The Magnolia Story(62)
On the flip side, you go into some homes where it’s people that are trying to speak to the masses. You’re like, “Why doesn’t it feel like home?" I think it’s because they’ve copied something that’s not really their gut. When people say, “But I don’t have a gut,” I want to encourage them: “Yes you do!” People know what they don’t like, and people also know what they love. They’re just afraid to admit it! So if you’re designing around this place of, “Hey. I love that piece. It’s quirky, and I don’t know why it speaks to me,” and you get that piece, and you’re unapologetic, and you own that, there’s something great that comes from that place of confidence. People are drawn to confidence. I think that’s where you feel the two different environments of home. You go into one that’s beautiful, and it’s perfect, but you don’t feel at home, even though you think, This could be in a magazine. You go on the other side, where it’s, like, really quirky, and the colors aren’t really right, and the patterns are a little off, but you’re like, “Why does this feel so right?” That’s what we’re all drawn to. That’s the person that was confident, who went beyond and before or after the trends and just kind of owned it. I think I had to come to terms with that. People feel at home when there is a story being told—it’s not about a perfect space.
Mark: Confidence is attractive, right? Whether it’s in somebody’s style, somebody’s presence. . .
Joanna: You see a person that throws together an outfit, and you’re like, “If I did that, I’d look like an idiot, but that person, because she’s owning that, it really works.” I think that’s true. Hey, Chip is a cowboy. We’re not trying to inspire everybody to become a cowboy. That’s not the deal. He’s just owning that and doing that. What is it for you? Is it athletics? Is it running a business?
Times have changed. The world is much more open to new ideas now. I think it’s not really about looking out and around anymore to see what trends to follow. It’s more about honing in on who you are. I think when you find that place, that gut, whether it be your style, whether it be your lifestyle, that’s where you start finding life, because it’s you, it’s not the masses.
I think that’s the style that I have from a design standpoint. Yes, there are a lot of patterns that are in and out. I don’t want to be caught in that race or I’m always gonna be looking out. Instead, I want to constantly be asking, “What’s right in my gut?” and setting my own standard in that way. I don’t want to be known as a trendsetter. I really don’t.
Mark: So you weren’t that person who would start wearing something in school, and then everybody else would start wearing it?
Joanna: No. I think at an early age, I realized I don’t have that ability. So why not stick with what stood the test of time? Kind of like the skinny jeans example. Skinny jeans are cute, but they don’t fit me right. They’re uncomfortable. One day I’ll wake up and the flare jeans will be back in style. It all comes back around. What’s in style today, may not be what’s in tomorrow. What has worked for me in the past, is if I’m trying to conserve my dollar, I choose stripes or something classic. When I’m designing a space for people that really don’t know what they want, I say, “In five years, do you want to be renovating your kitchen again?” If they say yes, then let’s do the hottest, coolest thing that’s going right now. But if, in five years, you don’t want to be redesigning your kitchen, well, then we’ve got to find something that’s classic and timeless, and you can always add pops of color with your dishes and your napkins and change the style up in that way. But if you want this kitchen to last a long time, then we’ve got to think differently.
ON OWNING WHAT YOU’VE GOT>>>
Joanna: This has always been the underlying premise of my store: I always said if a woman walks out deflated and kind of feeling defeated, from a design standpoint, then I have failed in my shop. But if a woman walks in there, even if she doesn’t buy any of it, and walks out inspired, thinking I’m gonna try that. I’m gonna take this one little thing and create this great little corner, then I have done what I set out to do, which is inspire people. That’s the same feeling that I have with our show. I don’t want people turning the channel after it’s done going, “Well, that was a really great room, and a great renovation, but I don’t have $150,000, and I don’t have this designer.” If people do that, then I think I’ve failed. If instead they watch the show and think, Hey, I have a $500 budget, and I’m gonna do a shiplap accent wall, then yay! We’ve inspired people to do whatever it is they can, within their capacity. The same with the book. I don’t want people going, "They have a farm, and they have four beautiful children, and they’re on TV now,” and to have a takeaway of some sort of defeat, like, “I wish I was the Gaineses.” That is not what I want. I want them to say, “I don’t have a farm. I don’t have four kids, I’m not on TV, but dang it, I love that they’ve owned it, and I’m gonna own it in my New York apartment, or I’m gonna own it in my LA modern house.”
Chip: We don’t want people to buy our stuff as a way to keep up with the Joneses. Just the opposite. We must get a tweet a day from some fan saying, “Hey. We were inspired by y’all to tackle this and tackle that.” That’s just the best feeling ever. That’s exactly where we’re at. Not everybody’s got $100,000 to go do some giant renovation. We sure didn’t have $100,000 two years ago to go do some awesome thing, you know? We were lucky to do $500 in paint and $200 furniture. But we did the absolute best we could with whatever budget we had. And look at how that turned out?