How “Trading Spaces” Made Us Over

The rise of DIY TV wasn’t a fluke—it was an economic indicator. “Trading Spaces” designer Genevieve Gorder gives Wrong House a view from the inside.

Cheryll Hairstone, left, and her husband Torrey, right, sneak a wave to their friends during the filming of the home renovation show “Trading Spaces” in 2002. // Photo by The Washington Times/ZUMAPRESS.com/Alamy

By Sarah Archer

If you were domestically inclined in the early ’00s and you liked watching interior design makeovers on TV, there were few option…