They're the happily married couple at the center of HGTV's hit show Fixer Upper, but there may be a lot you don't know about Chip and Joanna Gaines. The two certainly make a perfect team for this show, as Chip's the construction and real estate genius, and Joanna has such vision and design expertise. But how do they spend their time when they're not turning worn-out houses into beautiful living spaces? From how the pair first met to the few controversies they've faced over the years to even some truly ridiculous rumors, let's take a look at the untold truth of Fixer Upper's Chip and Joanna Gaines.
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00:00HDTV's Fixer Upper is our favorite home improvement show to marathon on a lazy Sunday, and that's
00:10thanks to the husband and wife duo of Chip and Joanna Gaines.
00:13He's goofy and lovable, she's laid back, but all business.
00:17That's lovely, but let's learn some lesser-known details about the series and the couple who
00:21makes it all happen.
00:22What is Joanna's ethnicity?
00:25Let's go ahead and get this one out of the way.
00:26At some point while watching Fixer Upper, you've probably wondered about Joanna's ethnicity.
00:31Is she Native American?
00:32Asian?
00:33Both?
00:34So a lot of people have asked what my nationality is.
00:37I'm half Korean.
00:38Okay, so what about the other half?
00:40Joanna set the record straight on her blog, saying her father was half Lebanese and half
00:44German.
00:45That's good.
00:46Thanks, Chip.
00:47They met when Chip needed car repairs.
00:51Chip first set his eyes on the love of his life in the most unlikely place, an auto repair
00:55shop.
00:56When he saw a family photo that Joanna's father hung behind the counter of his store,
01:00he was smitten, telling PopSugar,
01:02"...I knew I'd marry her one day, just by that picture on the wall."
01:06When he came into the shop another day, he saw Joanna working in the office, and he made
01:10his move.
01:11Joanna recalled,
01:12"...We met in the waiting area and hit it off immediately.
01:16He was genuinely engaging, and he had such a sincere smile.
01:19At first I couldn't believe how kind Chip was.
01:22He had kind eyes, he made me laugh a lot.
01:24I knew he was the one, because I knew I could trust him."
01:27Awww.
01:28Adorable.
01:29A blog post was their lucky break
01:32Fixer Upper's big break began in January 2012, when the Design Mom blog published a post
01:37titled,
01:38Living With Kids, Joanna Games.
01:41A production company reportedly saw the post, liked a photo of one of her and Chip's designs,
01:45and reached out.
01:47Joanna told Glamour,
01:48"...They called us and said, hey, we love that you guys do real estate and you guys
01:51work together.
01:52That's intriguing.
01:53From there, that's where the whole courtship began."
01:56What's the deal with Magnolia, anyway?
01:59Viewers of Fixer Upper will notice a reoccurring theme, Magnolia.
02:04The game's various companies include Magnolia Realty, Magnolia Home, Magnolia Villas, Magnolia
02:10Market, Magnolia Flower, Magnolia Houses, and they call their home Magnolia Farms.
02:16What gives?
02:18Chip explained to Glamour,
02:19"...When we were just dating, I would pick these blooms from Magnolia trees.
02:22If you've ever seen them, they're almost just bull-like.
02:26And that whole thing always inspired us.
02:28So when we had the opportunity and were trying to figure out what to name our little boutique,
02:31Magnolia Market just stood out to us."
02:34The furniture leaves when the cameras stop rolling.
02:37At the end of each episode, homebuyers experience the big reveal.
02:41Their completely renovated dream home filled with gorgeous furniture.
02:44The buyers love it.
02:46The audience loves it.
02:47But the bookkeepers, not so much.
02:49The furniture on the show is from Joanna's Magnolia Market and appears for staging purposes
02:54only.
02:55If they want to keep it, they can take out a second mortgage.
02:59But Ikea is probably the first destination for clients once the cameras stop rolling.
03:03HGTV's contributions
03:06Unlike ABC's Extreme Makeover Home Edition, nobody on Fixer Upper donates services or
03:10materials.
03:11However, HGTV might throw in some money if the property lacks curb appeal.
03:16According to the Waco Tribune, the network doesn't fund the renovations, though producers
03:22may throw in some extra landscaping or design flourishes.
03:27High cost of entry
03:28Fans of the show know the format.
03:31Chip and Joanna show homebuyers three potential properties, the buyers fall in love with one,
03:36and the co-hosts work their magic.
03:38But according to the Hooked on Houses blog, Fixer Upper prefers, quote, you already have
03:43a Fixer Upper before applying to be on the show.
03:46That means the house hunting we see in the first half hour is probably just for entertainment
03:49purposes.
03:50Meanwhile, the blog also said homeowners must be prepared to invest at least $30,000 in
03:56the project.
03:58Fixer Upper is fixing Waco
04:00Between the deadly government raid on the David Koresh-led cult televised in 1993 and
04:05the fatal biker shootout in 2015, Waco, Texas has been struggling with its reputation.
04:10But the city's battered image may be improving thanks to Fixer Upper.
04:14In a 2016 article in the Dallas Morning News, residents of Waco credited the show's popularity
04:19with rejuvenating the community's public image.
04:21Baylor professor Robert Darden explains the way the perception of the city is changing,
04:25quote, and all around the world you can say Waco and people automatically have images.
04:29I think now there's more Fixer Upper than David Koresh.