How Much Of Netflix's Show Instant Dream Home Was Real? -

Instant Dream Home is a Netflix home renovation reality series that was a hit, despite some skeptical viewers, who questioned its realism.

Netflix's Instant Dream Home is a home makeover show that featured a twist (all renovations were completed in 12 hours), and initially, that timeline seemed too challenging. Anyone who thought the cast looked familiar would have been correct, as almost every one of them has appeared on TV. Host Danielle Brooks starred in the popular Netflix scripted series, Orange is the New Black. Adair Curtis was on the popular renovation show, Hollywood Styling, Paige Mobley appeared in America’s Next Top Model, Nick Cutsumpas was seen in The Big Flower Fight, and Erik Curtis was the only newcomer.

Home improvement shows are hardly a new concept, but Instant Dream Home broke all the previous rules. Instead of long and dragged-out renovation processes, there was only one 12-hour day of actual onsite work. However, fans expressed skepticism over that feat. After contestants compiled their needs list, the experts (Adair, the interior designer, Nick, the exterior decorator, Erik, the carpenter, and Paige, the special projects lead) all worked together to pre-plan the renovation, right down to the millisecond.

Adair Discussed Instant Dream Home Skepticism

After negative commentary about the show surfaced, following Instant Dream Home's release, Architectural Digest interviewed interior designer, Adair. During that chat, Adair assured readers that all their project planning was based on homeowners’ videos and pictures, which created some problems. Other concerns from viewers were that the prefabricated kitchen (it was shown in episode 1) and bathroom (featured in episode 6) would not hold up well. Adair said this was a misconception, and confirmed that the prefabricated designs were constructed in controlled environments. Tools designed to be rugged were used. He said, “I highly doubt any of the families we worked with will have any problems.”

Reddit Sleuths Spot Issues On Instant Dream Home

Adair's claims didn't seem to be enough for the skeptics, who believed that they spotted bad cuts and shoddy carpentry on Instant Dream Home. On August 13, 2022, u/smitrovich started a Reddit thread under the title, “Can we talk about how fake Instant Dream Home is?” Among the first comments was an angry viewer, who insisted that the renovations would fall apart after six months. Another user, u/diegobyte, pointed out that in episode 2, "they crane the trailer to the back cus of some hill. But then when they get it back there are no less than 5 trailers and 2 box trucks they just drove back there no problem."

Besides continuity issues, another viewer had complaints. They said that they created false drama on Instant Dream Home again in episode 7, when the kitchen counter broke while it was being unloaded from the truck. A replacement counter arrived in the nick of time, but it was half the size of the original one. However, it was perfectly cut to fit the countertop. It's obvious that certain viewers picked up on the likely falseness of certain aspects of the show.

Despite the backlash, the Instant Dream Home cast reassured fans on social media that everything on the show was created and completed by them. In two heartwarming Instagram posts, Erik said that he really appreciated his team. Erik's first post highlighted Paige, who single-handedly came up with the ideas for the glass balcony, the schoolhouse, and the bathroom addition. Erik's second post featured Adair, whom he credited with bringing the team together. He organized them well, so they could effectively implement a cohesive plan for each home.

While no show can escape the so-called "movie magic" of editing, some scenes may have been created just to ramp up the drama and suspense. Nonetheless, there is no doubt that this show's team members respected and loved each other. Despite the negative reactions, viewers might get to watch Instant Dream Home season 2 someday.

Sources: Architectural Digest, u/smitrovich/Reddit, Erik Curtis/Instagram