Design Star Premiere on HGTV: Good Summer TV

Summer TV can leave something to be desired. If you're not interested in watching endless reality or game shows where folks are shot out of cannons or men fight over an insecure Bachelorette, your options are fairly limited. When I was reminded that Design Star premieres tonight on HGTV, my hopes for decent summer television entertainment grew exponentially.

If you enjoy reading home decor blogs, you will probably love Design Star as much as I do. Yes, it's "reality TV," but it's easy to watch because the 12 contestants all have some sort of background in design: stylists, contractors, artists, and interior designers. Meaning, they are talented...no American Idol-like wannabe auditions. Each cast member has something special they bring to the show.

The contestants compete in a design-related challenge in each episode (think Project Runway for interior design!), and are judged by celebrity designers Genevieve Gorder, Vern Yip, and Candace Olson before one person is chosen to exit. This season will also feature HGTV's David Bromstad as a mentor to the competitors.

Emily Henderson, whose Secrets from a Stylist is an HGTV hit, was the Design Star winner last year. I love her sense of humor, sense of style, and cute sense of fashion. By winning Design Star, she earned her own show on HGTV...just like the contestants this season will have the opportunity to do.

The real drama and reality TV-ishness (that's totally a word) comes from watching the designers interact as they work together to complete the weekly challenges. Watching some of them work with a budget, a time crunch, and with different personalities can be highly entertaining, as evidenced from seeing Nina bully contestants into including her "murals" in each week's design last season.

Obviously, the time constraints surrounding the challenges can lead to some real design duds (anyone remember Donald Trump Jr.'s horror over the Trump Plaza apartment makeovers?). But I also love how I can find at least one thing in each episode that makes me think, "Wow! I never would have thought to do that." My sensibilities might not gel with every designer's style, but I can certainly appreciate the beauty in their work.

If you've been bored with what TV has to offer this summer, consider tuning in to see the season premiere of Design Star tonight on HGTV at 9 pm/8c.

These contestants look so smiling and happy...let's watch and see how long that lasts!

If you had to pick five of your favorite home/design bloggers to compete, who would you pick?

I'll be back tomorrow with Myth #3 in my Blogging Myths series.

Disclosure: This post is part of a sponsored campaign by Crafterminds.com and HGTV Design Star. My opinions are always my own!