On This Episode

Host Mélanie Berliet talks to Dave and Jenny Marrs, the husband and wife duo turned HGTV stars, who have transformed 300 fixer-uppers into amazing homes. The two talk about how their marriage helps their business, being enneagram sevens, and some of the most memorable homes they’ve remodeled. They share their deal-breakers when it comes to house hunting, where to save and where to splurge when remodeling, and why they use white paint with five young kids at home.

Meet Dave and Jenny Marrs

Dave and Jenny met in 2002 while working in the same corporate office. They married three years later and moved to Arkansas where Dave began pursuing a career in construction. He started his company, Marrs Developing, and he quickly became known for his custom woodworking and designs. In 2012, Jenny joined the team as a designer. Today, the couple continues to build, design, and remodel homes in the area. In addition to their developing business, the couple stars on HGTV’s Fixer to Fabulous where they help homeowners create their dream homes. In April, they launched a collection of furniture and accessories for Better Homes & Gardens (sold exclusively at Walmart) and recently opened a charming Airbnb, The Welcome Inn, near their hometown of Bentonville, Arkansas.

Advice from the Episode

Creating your dream home from a fixer-upper can seem overwhelming. Read on for Dave and Jenny’s best tips for transforming the bones of a home into a welcoming, family-friendly abode.

Consider the Style of Home Before Buying

When tackling a fixer-upper, it’s easiest to restore a home to its original style rather than completely transforming it. If you purchase a Victorian home, it’s very difficult to create an ultra-modern space. A home’s style is just as important as the location when it comes to remodeling. It’s Dave’s number one deal-breaker when considering a home.

Start Remodels with the Kitchen and Bathrooms

A strategy for preserving the character of a home: think about what you want to keep first and then plan for the changes you want to make. This helps preserve the original elements of the home. The kitchen and bathrooms of a home date themselves the quickest. Tackling these will help give your home a new, updated look.

Choose a Focal Point when Designing a Room

When planning an update to a room, first consider your overall home renovation budget. You may want to invest more in your kitchen and save on other rooms. Invest in things you love. Having one focal point in each room (like lights or a faucet) helps elevate the look of the entire space.

Get Creative with Your Space

When buying a house, think about how you’ll use the rooms rather than how they are currently set up. A dining room can easily become an office. Don’t be locked into conventional floor plans. You can absolutely use the dining room as a play area while the kids are young and transform it once they outgrow the space.

For a Clean Look, Choose White Paint

Jenny’s go-to paint color is white. Even with five children at home, she finds it the easiest to keep clean. White paint helps the rooms look bigger and brighter and doesn’t show nicks as much.

Download the transcript for this episode. Visit Jenny’s website: jennymarrs.com. Follow Dave and Jenny on Instagram and Facebook.