HGTV Stars Share Stories About Their Childhood Homes

Their childhood homes were their original influences. HGTV Magazine gets the HGTV pros to spill all their best design memories.

From: HGTV Magazine

Related To:

Shop This Look

Mina Starsiak Hawk, Good Bones

“My room in our home in Indianapolis, Indiana, had bunny and flower wallpaper and was covered in show ribbons from horseback riding competitions. When I moved out, my little brother Stephen repainted the room blue and red. I didn’t help with that decision! But I did redo the first floor during season one of my show.”

See More: Good Bones

From: HGTV Magazine

Steve & Leanne Ford, Restored by the Fords

“When we were growing up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, our family room was my favorite,” Steve says, “with its cathedral ceiling and an Oriental rug that had been passed down. Now I have it.” As for Leanne, her design passions date back to an appliance makeover at age 10: “I wanted to paint our avocado green fridge white,” she says. “Dad worried I’d ruin a perfectly good appliance, but when he went on a ski trip, Mom and I painted that ugly thing. Dad never said a word!”

See More: Restored by the Fords

From: HGTV Magazine

Luke Caldwell, Boise Boys

“My childhood home in Boise, Idaho, was very classic inside. All the original trim and wood features were intact, including the hardwood floors. I’m so thankful my parents kept its charm. I try to do the same in my designs.”

See More: Boise Boys

From: HGTV Magazine

Brian Kleinschmidt, 100 Day Dream Home

“My earliest decorating memory is begging my mom and dad to let me have wallpaper in my bedroom in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin. I chose abstract animals in primary colors. In hindsight, it was hideous. I’m surprised they were able to sell the house with that wallpaper!”

See More: 100 Day Dream Home

From: HGTV Magazine

Lyndsay Lamb & Leslie Davis, Unsellable Houses

“During elementary school, our family lived in our grandparents’ place in Everett, Washington,” Lyndsay says. “It was a ranch-style home and it had a great secret room under the basement stairs with a dirt floor, once used for canning.” Adds identical twin sister Leslie, “We kept blankets there and journals to write our big plans in. We were total dorks!”

See More: Unsellable Houses

From: HGTV Magazine

Orlando Soria, Unspouse My House

“The house I grew up in is in Yosemite National Park, where my parents worked. When I was around 9, they let me paint the upstairs bathroom pink with teal trim. I immediately regretted it, but I learned that mistakes can be fixed, and I repainted it beige. I love that my parents let me play around — it’s the reason I got so good at making design decisions.”

See More: Build Me Up

From: HGTV Magazine

Tiffany Brooks, HGTV Smart Home 2020

“I created a pink palace in our family’s North Chicago, Illinois, home as a teen. I’d always been obsessed with the Brady Bunch girls’ bedroom, so I picked a pink wallpaper for mine — and pink bedding, carpet and drapes.”

See More: HGTV Smart Home 2023

From: HGTV Magazine

Erin Napier, Home Town

“My parents’ house is eight minutes away from mine in Laurel, Mississippi. Mama has always had a wall of ancestry, the first gallery wall I’d ever seen. It inspired me in a huge way because it’s interesting and truly meaningful. A hallmark of my designs is to include a wall of family history.”

See More: Home Town

From: HGTV Magazine

HGTV Stars Share Stories About Their Childhood Homes

Related To:

Shop This Look

Mina Starsiak Hawk, Good Bones

Steve & Leanne Ford, Restored by the Fords

Luke Caldwell, Boise Boys

Brian Kleinschmidt, 100 Day Dream Home

Lyndsay Lamb & Leslie Davis, Unsellable Houses

Orlando Soria, Unspouse My House

Tiffany Brooks, HGTV Smart Home 2020

Erin Napier, Home Town

9 Handyman-Approved Supplies You Need

HGTV to Expand 'Home Town' Into Multi-Series Franchise

First Home Stories From HGTV Stars 9 Photos

HGTV Stars Spill Their Disaster-Proof Paint Tricks

HGTV Stars Answer Your Most-Asked Decorating Questions 12 Photos

Need-to-Know Paint Tips From Your Fave HGTV Stars 10 Photos

Related Pages