Seeing a man in the Hancock Fabrics store happens occasionally - usually when the man's wife sends him there to pick up something. So Verna Friese, a store supervisor, didn't think anything of the presence Wednesday of the tall, thin brown-haired man.

She didn't know he was one of them.

And later, when she found out he was one of them, her reaction was ho-hum, relatively speaking, compared to the reaction of her daughter. The daughter, a fan in awe, insisted at about 9:45 that night that Friese, who hadn't even bothered, oh my gosh, to get the celebrity's name, stop relaxing in bed, stop watching television and come to the computer. The daughter wanted Friese to study Internet pictures until Friese could pinpoint exactly which of the "Trading Spaces Family" cable television show designers she had actually seen. Friese is about 80 percent certain from looking at pictures that it was the one-and-only designer Doug Wilson.

And that's not the only designer sighting. There was more than just that one thin Wilson man.

Hancock Fabrics is reportedly one of the hot places these days in Bismarck to see big-name celebrity designers from the TLC network show, which is filming episodes involving six Bismarck families. The crew is in town for 10 days through Aug. 20. The basic concept is that two families switch homes for two days during which time they provide the elbow grease to transform one room in their neighbor's house. A professional designer, with a $1,000 budget, has come up with a plan, and the family, guided by the designer, is to do the work.

These designers have apparently developed legions of hard-core autograph-seeking adoring fans who admire their artistry.

On Tuesday, prior to the memorable - memorable for her daughter, any way - thin-man experience on Wednesday, Friese also helped a dark-haired woman. And that other woman. Two women who were awfully nice about giving autographs while they waited to pay for their two $24 sewing machine covers.

Yep, apparently they were designers, too. They wanted to know if there was a discount, since they were from "Trading Spaces" and on a budget.

Hancock isn't the only spot.

There's a thrift store on Main Avenue, Seeds of Hope, that sold an "icky brown couch," and several other furniture pieces that dipped beneath plain into ugly territory - a floral chair, three pink office type chairs, two hanging lamps and one beyond ugly throw-up-green lamp without a lampshade, said Cheri Bettis, a store employee.

Bettis didn't know the two buyers - a tall, thin, elegant and sophisticated woman and the shorter, cheerful woman with a Texas accent - were with "Trading Spaces Family" when she teased them, mildly astounded at their uniformly bad taste in their choices.

"You have no taste," she told the two women. "You've got to have better taste than this."

She said they laughed and bought anyway.

"Trading Spaces Family's" film crew finished up the first project this week, transforming rooms in the homes of Mark and Mary Hoff and Terry and Donna Medler. Up next, on Monday and Tuesday, will be rooms in the homes of Donald and Tondi McGuire and Darrell and Vicki Wrege.

The last to go: Kathy and Mitch Nilles home in northwest Bismarck and Greg and Pam Vetter.

In both homes, it's a son's bedroom that's being transformed.

Mason Nilles, 12, has a sister, Maddie Nilles, 8, and she has a room, too. But a shot at television was lost for her when mom, Kathy Nilles, challenged them to a room-cleaning contest.

"I told them which ever one goes down and cleans up their room faster (can be on the show)," she said.

Mason took off like a shot. Maddie's reaction wasn't shot-like. She determined her room was too messy and decided victory wasn't in the cards.

Mason was originally hoping for a room with black walls, and a floor ripped clean of the brand-new carpeting there and painted instead with black paint. But Kathy Nilles thinks a new and better idea might be in the works, instead.

The Vetters have five children. The room to be transformed will be Jacob's. He's 5, now, could use a less babyish room without all the white furniture. But he also could use some help.

Jacob Nilles has cerebral palsy, doesn't have use of his legs or hands, and is in a wheelchair. The hope is that his room will be turned into a handicapped accessible wonderland.

A job made in heaven, perhaps, for some designers of celebrity status.

(Reach reporter Virginia Grantier at 250-8254 or at vgrantier@ndonline.com.)