I love home makeover TV shows. I have this fantasy that one of them will come over to my house and help me weed out allllllll the clutter and turn it into a pristine palace of serenity. Ahhhh. Wouldn’t that be nice?? So when I found out that Clean House was coming to the Bay Area I got all kinds of excited. I loved Niecy Nash (the hostess) and was bummed to hear she had left….but guess who the new hostess is?? Tempestt Bledsoe! Yep, Vanessa Huxtable.
The house that was being “Cleaned” belonged to some friends of friends. These people are major collectors and have lots of good loot, so I was pretty excited to snap up some fun vintage stuff. I grabbed Wolfie and we hit the road! Here is my little indie boy….he decided to bring this little satchel with some toys and his DS, just in case he got bored. I {heart} Wolfie!
As we looked for parking THIS crazy thing was cruising down the street in front of us. Wolfie was impressed.
When we finally got to the sale, there was a line to get in—but it moved quickly. There was tons of great stuff, but I have to say all the cameras made you feel a tad self conscious. And the prices were all really high because they wanted you to haggle on camera. My fab friends Doe and Otto (of the equally fabulous Tiki Oasis) came with their two little boys. They were dressed in a fantastic matching Tiki outfits (I’m pleased to report that Doe’s green 70s blazer was from my Vintage Boutique sale!). While they were checking out a bamboo book shelf, Mark, the show’s designer, zipped on over with the camera crew. It was awesome!
Wolfie, Vander and Dashiell were awesome. They were SOOOOOO unimpressed by the whole thing. They had fun hanging out together and Wolfie was actually in a great mood despite the “i’m so over this” look.
Here is “Matt,” the Go-To Guy who builds stuff….he had on a grass skirt and a coconut bra and was really lively. The whole “vibe” was def kitschy cool.
FINALLY! We spied Tempestt. She was in this Mae West style ensemble and looked very perty. Doe kept nudging me to go over and chat with her but I felt a little shy—plus she always had people around her and I didn’t want to be a big ol looky loo!
I found some vintage kid’s books (of course) and a kooky 70s kitty bank. There was tons more stuff cool stuff but really I needed these people to come to MY house to clean up, not be shoppin’ at their sale! I went over to the fella who was actually part of the couple who was going to be on the show and he was super sweet and gave me an awesome deal on all my stuff! Clutching my sales slip I wandered off to figure out where to pay.
All of a sudden there was a HUGE crash—someone broke something and the camera crew went flying over to get it on film. And well well well….look who I found myself standing next to??
It was perfect. No camera crew just me-n-Tempestt! Our exchange went something like this:
TEMPESTT: Ooooh, you finding some good bargains today?
ME: Yes! I got some fun books and this cute kitty bank for $3.
TEMPESTT: Hold on a second $3? For the kitty kat bank? Oh no, nononono!
ME: No? (i was confused)
TEMPESTT (snatching the pay slip from my hand): NO.
ME: Soooooo, you’re gonna give me a better deal??
TEMPESTT: Better deal? I’m gonna give you a WORSE deal! That’s too cheap! We’re here to make money girl!
ME (laughing but thinking “OH lord is she really gonna charge me more for this stupid cat thing??”): Oh no!
TEMPESTT: Listen, I gotta be kept in boas!
ME (trying to be charming): Oooooh wait…..did I say $3? I mean THIRTY Dollars! That’s what he charged me!!
And we laughed and laughed and traded makeup tips. OK not really. But she did laugh and sent me on my way…..and YES THE CAMERAS CAUGHT THE WHOLE THING. My friend Karen was watching and she said “Oooh, you just had a ‘bit’ with Tempestt!”
Me, Doe and Karen……cleanin’ house!
The weather was soooo glorious! Wolfie and I went to the cafe with Doe and Dash. We got some ice coffees for the mamas and milk and cookies for the little fellers. It was a super fun day! And who knows…we just might might it on CLEAN HOUSE. Now if I could only convince them to come and actually CLEAN our house.
So that’s my most recent celeb dork out!
Alix, Let me start by telling you I have been a follower for awhile and you have a fab blog! I also love Clean House (as does my hubby)! What a great experience to
1) Go to the sale
2) Have a ‘bit’ with Tempestt
3) You’ll BE ON CLEAN HOUSE!!!!
I have to say, I loved Niecy, didn’t like the skinny one, but I think I will like Tempestt.
Denise
Extreme Personal Measures
Oh, I loved me some Niecy, so I’m sorry to see her go, but I love that Doe and Otto were there rocking it out in tiki style! Ha ha!
Did you accidentally call her Vanessa and ask here were Rudy is hiding? HAHAHA! Celebs hate that. I ran into Greg Brady once and asked him to sign my napkin, Greg Brady and he was totally cool but said, yeah–no way! HA! I also met at that same function the guy who played Doc on the Love Boat. From my cater waiter days. Sigh! It was just like on PARTY DOWN except not.
I can’t wait to see you on TV!
GREAT story! And I love the pic of Wolfie, Vander and Dash being all, “Psh, ANOTHER vintage sale? Wake me up when you find an original Millennium Falcon.”
Yeah, that is the best part. Those three little hoodlums. Someone needs a quarter to flip in the air.
Oh yeah–and I totally know that Radio flyer thing. I saw it Sunday afternoon rolling through the Trader Joe’s parking lot!
i enjoy waiting for a really serious moment in a Hoarders episode so i can sing: “WHO WANTS A CLEAN HOUSE?” i love how they are the exact same show with completely opposite spins.
so… you saw MARK BRUNETZ?! color me jealous. you’re getting all the good celebrity action lately. or, always.
Very nice! I don’t get Style so I had to watch TLC’s Clean Sweep, but I loved seeing Neicy on Dancibg with the Stars…a perfect gig for Tempest.
claaaaaasic alix!!!
It looks like you had a lot of fun! That sure is a cute $30 bank!! ;))
You just put the Style in Style Network, girl.
I loved reading your dork out! You know what I loved most though? Wolfie’s aloofness and that damn I Heart Pizza shirt! He is so rad.
When I bought the shirt they had a “I HEART ROCK” shirt and asked him which he preferred. “Well I guess I like rock….but I know I LOVE pizza, mama.” haha.
Guess whose boyfriend dropped and broke something? {{Raises hand}}
Glad it helped you meet “Vanessaâ€.
HAHAHA! NO WAY!!!!! WHooo hoo, that’s hilarious!
Hey! Delete that first comment with TYPO…egads! 😛
yahoooo so amazing. you better give us all a head’s up if you end up on an episode, lady!
looks like so much fun!!!
last pic of wolfie is to die. look at his little lollipop hand! I HEART WOLFIE!!!!!!!
That is awesome! I love your blog and I LOVE watching Clean House! I also dream of the crew coming and clearing out my house and turning from vintage hodge- podge to arty and stylish!