Above, Crew in Ft. Wayne airport, L-R: Sean, Suzanne, Marianne, Cindy, Mike, Brian, Lloyd, Alison

The crew arrived home safely yesterday after one of the most crazy, fun, crazy weeks we've ever had on My Home 2.0. Did I mention it was crazy? Because it was. 

Above, L-R: Director Eric, Guru Lloyd, Account Exec. Marianne, Guru Brian

Some folks might have thought it was a bit nutty to try to pull off in one week what we usually do in two, but in the end, shooting both the Royer and Porter episodes simultaneously worked out great. As predicted, the back-and-forth shooting method proved very efficient, since the build crew could work on one home while the other team shot footage with the family at the other home. Nobody missed a word of dialogue from the sounds of power tools, and nobody had to miss valuable work time when "Quiet on the set" was called.

Of course, there were certain people who went above and beyond, sometimes doing up to double the work to make sure everything was done. For these tireless go-getters, there was The Bling.

The Bling may have seemed like a crazy (or at least silly) idea at the beginning of the week, but rewarding the hardest-working crew member at the end of each day, with a big faux-gold dollar-sign necklace that the Bling-bearer got to wear on set the next day, ended up being brilliant.

The Bling really helped motivate people to chip in and be part of the team (I even set aside my usual "I'm just the blogger, that's not my department" spiel to help move furniture and gently wrap the Porters' delicate collectibles one late night.)

Far from promoting an overly competitive spirit, though, it actually fostered one of giving and selflessness -- by mid-week, when Bling-bearer and build producer Dustin (above) couldn't decide between the three Gurus, he went out and bought two more pieces of Bling himself. (After that, it was triple-Bling days until the end.) But the daily Bling ceremony was about more than just a silly, tacky necklace -- it was about earning the respect of your peers and being proud of a job well done. And even if they turned some necks a funky green color, hey, that particular shade became a badge of honor, too.

More post-wrap thoughts coming soon...

Posted by Jim 2.0 | tagged: Porter, Royer, photos, after, block party