This evening, HGTV will air the premiere of a six-episode furniture competition featuring daytime personality and comedienne Ellen DeGeneres. Ellen’s Design Challenge bids six hopeful competitors to create inventive, extraordinary furniture as they sketch, design, and build through creative obstacles and avoid elimination.
Preview courtesy of HGTV:
Each episode, the contestants will be presented with a furniture-building challenge against a 48-hour clock. Contestants will be granted a “build team,” the assistance of several expert carpenters, and access to workshop and tools. The last remaining contestant will receive a $100,000 cash prize, courtesy of home store Wayfair.com, and will have his or her work featured in a future issue of HGTV Magazine.
Fellow comedian Jay Montepare hosts the show, with Dwell editor-in-chief Amanda Dameron, and executive creative director of Wayfair.com, Christiane Lemieux, participating as judges.
The six competitors include Carley Eisenberg, of Boone, N.C.; Gaspar de Jesus, of Los Angeles; Tim McClellan, of Durango, Colo.; Mark Moskovitz, of Cleveland; Leslie Shapiro Joyal, of Los Angeles; and Katie Stout, of Brooklyn, N.Y.
“Ellen’s incomparable style and sense of humor adds a special element to this series,” says Kathleen Finch, president of HGTV and DIY Network. “Our team is excited to share this fun, fresh, twist on the traditional design competition with viewers.”
“I am most excited about seeing the furniture and then stealing it for my home,” DeGeneres quipped in a release.
The show will air Monday, Jan. 26, at 9 p.m. (EST/PST) on HGTV (check local listings).
