Design Crush: Sabrina Soto

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It’s no secret that HGTV has been on their A game the past few years with the influx of new DIY trends with the less than happy economy. While there are many shows vying for my attention this season, the surprising newcomer has got to be "The High Low Project".


You’ll probably recognize her, as she was a cheerful home stager on another show from HGTV's past and a current face of Target, but home stager she is no more. If this show’s made one thing clear, Soto in undoubtedly a DESIGNER first.  Her humble, hard working attitude, just makes her more lovable to watch.  I’ve watched almost every episode this season to see if her identical splurge vs. save designs could hold up for a whole season, and it was the most recent episode “Gregg and Anson's Apartment” that secured my adoration for the show.  I’m not going to lie, there was one episode that got a little too Target-plug-happy, but I was pleased to see that this was not repeated so heavily in the following episodes.   


What I like most about this show compared to the “Design on a Dime” varieties (before Casey--she’s a saint!) is that Sabrina’s chosen “projects” are not at all scraping the bottom of the barrel.  You know which ones I’m talking about!  The ones where they staple gun placemats to walls, ugh :/ Sabrina is a perfectionist with years of experience, so all of her advice is very specific, but inspires only logical DIY crafts. “Use oil base paint and quality brushes for this.”  The concept of the show is to create a room that fulfills all the clients’ needs and design preferences, and then Soto goes back through and replaces all the high-design splurge items with affordable options and a handful of craft projects. I think what astounded me the most this episode was when she replaced the $510 one-of-a-kind Hermes pillow with DIY pillows made with chic vintage silk scarves. They were to-die for!

Another unexpected newcomer, is her cohost/carpenter, Christopher White. Together they are a wonderful design duo, but to my surprise, Chris made some pretty slick design choices on his own.  He’s a quiet one, but he has amazing taste, just as his counterpart. Oh AND he can build basically anything!  NBD.  

This show seemed at first a little too good to be true next to the David Bromstad-Emily Henderson-Genevieve Gorder-and Candice Olson-greats of HGTV, but “The High Low Project” has won my picky viewership, and I recommend all design-lovers watch an episode or two.  :)