Photo: Magnolia Network
Chip and Joanna Gainesare officially letting go of one of their biggest projects ever.
Next month, the Magnolia founders will auction off the 100-year-old Waco, Texas, castle they renovated on their 2022 spin-off showFixer Upper: Welcome Home - The Castle. Bidding on the historic property — which the Gaineses purchased in 2019 for an undisclosed amount — opens July 20 and ends July 27, according to theWall Street Journal.
The couple said in a statement that they hope the sale will make the local landmark, known asCottonland Castle, “a well-loved home once again.” As for the price? That remains to be determined. But the auction is “no reserve,” meaning there’s no predetermined minimum bid.
“The castle is historic and it also has been redesigned and renovated, and so the value of the property is very difficult to define,” explained Laura Brady of Concierge Auctions, which is partnering with the Gainses' own Magnolia Realty on the sale. “It’s going to be worth what the highest bidder is willing to bid.”
The 6,000-square-foot castle sits on nearly 1.6 acres and features four bedrooms, plus a library, a conservatory, a card room and a tower, perWSJ.
Over the past three years, Chip, 48, and Joanna, 45, transformed the old castle from a state of severe disrepair into a showpiece blending historic details such as intricate millwork and diamond-paned windows with luxurious updates, such as Honduran mahogany paneling, Caen stone and Carrara marble.
Lisa Petrole
In anexclusive first look atFixer Upper: The Castleahead of the show’s premiere last October, the pair expressed their excitement about tackling such a unique project.
“This castle is one of the most impressive properties in the entire Waco, Central Texas area and I’ve wanted it for two decades now,” Chip said at the time. “The plan for the castle is to bring this beautiful property back to its original state.”
They also shared the challenges they encountered as they worked on the structure. For one, the project turned out to be much bigger than they originally thought. “We’re keeping all the paneling, we’ve got to fix this plasterwork,” Joanna explained as the camera panned to a crumbling ceiling.
The couple’s main focus was to make the castle feel accurate to the original time period it was built. “Getting the same exact stone from 100 years ago has been a challenge,” Joanna admitted. And materials aren’t the only hurdle. After encountering a water leak, Chip joked, “I would say this is more like zero steps forward, 12 steps back.”
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As the project progressed, however, the couple’s confidence grew. “When we bought this place it was a figment of our imagination,” Chip noted in the clip. “But this house is coming together.”
Now that the keys to the castle will soon be handed over to the new owners, Chip and Joanna are diving intotheir next big project.
In April, the pair announced a new show on Magnolia Network,Fixer Upper: The Hotel,which will premiere in November 2023. The six-episode series will follow the Gaineses as they renovate a historic building in downtown Waco, built in 1928.
According to a release, the hotel will consist of four floors and feature 33 guest rooms, along with a restaurant, a rooftop terrace, an event space and a ballroom.
“Y’all, we’re going to have a hotel in downtown Waco, Texas!” Chip said in a trailer for the show.
“When you think about a 50,000 square-foot hotel remodel — I mean this is the big leagues,” he added. “This is what you dream about.”
source: people.com
