Popular TV show turned into books

Iowa’s Meredith Publishing will publish three books based on the popular Learning Channel program “Trading Spaces.” Meredith Books publisher Jim Blume admits the books are based on the show’s success.They have to capture “the spirit of the show” with a look that’s fun, different and a little edgy — different from the kind of book they’d create for a Better Homes & Gardens project, he says. He says it’s the personalities of the designers and cast members, as well as the surprise of homeowners at what the neighbors have done to their house. On the cable TV show, two couples exchange homes and each gets to redecorate a room in the other’s home with a budget of only a thousand dollars and the help of professional decorators. Blume says some of the decorating they do is “on the wild side,” and not what you might want in your home but interesting to watch. Blume says the first book will focus on a “behind the scenes” look at the TV show and its staff, the next couple more about decorating projects themselves.