Mimi might have declared herself this season’s villain earlier in the show, but Courtney and Grant are giving her a run for her money.
As the plaster disaster rolls on, the teams are scrambling to make up time after the late delivery. For the first time in the show’s history teams have been given painting teams, but if they don’t have plaster on the walls there will be nothing for the painters to paint.
Charlotte and Maddy’s plan for Venetian plaster on one wall looks set to be dashed when one of their plasterers doesn’t have the right insurance and isn’t allowed on site.
With a bunch of plasterers sitting idle in Grant and Courtney’s place, the sisters’ carpenter mate Jack heads over to ask if they could borrow one, but Grant claims every one of his team is needed.
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Luckily foreman Dan has a contact who arrives to save the day, but without asking the girls, Courtney swoops on him and asks him to come over to quote on a wall at their place.
When producers ask her and Grant about it later Grant makes like Donald Trump and just makes things up, saying “the girls didn’t have any issue with it. We actually gave them our plasterers in the first week”.
Cue footage of what really happened: Grant demanding his plasterers leave the sisters’ house despite them not having any work to at his place.
So when the villainous pair decide to snatch the Venetian plaster expert out from under Charlotte and Maddy’s nose, Jack is having none of it.
“They didn’t want to help us yesterday and now they want our help today? This is outrageous,” he says.
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Then it’s on to the judging.
Maddy and Charlotte did manage to get Venetian plaster on their feature wall, teaming it with cabinetry on either side of a natural log fireplace, white lounge and textured rug.
The judges note they used the same pendant lights as Ricky and Haydn did in their kitchen and declare both the dining table and coffee table too small for the space.
“I would like a little bit more drama,” Darren Palmer says.
Shaynna Blaze is again being rude about flowers, saying the girls’ floral arrangement could have been “found at the side of the road”, which is at least a bit better than her claim that Ricky and Haydn’s kitchen flowers could have been found in a bin.
She also thinks the room is “vanilla”, though Marty Fox points out that vanilla is a universally popular flavour.
Courtney and Grant have a mustard velvet occasional chair, scalloped edge dining chairs designed by Courtney herself, arched doorway and built-in cabinetry.
Unfortunately their pendants are way too high and the placement of their fireplace, tucked off to the side behind one end of the couch, is a disaster.
“You sit at the end and it’s too hot, and the other end it’s hidden. It doesn’t do the job it’s meant to do,” Darren points out.
Ricky and Haydn have a lowered ceiling over the living area, with pink occasional chair, randomly placed skylights, textured rug and winning artwork.
The judges love the cosiness created by the lowered ceiling but take issue with the orientation of the dining table.
Kylie and Brad win plaudits for having the best lighting plan, with sconces and strip lighting plus a huge custom-made mirror, and custom-made black dining table.
The judges also like the black tile fireplace surround and the black painting plywood, which Shelley Craft had worried would cheapen the room.
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About the only fault they can find is that the rug is too small for the dining table it’s sitting on.
Mimi and Kristian didn’t fare as well, with Marty claiming the room felt as squashed as an apartment in the city and saying “there is no sophistication within this space whatsoever”. Shaynna took issue with the fact the lounge faced the TV. Apparently, you should watch TV with your back to it.
In any case, it’s Kylie and Brad who get the win, with two tens (from Marty and Shaynna).
Presumably Kylie no longer believes the competition is rigged.
Judges’ final scores
1 Kylie and Brad 29.5
2 Courtney and Grant 26.5
3 Maddy and Charlotte 25.5
4 Ricky and Haydn 25
5 Mimi and Kristian 23.5
MISSED AN EPISODE?
EP 30/31: ‘Devastated’: Why tradies refuse to work on The Block
EP 29: ‘Mean girl antics’: Block sisters bullied after win
EP 28: ‘Competition is rigged’: Furious Block contestant lashes out
EP 26/27: ‘They lied’: Teams turn on sisters, Block’s reputation questioned
EP 25: Why two teams are fighting over hotshot agent
EP 24: Grant, the master snitch
EP 22/23: ‘F..king brothel’: second Block builder quits
EP 21: Grant lets rip on “dog ugly” room
EP 20: ‘Can’t polish a turd’: Block judge lets rip
EP 18/19: ‘Paramount to cheating’: Scott Cam accuses Block team
EP 17: ‘Don’t give a f***’: Block team quits after producer steps in
EP 16: Abusive 1am phone call shocks entire Block
EP 14/15: “Snake… I’m not having you on site’: Block builder fired
EP 13: ‘F***ing walk off’: Block couple’s fight turns toxic
EP 12: ‘Arrogant’: Blockhead goes on a bender, cop huge judge spray
EP 10/11: ‘Rip it up’: Block’s biggest bathroom disaster ever
EP 9: ‘You never listen to me’: Block couple fall apart
EP 8: ‘This has become a joke’: Dan slams popular Block pair
EP 6/7: ‘F***ing wasting time’: Block couple set to quit
EP 5: ‘This has never happened’: Block team caught in fraud scandal
EP 4: ‘Childish, boring’: Block judges come in blazing
EP 3: Block builder already breaking rules incurs foreman’s wrath
EP 2: ‘Who the f**k wants to sleep near their kids?’ — Block couple baffled
EP 1: ‘Not good at anything’: Bathroom fireworks kick off on The Block