Raise your hand if you’ve ever worn yoga pants and yesterday hair and spent a Saturday watching a Fixer Upper Marathon.
You, too?
And that is exactly why we are friends.
If you’ve watched Fixer Upper, there’s always a part in the show where Joanna is working on the kitchen or office or backyard and she decides that she needs this incredible one-of-a-kind-over-the-top desk or table or kitchen island or front door and she drives across town and walks into the shop of this amazing, creative carpenter and draws a sketch out of the design and he nods understandingly and then at the end of the episode the perfect piece of furniture shows up at the house.
This is that shop.
Clint’s shop.
Harp Design Company.
This weekend I was lucky enough to visit the Harp Design Company.
It had me at the door.
It was hand-crafted from reclaimed wood with vintage hardware and when I opened it…..
….I felt like I was walking into an episode of Fixer Upper.
The walls were made of wood and the ceilings were high with white beams and the columns were hand-crafted and it smelled like sunshine.
And I knew that I knew……that I knew.
This is where all the tiny, forlorn, forgotten and discarded pieces of wood…..
…..find a home.
This is a shop where an old set of columns becomes a table.
This is a shop where doors become whole again and windows become pieces of art and cast-offs from old houses become tables….
…..and abandoned and discarded wood becomes letters.
This is the shop of an artist.
I walked around and laughed and talked with Kelly’s mom and smelled the candles and bought one of these chippy, amazing hand-crafted letters….
….and left the shop inspired.
The message and meaning and purpose behind the experience left me with a smile.
Nothing is too small or too insignificant to be overlooked.
There is a beauty and wonder and joy behind every abandoned house, behind every chippy and broken corbel and every discarded piece of wood.
Everything has a design.
Everything has a purpose.
And that everything has a story….
….it just takes an artist to tell it.
PS If you can’t make it to Waco, you can check out Harp Designs online shop.
And you can follow along with their blog because Clint and Kelly are filming two specials right now for HGTV’s DIY network. If it’s well received it might be picked up for a series!
PPS You can also see my tour of Magnolia Market….here.
Here’s a Periscope I took this weekend when I was shopping there. Make sure you tap it twice to watch it. And sorry for the abrupt ending to the video….I forgot to charge my phone before I went into the shop. 🙂
I love good craftsmanship and as far as yesterday's hair, I've been guilty of last week's hair. :)
What a fantastic shop! I would love to go visit it! I see so many wonderful items that I would love to have or give as gifts! Thank you for the tour! I'm thrilled Clint and Kelly are getting their own HGTV show! I love The Fixed Upper and know I will love this show too.
My favorite Fixer Upper episode is the one where Joanna fixes up that old house for Clint and his family. I spent 12 years in Texas and my dad built one of the great stone churches in Waco. I love that episode because Clint and his wife exude that true Texas kind, down-to-Earth charm that members of the Lone Star State possess so naturally. I would love to visit Clint's shop and thanks for turning me on to their blog. I'll be sitting in my yoga pants catching up. Nancy
I'm with Nancy. Clint's house redo is one of my favorites! Mostly because I adore saving old stuff and finding a new purpose for it. And Clint and Kelly will be great. But I hope being on a show doesn't keep Clint so busy that he can't build and collect old wood though. Running my barn sale made me too busy to do my own art, and that was sad. BTW what were you doing in Waco, girl? And are you doing The Chapel Market this year? Hope you're having a great week, The Other Marian
Wow...it must have been such a wonderful experience!....I do the marathon thing with Fixer Upper never getting tired of the re-runs, with the aid of my DVR.....I DVR the show, so I cannot miss a one!....
I love the show fixer upper.. I would love to move to Waco just to do a house with Jo and have Clint do the woodwork. Love those huge tables.
How fun! I know I will love watching their new show! And it sounds like you and I spent the day together Saturday lol.
How much fun was that!♥ Fixer-Upper is my favorite HGTV show and knowing that Harp Design will also be having their own show will be the icing on the cake! Thanks for sharing your trip to Waco and the video was fun....Everything in the shop was so unique and I'd have wanted to bring home so many of their clever, creative pieces....sigh...a girl can wish! Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for bringing us a view of the shop and Clint's amazing talent!! : )
I watched your Periscope when it was live! Thank you for doing that. Minnesota is a long way from Waco. Online shopping here we come!
Hmm, I'm wondering if I can persuade my DIL to drive down to Waco while I'm visiting in the next few weeks? Or maybe wait until March or April when my husband and I drive there so I have a vehicle to bring my goodies back home. More room than on a plane.
Very talented man and he and his pretty wife are cute together on Fixer Upper. Fixer Upper is so great for so many reasons and the idea we don't have to spend a fortune to have a stunning home is SO refreshing.
It's always exciting to get to meet an artist (=brave soul) who takes a leap of faith to do what they love, what they are passionate about, and who creates a business they love. Thank you for the introduction, friend, I'm behind on my yesterday-hair-days and watching Fixer-Upper because of too much family birthday partying and work and other things, but hope to remedy that soon!
Thank-you so very much for your tour! Just loved it! :)
Thank you, thank you, thank you! Inspired by a cute little blond with bright red lipstick, I'm in the process of planking my bathroom and have all these small pieces of leftover planks. Now I have some ideas for them too!
That is really cool. I use to watch the show Fixer Upper on Facebook but OMG their were so many that commented that I was overloaded. In fact I live about 60 miles from their too. I use to go to Waco all the time. My daughter lives about 30 min from their. Very close to home for sure. Thanks as I didn't know about Harp Designs. That is really nice. Thanks and I will check out the video.
I can't believe you actually put this video up and talked about Waco! I am making a "girl trip" there with 2 of my friends the beginning of November. The three of us haven't been hanging out together for 45 years! One will be coming from Michigan to my home in KY then we will drive to Arkansas to pick up the other and head to Waco! We plan on going to the silo's and Harp.....are there other stops you would suggest?? Can't wait!!
Thanks for
I don't get Fixer Upper here, but I'm now very tempted to do a marathon of epies on Youtube! I've been debating on whether or not to click the link to Clint's store...judging from the amazing pix you've shared as well as your cute-as-can-be video, my credit card would get a real workout if I visited his site! Btw, nothing wrong with yesterday's hair...all the top hairdressers insist it is best for styling! And yoga pants are the best...both comfortable and flattering...they just make life a little easier! ;)
Makes me want to visit Waco!!
Love the sentiment about even scraps being useful and beautiful. Can't wait for you to tour the Silos at Magnolia Market for us!
I want to move in! Love his designs on the show! Thanks so much for the tour!
So cool. Wish I was closer so I could see in person ! Thanks for sharing. I can't wait for the new show !
My husband offered to take me to Waco for our 25th anniversary this past summer. With one child in college and two others in braces, it was brave of him to take me shopping! I bought a rosemary-mint candle at Harp, and I LOVE it! I wish I had bought several more. That was the scent they had burning in there when we went in, and even my husband noticed how fresh it smelled in the shop. Glad you had fun there!
Very cool...you could make all that stuff! That's exciting that they are getting their own show too. I watched the 1st episode of Open Concept yesterday...did you see it?
Yes!! I accidentally saw Open Concept. And now my DVR is set to record more!!:)
We stopped at his shop a few weeks ago when we flew in to visit my husband's family. Clint was out front taking on his cell phone and stopped to say hello and thank us for stopping by. Probably because I was gawking at him. He is very kind and super cute!
You wrote this like you were in my heart. I am so very lucky to live within a 2 hr drive. I haven't made it there yet but its going to happen before too long. We love Fixer Upper. Can't get enough of those two, they crack me up but mostly I want every house they've done to be my house.
I swear I do my best thinking while sporting yesterday hair and yoga pants. Add caffeine to the mix and watch out! Since the closest I may ever get to Waco is when I make Texas toast, I greatly appreciate the online info. :-)
Bloody great, I do like
You just described me yesterday!! Chilling with HGTV I'd already seen!:) I am so happy to hear that Harp designs is going to have their own show and also to learn about their site. I adore your blog. Thanks for all you do Karianne!
I can't believe you were in Waco much less Texas and you didn't drop by to say hello! I was in Waco in August visiting my son who works at Baylor Scott +White (he's a Baylor grad too.) and I went to Magnolia with my daughter and posted about it. We drove by Harp but didn't stop. Can't wait until the Silos open. We love out home grown HGTV stars.
Heading from Dallas area to Victoria, Tx in mid-Oct for a Bazaar/Show. Wish it was just a little later so the Silos would be open! But will stop our "caravan" of gals in Waco to go by Magnolia and Harp ~ cannot be right there and not visit! Love Junque in the Trunk, too ... wow, Waco has a whole bevy of goodies doesn't it?!? Now, what is this "Open Concept," and how did it get by me?!? I'm a travelin' man's TV watchin'/art & crafts makin' "widow" and I miss a premiere show? But never mind all this talk about Fixer Upper and Harp: you need *your* own show, dear lady! You're as talented as these people, ka! You should be the next new "HGTV rock star" ... Hugs! kj
ummm... As soon as I saw the words "Harp Design" I knew where you had run off too!!!!!!!!!!!! lololol.... Waco Texas welcomed you with open arms I'm sure!!!!! How exciting for Harp Design... Clint and his wife Kelly!!! AND.... GOES WITHOUT SAYING... I can hardly wait for the new season to start for Fixer Upper!!!! thanks for the info about Clint's blog!!!!!! and yes I confess..... loose sweat pants... hair behind a head band... no make up... comfy couch and a fixer upper marathon?? WHY YES, I HAVE BEEN THERE !!!!!!!!!!!!!! lololol
I think I need a little WACO in my life! Could I talk the hubs into a vacay? Seriously - so awesome and ahhh-mazing and inspirational! Thanks for taking us along via Periscope!
what a treat!! actually i just watched the episode in which clint and kelly bought a "pit" (next door to the shop, right?) and had it totally transformed! thank you for such a beautiful tour karianne, through an artist's lens! =)
I absolutely LOVE Fixer Upper! Even though it is a little bit of reality tv (which I hate), I like that Chip and Joanna are so kind to each other. It's refreshing to see a show where the husband and wife aren't "snarky"! My hubby is a contractor - he hates the chippy/worn look (why can't we get a show!!). I think I'm slowly "turning" him - he asked me if I wanted my new kitchen crown mouldings distressed! (added note: - I always get a little chuckle reading your postings - feels like reading a letter from my BFF, Michele)
I like Fixer Upper but am afraid to watch it because of the one episode where Chip ate a cockroach! It makes me gag a every time and I never see it coming so I can close my. Eyes! Yuck!
Thanks for giving us a peek into Clint's shop. I love what he does and love how you described it. I am a Fixer Upper fan and like many above Clint and Kelly's is one of my favorites (I have it book marked on the DVR to not erase and have watched it three times so far!) Great news about their specials - I will be watching for them!