How I Landed a Show on Magnolia Network

If you follow me on social, then you’ve probably heard the news that I filmed a TV show for Magnolia Network! Typing these words still feels surreal. Having a design tv show has been a lifelong dream of mine, and my journey to get here has been a thoughtfully planned, yet serendipitous course of events over the last several years. And I want to share that journey with you in hopes that it will encourage you to know that you too can manifest your dreams. But before I do, let me give you some information about the show, in case you don’t make it to the end of this post, because Lord knows its a long one!

The show is called Rental Redo and it premiers TOMORROW (eek!), Friday December 17th, 2021 on Magnolia Network on Discovery+. This is a pilot episode, which means ratings will determine whether the Network orders a full season. Which is why I would love (read: NEED!!) for you all to tune-in tomorrow…and the next day… and the day after that… I’ve been told that ratings from the first 3-7 days are the most important! I know this will be a busy weekend for a lot of people because of the holidays, but the good thing about it streaming on Discovery+, is it will be available for your viewing pleasure 24/7, so you can’t miss it! So please tune-in (and re-watch) at your convenience!

Here’s a sneak peak at the trailer:

Okay, now let me tell you how all this came to be…

This journey starts all the way back in 2009–when I graduated college with a degree in Broadcast Journalism and dreams of becoming the next Genevieve Gorder (then later, Joanna Gaines). But no need to recap my post grad days when I lived with my parents and had no real responsibilities, or direction in life…those were fun years. Oh! to be young with no bills, again…

For the sake of time, let’s start in 2016. 

Wait, wait! Actually, we need to start in 2012. That’s when I really set the goal to be on TV and started my “FIRST” blog…

2012-Set Goal: Living on the eastern shore of Maryland, I quickly realized the lack of creative opportunities in my small town. I had two options: move to a big city with more opportunities, or create my own. I chose the latter and started a blog, as jobless creatives do. Not East & Lane. It was called “The Blend Tv” ::cringe:: I don’t talk about it much. It was short lived, with mostly fashion and DIY videos, because I still lived with my parents and didn’t have a home of my own to decorate. But, I knew if I wanted to be on TV one day, I needed to start practicing. And boy did I need practice…

I found some circa 2013 “Blend TV” videos over on YouTube. I’m 100% going to regret resurfacing these, but my embarrassment is your enjoyment…cheers! But the point is, you have to start somewhere…

Shout out to my hubs (then boyfriend) Daniel, who filmed all these videos (and still shoots all my videos to this day…started from the bottom, now we’re here! And by here, I mean 2014, our wedding year!

2014-Bloom Where You Are Planted: I marry Daniel, obviously for his skillsets ( j/k 😉) and we move into our first rental home together. A small, 2 bedroom, builder grade condo. It was my first time having a place of my own to decorate. My passion for design grew even deeper and I wanted to showcase my love for all things home. So in 2015, I taught myself how to use a DSLR camera, rebranded The Blend to East & Lane, and started positioning myself as a design-enthusiast. The only problem was/is, design isn’t really a thing when you live in a small, rural town. Farming is… Punkin Chunkin is… spending thousands of dollars on design services, not so much. And a lot of people (especially Black people) simply can’t afford it where I live. And that bothered me. So my mission was to have East & Lane be a resource that could inspire people to create a home and a life they love no matter where they live, or economic status. Hence my motto, “bloom where you are planted.”

2016-Never Stop Believing: This is where serendipity comes in… I’m sure you all are familiar with Erin & Ben Napier. They are stars of the show Home Town on HGTV. Well, prior to them having a show and becoming big time celebrities, we were following each other on social. I don’t even really recall seeing their posts much, but somehow I saw their post about the premier of their show, Home Town. I commented with congratulations and how excited I was about the show, since I also lived in a small town. And went back to scrolling… 

The next day, I received an email from the production company that made their show. Apparently, their executive producer saw my comment, checked out my blog, and wanted to know if I had any interest in making a HGTV show. I could not believe it! I was for sure this was my “big break”. 

Spoiler alert: It wasn’t. 

The production company asked us (Daniel & I) to send some in iphone videos of us. At that time, husband and wife renovation/flipper shows were very popular, and that’s what Network’s wanted. But my husband and I were not home flippers…we were renter’s. And the network was not interested in rental shows (at that time), so they turned us down.

But even after hearing “no thanks” from the network, I never stopped believing…for the most part. 

2017-Create Your Own Thing: I became tired of renters being a forgotten population on design TV, and the blogshpere, so I took matters into my own hands and instead of waiting for a network to give me a show, I would create my own renter-centered content. At that time, the lease to our condo was ending and we needed to find another rental. You guys may have read a little bit of this backstory on my office makeover post, but as a refresher, I searched for what I called a “fixer-upper” rental. Similar to how people buy and makeover an old home, I would rent and makeover a dated rental and document the whole process on my blog and YouTube. My hope was that it would allow me to flex my design muscle and inspire renters that we too can have beautiful homes… and show these tv networks that #RentersLivesMatter!  

I found this adorable 1950s cape cod, in a great neighborhood, but super dated inside, and the landlord agreed to let me make updates (which he would pay for). I made a 3-part kitchen makeover video series for my YouTube/blog. Little did I know that this video series would catch the eye of a Magnolia Network Executive 4 years later…yet at the same time it’s exactly what I had hoped would happen.

2018-2019-Grow while you wait: During these interim years, my interior photography business was really taking off, but I tried to find as many ways as I could to grow in design. Again, living in rural America, there aren’t hundreds of people knocking down your door for design services, but I wanted to have as much experience under my belt as possible so I could be a resource for others and if/when a design show dropped in my lap. I started working as an assistant project manager for a high-end design + build firm, located over an hour away from my house. The commute was dreadful, but I knew it was the best way for me to really learn all the facets of construction and renovations. And then, in 2019, I went to carpentry training school. The training was a two semester course offered at my local community college. The final project was to build a shed (which teaches you the basics of home building). Unfortunately, our class didn’t get to finish because of Covid shutdowns, but they still let us graduate. Again, it was all about finding ways to grow while I waited for my dream to manifest.

2020-When one door closes another will open: I think it goes without saying that 2020 is a year that most people don’t wish to recall, but for me, it will go down as one of the most memorable years of my life. Despite the tragedies, so many businesses and people were looking for diversity. My photography and design business blew up. I had the honor of being selected as the EHD mentee (and my goodness, Em could not have come into my life at a more perfect time because not only has she been able to mentor me on my blog, but she’s been an absolute godsend in helping me navigate the tv biz). 

In the Fall of 2020, a production company who makes digital content for Lowes, hired me to host a rental makeover show for Lowe’s YouTube Channel. This was my first official hosting gig! And even though it was only for YouTube and not actual television, I felt like God was preparing me for the real thing. I was also ecstatic that brands were FINALLY interested in the renter space. We filmed and aired one episode (here). It got great reviews and we had plans to film more. But then, sadly I received news that Lowe’s had decided to shelf the series due to Covid shutdowns/concerns ::ughhh:: Needless to say, I was super bummed.

But as they say, when one door closes another opens…

Within this same timeframe, I received an email, but this time it wasn’t from a production company, but rather an executive from an actual tv network. Magnolia Network! He had seen my kitchen makeover video series (from 4 years ago) on YouTube, and loved the idea about making a show for renters! Funny how all of a sudden everyone was interested in renter content…

From there, things moved super fast. I guess because I was dealing directly with a network exec, versus a production company. Typically it can take months and even years for a show to be greenlit. But I received that email in November 2020, had a few zoom calls in December, and by February the show was greenlit. 

2021- Manifestation: Magnolia officially greenlit the pilot on February 16th, which also happens to be my husband’s birthday. We joke that it was his gift for all the years he put in being my videographer. There were several months of legal stuff, and pre-production, and then we finally started filming the pilot the end of August through mid-September. 

For the sake of time, I’ll leave all the nitty gritty details for another post, but let’s just say filming a tv show is NOT glamorous, AT ALL. There were several times my sister (who helped me on the show) asked me why anyone would ever want to be a design tv host –the days are extremely long, stressful, and production budgets for the design/renovation are in no way sufficient, and you definitely can’t survive off the talent rate… and yet, call me crazy, but I still loved doing it and so grateful for the opportunity, and know it is what I’m meant to do in life.

Sheesh! I know that was an earful, or should I say eyeful 😉! But what may seem like overnight success has been almost 10 years in the making. My husband has this saying: “If you listen to your life, you’ll hear God speak.” As we go through life, as chaotic or uncertain as it may seem at times, if you look closely, you’ll start to notice little hints and signs that are directing you to your purpose. Take a “listen” to your life today… what is it trying to tell you/show you?

I said this on IG, and I’ll say it again here: I never want what I do/accomplish in life to be about me, but rather an inspiration and a hope for others. It’s no secret of the lack of Black representation on design tv, and I want to be a part of that change so black girls (young and old alike) know that they are talented enough, beautiful enough, smart enough to achieve the same opportunities as their White counterparts.

So this is not just “my” show, this is for ALL OF US. To anyone who has waited years for their dreams to manifest, and still waiting…this is for you to know as long as you don’t stop believing it WILL happen. Delay is not denial!

I hope you’ll tune-in to watch Rental Redo tomorrow on Magnolia Network on Discovery Plus. I haven’t seen it yet either, so it will be a surprise for all of us. And please share on your socials and spread the word!

xx,

Key