gian know all too well
what a nightmare these 1950s houses can be
because so far they have only transformed rooms
in the old part of their house,
so they understand what's required.
Today we wanted to get ahead
and we knew that we had to soft-demo only.
We needed to gut the room completely.
We also knew that we were going away with Scotty
for the 'winners are grinners'... Mmm.
..dinner.
So we really had a shortened day. Gosh.
In doing that, we got our boys in to do some soft demo,
rip down what was Ash and Leah's challenge room.
That space is located here in the middle of the old house.
So, look, there was a lot to unpack
but we were just laser-vision-focused. Yeah.
# Y'all ready for this? #
('GET READY FOR THIS' BY 2 UNLIMITED PLAYS)
We knew what needed to be demoed on Monday. Yeah.
We were wondering why other people weren't.
But they weren't used to it
because they used to a concrete slab with some Truecore framed walls.
And everything roughed in and... Yeah.
LESLIE: The things you do for us. Thank you.
The rest of our Blockheads definitely don't seem to have the same urgency
with their demo.
Public holidays are very slow-paced and a very different feel.
Not everybody had their builder in, so you kind of go, "Well..." Yeah.
.."if that's how everyone's doing it,
"maybe we can just do it the same way." Yeah. You know what I mean?
You've kind of gotta learn from others.
All the rooms worked on so far in house one and two and three and five
have all been built in the brand-new extensions,
where there was no demo required.
Built from scratch with Truecore steel frames,
they've had perfectly straight walls, level floors and new ceilings,
like what has been going up on the second storeys for the past few days.
But the work-from-home spaces this week
are all located in the old 1950s houses
and that's a totally different kettle of fish.
They've got to work with wonky walls, dodgy floors and caving ceilings.
So all our Blockheads should be going gung-ho with the demo.
(SLURPS) Oh, my god. That's delicious.
In house five, reno rookies Eliza and Liberty
are putting last week's feedback behind them
and moving onto this week's room.
New room, new week.
The fact that, yeah, we're still doing this as a guest bedroom...
Yep. Definitely.
But I think we think about putting a little desk.
Yep.
So, this week was a working-from-home space
and because we've done working-from-home space
in our studio out the back,
we decided to do it as a guest bedroom.
The room the girls are transforming into a guest bedroom this week
is located here at the front of the house
and that means they'll be selling their house with five bedrooms.
# Cake by the ocean Oh! #
I need to just have, like, a look.
I just need to do some, like, research and stuff this morning. OK.
Like what?
I just had, like, blue and orange... It just doesn't look high-end...
It is, 'cause it doesn't look high...
It does look high-end but there's a way of doing it.
It doesn't. Lib, are you joking?
It doesn't. What I put together, it doesn't.
Uh-uh-uh, 'Downer Debbie'.
You know what, I'm actually allowed to feel for a bit...
You are. You are. (BLEEP)
..when you get comments like we got last night
and it's all to do with me, so...
We've just gotta stay... Yeah, that's fine.
And I feel better now. But I'm allowed to feel...
Like, I'm allowed to feel what I feel for a bit.
So, what do you reckon we do colour-wise?
(SIGHS) I just... I don't know.
We were never born designers. I know.
It's just embarrassing.
Anyway... I get it.
But let's learn from it.
That's the best thing we can do.
Imagine, like, just taking that feedback and running with it.
Coming up...
That's throughout the whole house. KEITH: Oh!
There's a lot of faces going, "Oh..."
I've got some bad news.
You just don't know what's going to be in the existing house.
..the old houses...
We've got a bit of a situation here, which isn't good for you guys.
..deliver some death blows for two teams.
Our room is an actual pile of dirt.
So much more work.
We've lost a day every week.
(GULL CRIES) (THUNDER CRACKS)
G'day, Blockheads. Shelley Craft here.
And when the sawing stops, the banter begins on the official Block podcast.
Every Monday night, I catch up with contestants, judges...
Whoa!
..and all your favourites... (YELPS)
..so join me on the official Block podcast
on 9Now
or subscribe
wherever you get your podcasts.
SCOTT: It's a public holiday Monday in Melbourne.
# How bizarre, how bizarre... #
Monday, another public holiday.
There was no tools,
so decided to leave the trades out to actually give them
the day off.
So, while all is quiet at house two,
Leah and Ash have decided it's laundry day.
# Every time I look around it's in my face... #
LEAH: The only crap thing about going to a laundromat
is I actually have to follow through
with getting the washing out of the wash.
Normally, I just let it sit for five washes, hey, babe?
ASH: Yeah.
We have lots of washing to get through from...
Five loads. Yeah. About five loads.
Four loads, five loads.
I think, in terms of planning, I think we go forward with...
Studio. ..work from home.
Yeah. No, work from home.
No. Office. Office workspace.
But easily converted to a fourth bedroom.
Just sort of plan the room a bit
and got a few ducks in a row for the week.
Leah and Ash's work-from-home space, or fourth bedroom,
is located near the front door in the old part of the house...
and they're going Art Deco glam,
with double French doors, ornate cornice, a ceiling rose
and a new fireplace where the old one stood.
I've taken feedback from the judges really seriously this week.
They said last week that the flair was missing and the soul,
so I've bought back some punch.
Clean clothes coming up.
Smoke it up. I'm not smoking it up.
House three's Kristy and Brett have also decided today is laundry day
and they've beaten Leah to the laundromat.
I guess we had our planning session at the laundromat today.
Yeah, we did.
So, two birds, one stone.
So, went in there with a bit of an open...
an open mind of how we were gonna do it.
Mmm. We got a few ideas together.
Kristy and Brett's work-from-home space
currently overlooks their front yard,
which eventually will be their main garden and pool area.
We are first time in our main house,
so our styling will be very different to the studio.
I guess contemporary is the right word...
Mmm. ..that we'd be running with there.
Modern contemporary, for sure. Yeah, modern contemporary.
This will be our style going forward from this coming week.
And they're going for an ultra-modern corporate feel with pops of black.
The panelling on these walls will be black,
black steel-framed chairs for future clients.
But they're still yet to source a sleek black desk.
What do you think of this desk?
This is a new part of our house, so it has to be black.
Yeah, not bad.
Back on site in house one,
Kyle and Leslie's work-from-home space
is located at the front of their original '50s house
and there's a lot of demo required.
Yeah, so it is another short week with the public holiday today.
We've made a decision not to have our builders in as well.
We've just come off the back of two very big weeks and that...
Yeah, very... Very... The budget's at the forefront.
The budget-conscious couple
are planning a pared-back work-from-home space
with bookshelves and a desk.
But they're adding a TV and sofa chairs
so the room can double as a second lounge room.
Where's the top part of this?
They may not have trades on site today
but Kyle and Leslie could do the demo themselves,
so Keith's gone in to crack the whip.
KEITH: You can pull the ceiling down, take all these doors out,
the gyprock on here, remove all that.
You can't just waste a day.
We're tempted to do some demo
but when you can't make noise, it's really difficult.
I'm not an expert, you know.
Watch that nail.
We probably could've gone harder at the demo.
# Moving on up You're moving on... #
Meanwhile, old house veterans Steph and Gian and their team in house four
have gone harder and made excellent progress on their demo.
So I just want to make it a multipurpose...
Multipurpose.
It's definitely a study for us and we're selling it as a study
but I want someone to walk in and be, like,
"OK, I've gotta put a be in here." Yep. "And I can." Yep. Yep.
So their multipurpose space is being presented as an office
and they're continuing their feature ceiling beams,
going for built-in cabinetry and desks at either end
and bookshelves in between,
another desk in the middle of the room and a couch.
And Steph's already brought the space to life.
But that's the general layout. Uh-huh.
But it's not gonna be black. Yeah, yeah, yeah, of course.
PRODUCER: And you've got it all on your own software,
your own computer, rather than... Yeah.
..a drawing?
All my plans are actually on my architect program.
It's really easy to visualise, put everything in spaces.
Art, art, the chair, the corner, the table in the middle.
So there's a benefit to being an architect.
(BOTH LAUGH)
SCOTT: With their plan locked in,
Steph and Gian can now take off on their Ford getaway.
So, this week, because we won,
we are off to the Balgownie Estate in the Yarra.
# Like the feel of something new... #
Look where we are. I know.
How exciting.
You blink and you're on a construction site
and then you blink again and you're on this amazing vineyard
and, you know, luxurious estate.
Hello. Hi. How are you? WOMAN: Hello.
Yeah, it was really nice.
Oh, wow!
(BOTH LAUGH)
How cool's that!
SCOTT: Yep, this year, the weekly room winners
get some quality downtime away from the Block.
It was nice.
It's always nice to un-Block, Steph and I call it.
It's been two weeks and I forgot...
What the luxe life's like. ..what the luxe life's life.
Just because it helps you come back in line with reality
and, yeah, it was awesome going there.
(POP!)
That's what winning sounds like.
But they also get some exclusive one-on-one time with yours truly
and dinner is a chance for them to ask me
whatever they want build-related.
So, are you confident about your kitchen?
I am. I would love to run some ideas past you.
I want to see some plans.
The dinner is there, you know, to relax, I guess,
but for me, it's, like, no, this is an opportunity
so that I can pick someone's brain
who's got that much experience on The Block
and that much experience in life.
I love kitchens. I've built a lot of kitchens.
I love cooking, I love being in the kitchen
and so I really feel as though
the kitchen is the most important room in the house.
You know that as an architect.
PRODUCER: You didn't waste any time, though.
You asked him a lot of questions too. I did. Oh, yeah.
Absolutely, 'cause I just want to confirm
what his thoughts were on the kitchen.
SCOTT: OK, so... OK, the first thing I can see straight away... Yep.
..is you're coming down those stairs
and walking straight into an island bench.
OK. I see what you're saying there.
So, you're seating at the cooktop there...
What about, like, you know, that splash,
that oil splash off the cooktop?
I get you. It doesn't catch everything.
I get you. Because that seems to me...
That wall there is a waste. OK. OK.
You've got all this extra space here... Yep.
Do you need to do, like, a big square island bench?
Big. Yeah.
All I'm trying to do...
Yeah. ..is throw a stick in the spokes.
And I want you to challenge us too,
so I think that that's super important.
The conversation with Scotty brought me so much.
It was really, really good.
PRODUCER: Who doesn't love a Ford getaway! Exactly.
Loved it. Ford getaways are awesome. Loved it.
(GULL CRIES)
SCOTT: It's Tuesday morning on site
and with the public holiday behind them,
the Block is back in full swing.
('SLEEPYHEAD' BY PASSION PIT PLAYS)
And in house two,
experienced renovators Leah and Ash have five renos under their belt,
so are used to prepping their team for what lies ahead.
This is 300 gap.
Maybe this goes 370 gap. Yep.
And what I will do
is I'm gonna move all these tools in this other room in here.
So, this week, we are moving into the old part of the house, yeah,
so it's a totally different ball game.
Our guys are pretty excited to get up into the old part of the house
because they're all great carpenters that work well with timber
and, yeah, we're pretty pumped because this is what we know.
We know this sort of stuff.
Next door in house three, Kristy and Brett are also pumped
because their build team are already firing on all cylinders.
BRETT: Back into full swing. Power tools are back, ready to go.
Main focus is pulling up all the floorboards to be able to...
KRISTY: Create the subfloor.
..yeah, create the subfloor, get that all up to grade, up to code
and batten the walls
and start to look toward getting some plaster sheets on.
# Earth angel Earth angel... #
The old part of these houses are charming
but they were built in the 1950s
and some of the building methods back then were, well, questionable.
# I'll fall in love with... #
KEITH: Wow. Mmm.
Treated pine stumps.
We haven't actually seen this subfloor
until you've pulled the floorboards up.
Now we can see what's here.
That's throughout the whole house. Oh...
Wow.
So we have had our crew go through and rip up the flooring
to find a nice little surprise, pine stumps.
Apparently, that's what they did in the '50s
and that was holding the whole structure of our house up.
When you do a new build, do we ever have these stumps in place?
We don't.
Who knows, you might be able to keep them but I doubt it.
I'm gonna have to go and get some answers for you guys.
Well, there was a lot of faces going, "Oh."
Mmm.
So it took us a little bit to understand what that meant.
Keith... Keith's sorting it out.
That's alive...
That's gonna be consistent through the whole house, right, so...
That means day ones are gonna be mental going forward
'cause that's gonna be everywhere here, isn't it?
Just so much more work. Yeah, I understand that.
As soon as he said it, I was, like, "Holy crap," so...
Instead of that being an hour, that's a day.
We've lost a day every week.
Yeah, to go to sleep Monday and think, "You beauty"
and then just that complete 180... (IMITATES EXPLOSION)
..where we pull up the floor and see that, and we were, like...
PRODUCER: It's a different ballgame, isn't it? It is. Yeah. Definitely.
It is. You just don't know what's going to be in the existing house.
SCOTT: Well, next door, Steph and Gian do
and so do their current builders.
With no stump issues to slow them down, they've raced ahead
and prepped their floor already in preparation for their new builder,
who takes over the reins today.
This is their third build team in as many weeks,
led by this guy, Jack.
Oh, we woke up about, like, 6:00 and we were, like, "Let's go."
Showered and on the road
because we didn't want to miss too much of on site.
Yeah, we were super eager. Our builder was starting!
Yes.
We're super, super grateful that you're able to come and, like,
get us out of the deep end.
Yeah. But, look, it's work-from-home week, so there's a fair bit to do.
Let's get in there and rip in.
As Jack and his team get underway,
Gian's turning his attention to the spa
in the hope he can sell it
because when Steph and Gian inherited house four,
they also inherited this monster.
Everything that we won from last week, which is valued at 50,
plus that, which is, say, 15,
that'll take us to 65, which is awesome.
Awesome.
And it'll go a long way for our landscaping week,
so, yeah, watch this space.
So we had that go live
and we actually had someone interested.
Steph. Dan!
I've just received some news from Nine In Six.
The pools are starting this week. Yeah, that's fine.
So we're starting to excavate everything.
Mm-hm. Our pool will be gone tomorrow.
They're gonna crane it out today. Oh.
So someone bought it? Yeah, almost.
OK. What did you get? I think it's gonna be 15.
Hundred? 15 grand? Grand.
Wow. I know.
Wow! I thought that it was worth more.
Wowee! Yeah.
OK, you've done really well. Hopefully it's a good lead.
Sounds promising. I mean, she says she's gonna pick it up.
OK, so I think what we might do today
is maybe crane it from the back to somewhere out here.
Can we put it on the garage... Potentially. Yep.
And then I'm just thinking,
how then do we get it from there onto this person's...
That's right.
I'm waiting for her to give me her number so I can organise all that.
OK. Let's get onto that... Yep. ..so I can go back to the guys.
Yep. Perfect. OK. Done.
Yeah, just had a chat to Steph in the street
asking her what's happening with the spa behind me
and she's just mentioned she sold it for 15 grand online,
which is amazing.
They got an offer for 15 grand.
It's a room win plus a challenge win.
That's a massive for your budget!
(LAUGHS) That's pretty good!
SCOTT: I tell you what else is pretty good,
the little surprise that Alice from Domain's got
for our Blockheads today. Hi, Brett. How are you?
Kyle and Leslie, meet Alice Stolz.
Hello! From the telly!
Pleasure to meet you both. Hello. Nice to meet you, Alice.
Alice is the property expert from Domain.
Great to be here. How are you going? Yeah, really good.
Really good. Yeah.
We really enjoyed our first two weeks.
They're on fire, Alice. Look at this.
I was gonna say, you're obviously doing alright. (LAUGHS)
You've hit the ground running
if this is what you're delivering already.
Now, the good news is that your house has now gone up on the Domain app.
Oh, OK. Oh, great.
Yeah. Oh, that's exciting. Oh! (LAUGHS)
The Domain app is the only place
that anybody can see all of the Block listings.
Alice from Domain, she showed us our house on Domain for the first time.
Well, it photographs magnificently, doesn't it?
Into the Pilates studio from in there.
(LAUGHS) That's it.
STEPH: Amazing. Amazing.
So it's really happening! GIAN: Wow.
LEAH: House two.
So you can see how important it is to appeal to buyers
because this is how people usually first are introduced to a property.
You guys have got a lot of work to do... BOTH: Yes.
..to deliver on this promise. ASH: 100%.
And do you know what, because we're doing this right now
and the folks at home are watching,
they're gonna go straight to their phones and look at your listing...
Definitely. ..because we just told them.
They're all watching at home and now they're gonna look at it. Yep.
We've gotta give them someone to call, though,
so get onto those agents. I know. Yes.
Well, the agent that we're starting to have some chats with
and would love some advice on is Buxton.
They're really strong local agents down here... Yeah.
..which when you're buying and selling... Yeah.
..particularly in an area like this, you want local.
Yeah, yeah. Yes. OK.
Is there anyone else you would suggest, though?
I'll show you how to find other agents. OK.
You just go into this area here, type the suburb you're looking in.
Yep. For us, it's Hampton.
And you can see all the local agents come up.
Alice from Domain showed us through the app.
Somewhere on there that we could actually search agents.
And you can see what they're selling, how many they've sold,
you know, and you can actually get... Yeah.
..sort of intel of what's actually happening...
Yeah. ..with that agent.
So easy. Yeah.
It is a handy app.
Back to the build and in house three, judging by the look on Keith's face,
Kristy and Brett should brace for the worst.
KEITH: Um, I've got some bad news.
Now, you've inherited this house.
Unfortunately, this house has got treated pine stumps...
Yep. ..which don't meet code.
So, unfortunately, you guys have to rip the whole flooring system out,
including the stumps
and put new concrete stumps in, new bearers, new joists.
Right.
That's quite a lot of work. Yes. I understand.
So, house three need to remove the subfloor frame,
take out the old pine stumps that support it,
dig holes for new stumps, fill them with concrete,
pop in the new stumps and allow time for the concrete to set,
then build a new subfloor frame so the floor can be laid on top.
Quite intense. Yep.
Understand that, yeah.
This is going to take time out of their weeks going forward
and cost them a lot of money.
No, no good news at all for us.
Unfortunately, the way this house was built,
they used pine posts like what you would see on farm fences.
Not up to code and something that obviously needs to be changed
throughout the whole house.
So it looks like it's going to be a trend through each room
but what that means day one for us
is now every single time we do a room,
it is a massive demo for the whole lower level,
so concrete pillars need to be put in, inspections need to be done.
It's gonna be massive Mondays for us.
So, yeah, it's never great to start a Monday chaotic
but that's gonna be a trend going forward now, so...
PRODUCER: It's Tuesday today.
(GULL CRIES) (THUNDER CRACKS)
SCOTT: Welcome back to The Block,
where one of these charming 1950s houses
has turned into a living nightmare for Kristy and Brett.
KEITH: Unfortunately, this house has got treated pine stumps.
Well, in house three, I've just delivered some pretty bad news.
We've pulled up the floorboards in house three.
We had no way of getting in and seeing what was there
and we've discovered treated pine stumps
literally sitting in the sand.
That's throughout the whole house. Oh...
When we build these days, we use concrete stumps,
not treated pine stumps,
and they haven't set in concrete
and unfortunately they've inherited house three as it is
and they have to deal with it.
And that's what the team are doing right now.
They've spent hours removing the old stumps
and now they're taking on the backbreaking task of digging holes
for the new ones.
A little bit of a taste of what we're in for, digging some dirt
in preparation for this re-stumping that is our new future.
I don't like the look of the future. (BOTH LAUGH)
Well, next door in house two,
I don't think Ash is going to like his future either.
Oh, no.
(TENSE MUSIC)
KEITH: Ash. Yo.
We've got a bit of a situation... Yeah, we... Yeah.
..which isn't good for you guys. Yep.
You've got timber stumps too... Yeah.
..which don't comply.
So, unfortunately, mate, you're in the same boat as house three.
Yeah, we have to re-stump, guys.
(SNIFFS)
So, a full... Yeah, reframed subfloor, yeah.
We were starting one of the...
'Cause we've been working in the, like, back bit, which is more...
LEAH: Short. They know where we've been working.
What is wrong with the pillars? The pillars are bad.
You've gotta take the old pillars out
and you've gotta put the new pillars in.
They're not pillars, but anyway... Like, that's... That's it.
OK.
(EXHALES)
KEITH: OK. Alright.
And Doug the engineer is here
and he'll give us a final detail to work to.
Hopefully these aren't concreted in.
(LAUGHS) It'll be a bit hard.
The other houses didn't have it.
The stumps are sitting in the sand. OK.
Yeah.
No worries. Thank you. Thanks, Keith.
PRODUCER: So, how much time will that eat into your time?
Lots.
It'll eat into lots of my time.
# We spend too much time together I want to be with you... #
In house four, they've had no hold-ups with their build so far.
But Gian wishes he could say the same about the sale of the spa.
We actually had someone reach out to us this morning
asking whether it was still available and we said it was.
We had a bit of back-and-forth chat about them,
just giving them some more details
and they were ready to make a 50% payment,
pay the rest upon pick-up
and then they went quiet.
They ghosted us. They ghosted us.
DAN: Hey, Gian.
We are in the process of craning your spa...
Right. ..on the back to out here.
Have you got anyone interested?
No, I've only got the one person so far.
But then they just dropped off.
They were fully ready to pay 50% and then 50% later.
What we're gonna do, it's gonna be craned,
we're gonna drop it out here but... Yep.
..we can't have it sitting here for too long.
No, no, no... Yeah.
I'm just gonna drop the price and keep dropping
until someone picks it up.
Because I don't want to leave it here too long either. OK.
OK? Keep on top of it, though. Yeah, I will. No, no, I will.
I will.
Next door, house five's original floor stumps meet code,
so their team are onto building the new subfloor frame
on top of the existing stumps.
But Eliza does have some issues grasping some building basics.
So, what's your task right now? What are you...
Oh, cleaning up nails. No. Screws.
I'm actually waiting for Mitre... Yeah, is that what they are?
They're screws, not nails.
What's the difference between a nail and a screw?
Are you serious?
Are these because they've got...
What's the difference between a nail and screw?
Surely not. Surely not.
Oh... I mean, we're never gonna be able to answer the questions you ask
about what is the difference, so don't even bother asking it.
Nails. (LAUGHS) Look what comes up when I google 'nails'.
(LAUGHS) Fingernails.
'Cause I've been looking into getting mine fixed.
These are fingernails that are very dirty.
They look infected.
Probably not so helpful when you're building a house
'cause there's super specific things that probably made a big difference.
The builders get it. Yeah.
While Eliza is clueless on the finer points of building,
Liberty has gone shopping with renewed faith in her ideas
for styling their bedroom and study space.
So, what are we doing?
The main things that I'm looking for today
are I've seen a specific bedhead that I love. Mm-hm.
It's the Hugo Ridge bedhead
in the boucle, like, cream, boucle colour. Yep.
I woke up this morning feeling,
like, quite good and kind of refreshed.
Like, last night, I felt like I had my emotional spiral yesterday
and I went to bed last night feeling alright.
Yes. Beautiful.
Went to GlobeWest.
I knew there was a bedhead that I wanted
but I also can get a couple of bedside tables.
That's gonna give you your luxe.
Thoughts?
The leather tab's a nice touch.
I guess the only thing I'm nervous about is clashing the timbers.
They're gonna give you a really nice glam...
Yeah. ..but muted colour.
Oh, my god. I just don't know. I'm, like, so out of...
I just feel so out of my depth. I don't know.
I just don't have any confidence in my decision-making
when it comes to styling.
I've lost all my confidence.
Sorry, I'm being such a, like... Don't be.
No, no, no, I can only...
After the feedback, I'm just, like, questioning everything I'm doing
and I feel like I've got no idea. BOTH: Yeah.
I just question everything now
and it takes me so long to make any decisions,
which you don't have time to waste when you're on The Block,
so I then, like, went into a head spin
and just, like, could not get out of it and just my mind was...
Yeah, I just couldn't make a decision.
And you FaceTimed me and... I didn't Face...
Oh, yeah, I FaceTimed you. You were very...
Yeah. ..all over the place.
Yeah.
I'm just questioning everything in the room.
I don't know what... Like... I'm like... OK.
Do we still do the blue? I just don't know what I'm doing.
OK. Just... Just... Just calm down.
You're just getting so flustered and overwhelmed.
It's, like, not heart surgery, is it?
Like, Lib, it's not life and death. Let's just...
I know it's not but it's, like... I'm just...
Like, I'm literally just questioning every single thing that I'm doing.
That's fine. You don't...
OK.
Alright, I'll just figure it out. I don't know.
I was just lost.
I was at a point where I just didn't know where to go from there.
(GULL CRIES) (THUNDER CRACKS)
# Smile like you mean it... #
SCOTT: It's late Tuesday arvo on the Block
but Liberty wishes the day was already over.
# Smile like you mean it... #
Hey, Siri, call Mum.
Yeah, like, I literally was in GlobeWest today,
for, like, two and a half hours and, like, walked out with a bedhead.
Like, I could not make a decision
and, like, everyone was trying to help me
but I was just so overwhelmed.
Hey, Mum. (CRIES) WOMAN: What's the matter?
I just feel so overwhelmed and I just don't know what I'm doing.
Oh, Lib, it's so difficult for you.
I basically left there, got in the car and called Mum
and cried my heart out.
You are so tired and exhausted.
Don't lose confidence in yourself, you know.
How can I not, Mum, when everything I did...
Like, I had such a strong vision last week
and we felt so confident and so proud
and that was the first time we've ever actually, like, felt,
like, proud of ourselves and then you just get, like... (BLEEP).
And there's nobody that can help you with any of those ideas at all?
I'm just getting so many different opinions
and I'm just so overwhelmed.
Like, our feedback was we have to go more luxe.
I don't know what luxe is.
I don't know what looks expensive. I just don't know anything.
Like, just feel so out of my depth
'cause I don't know all this stuff and, like...
I understand. And, I mean, they know you don't understand.
But I just think that's disgusting of that arsehole real estate guy
to say what he did for you.
Anyway, hopefully tomorrow will be a better day.
Will it?
Couldn't get much worse than today, so...
On site, houses two and three are frantically finishing off the digging
for their new stump holes.
It was a hectic day. We were all on the shovels.
We were on the wheelbarrows, digging, digging, digging.
MAN: We've only got 20 minutes until Conc's here. Yeah.
Concrete was coming at 3:00. It was go, go, go.
So, the race is on to get those stump holes ready for the concrete truck.
DAN: Mate, how are you?
But the holes also need to be up to code.
Good, mate. Yourself?
And Foreman Dan is in house two to inspect them.
Sure it's 350 by 350?
Are they bellying in?
Look, mate, that one is. Yeah. We need to square that one.
They can't be bellying in. They've gotta be squared up.
Yep.
Another ten and I'll come have a look.
Big job here in house two. The guys are almost there.
They've just gotta fix up a few holes, get them a bit square.
Concrete's en route right now,
so they've gotta be digging quick, these guys.
So, as house two step it up a gear...
house three are just as under the pump.
(BEEPING)
And the concrete truck is here,
so Foreman Dan's headed back to house two.
Mate, I can hear the truck out the front.
I hope we're good. Conc's here.
Lucky it was an hour late.
And Keith's inspecting house three.
Now for the moment of truth.
(TENSE MUSIC)
Well, we've measured them all. We know they're all 350 or bigger.
Yeah. 600 deep.
Yeah. You're good to pour, mate.
Sweet as. Thanks, mate.
Into her. Let's get cracking!
KEITH: Yeah, all good.
Well done. Legend. Thank you very much.
Nice work, gents. That has set you back a bit, hasn't it, this?
It's, what, 3:40 and we haven't even got our stumps in yet.
Alright. Well done, guys. Thank you.
Carry on.
But with the tradies clocking off soon, the race isn't over.
The concrete now has to go in the holes.
And to make it even harder for house three...
We had wheelbarrows going but then we also utilised buckets
because it's too hard to cart that wheelbarrow
all the way into the space that we wanted.
DAN: Haven't seen the bucket method for a while.
Wow.
Full big two Mitre 10 buckets in either arm, carting it up
and I soon felt my age when I did that probably 40 times.
Tired boys there doing it out of buckets.
(ROCK MUSIC PLAYS)
And once all the holes are filled with concrete,
the new stumps need to go in.
(ROCK MUSIC CONTINUES)
What a punishing day.
And by close of business in house three...
We did heaps
if you compare it to the hand we were dealt...
Mmm.
..and we've done stuff-all
if you compare it to most other contestants this week.
(LAUGHS)
And how about house two?
PRODUCER: Are you on track for day two of the build?
No.
No, we are not on track for day two of the build.
Nego. Negative.
We've got a lot of work to do in there.
Like, we're sitting in a pile of dirt and it's Tuesday night.
Our room is an actual pile of dirt.
Building the best home office is a tough nut to crack.
I hate this more than anything I've done in my whole, entire life.
There's cracks in the walls.
I'm seeing daylight,
not looking good.
Cracks in their confidence.
I just feel so overwhelmed, I just don't know what I'm doing.
But the biggest crack...
(SMASH)
Guys, what was that?
could be an:
What the (BLEEP)?