to go to making it just livable, but I want to go beyond that

and I want this house to be lovable.

I want to just have fun with that.

Let's do something we've never done before.

[ding]

All right, guys, Alise Matthews is precious.

So when we're thinking about designing for her house,

think about keeping it very youthful

but mostly keeping it as affordable

as it can possibly be.

I really want to stay under $75,000

being a young single woman, find something that I can call home.

All right, this is the Bush House.

This is a $12,000 house, but it's

important in Laurel's history.

It is the last remaining structure

of the Bush Dairy Farm.

If you grew up in Laurel, it's very iconic.

It's been blue since the day it was first painted,

and I want to keep it blue.

This house is situated on such a beautiful property

with the lake, with all of the trees around it.

So I think we can bring a lot of those nature-inspired patterns

and colors into the house.

I agree.

Alise's young.

This means this is not her forever house.

So for now, let's give her a house that is full of style

and that is safe and beautiful.

We don't want to give her, like, the luxurious sedan.

It's like that fun car you drive in college.

Yes.

Yes.

This house didn't really have any design choices of any kind

before.

I mean, it was just a house, just a place to make a meal

and sleep and then go to work.

So we've got our work cut out for us to make this house

have style and personality.

Hear me out.

We're not going to do marble countertops,

but have you thought about laminate?

We've talked about this before in the past,

and I'm kind of excited about laminate.

It's got a very, like, marbled look

that's almost kind of modern.

We're not going to put $4,000 countertops in a $12,000 house.

If we base all of our decisions around this that has to happen,

what if we have fun with the backsplash?

We can take spray paints, vinegar, and water to make

mirrored mercury glass--

- I love that idea. - I love that.

--for the backsplash.

I kind of think it's fun, and we can afford it.

So color-- if we're going to kind

of go modern and kind of funky and fun,

what if we play with green?

And you know how I feel about green.

It's gorgeous, and I love this green

because it's a different green than what

we've done in the past.

It's not quite an olive, but it has a warmth to it.

It's very sophisticated.

I don't think anyone's lived in it for the last,

like, 15 years or something.

The fireplace is completely rotted.

The mantle is just, like, hanging by a thread,

and it's held together by its structural paint.

The floors are horrible right now.

We're just going to cover them up completely with pine floors.

Right, good.

We've done it before, and it's really beautiful.

I think if we keep the woods light, it's going to feel good.

Then the rest of the house we can tone it down on the wall

colors because I want to bring in fun and color

with furnishing.

And I was thinking we could probably

go with more of like a matchstick,

wood blind again to kind of add--

So we've got a big window in that living room--

- Right. - --dining room.

Right.

And then add lots of layers of, you know,

kind of color and texture with the drapery.

Yes.

We start with really cleaning up the bones

and then just really adding all of these personality touches.

I don't what to do with that bathroom, y'all.

That bathroom is tough.

I'm just going to say this is atrocious.

It's revolting.

It's a tough, tiny space, and I

think we're also trying to accomplish a laundry

area into the equation as well.

If we add something like a large black-honeycomb-style tile,

that would be a really pretty detail.

This whole house almost feels like a little beehive,

and this feels beehivey.

Taking out that window and putting the shower

and the tub there will actually give you a lot

more space to put a vanity.

I feel like a big vanity where she can store

everything she needs would be a lot more

useful than what's there now.

I want Alise to jump up and down

she's so excited when she sees.

I want her to be overcome with excitement.

I think that houses like this make

my artistic background shine.

This backsplash, it doesn't have to be tile.

Tile's cool, but we can use glass.

We can make it unexpected, and then

it's more personal that way.

It makes it more special.

Typically the houses we're working on are forever homes.

They're houses that are going to be lived

in for many, many years to come, and we

have to have the highest quality,

lasting, durable finishes in every decision.

But in this house, because it's going

to be her home for a few years and then she'll move on,

you know, so make this house perfect for her right now.