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257. Unveiling the Secrets of HGTV with Sarah Karakaian · Thanks For Visiting

0:01
Sarah: Hello everyone.
0:01
Welcome back.
0:02
My name is Sarah Karakaian.
0:04
Annette: I am Annette Grant, and together we are--
0:06
Both Annette & Sarah: Thanks for Visiting.
0:07
Sarah: All right, let's kick off the show like we do every week,
0:09
and that's sharing one of you our amazing listeners who are using our
0:12
hashtag #STRShareSunday on Instagram.
0:15
Annette, who are we sharing this week?
0:16
Annette: This week we are sharing @perchtreehouse.
0:21
That's @perchtreehouse, P-E-R-C-H, Treehouse.
0:24
And it is in Lake Mitchell in Alabama.
0:28
And this Treehouse is gorgeous.
0:32
And it's not really a treehouse.
0:33
I mean, it's on stilts, but it's not attached to a tree.
0:36
I think a lot of the new tree houses aren't really in a tree, but this one is--
0:40
Sarah: They're among the trees.
0:41
Annette: They're among the trees.
0:43
Wow.
0:44
It is stunning.
0:45
There's this--
0:45
Sarah: The front door.
0:46
Annette: Yeah, the front door.
0:48
Actually, I'm going to encourage, let's stop right there with the front door.
0:54
Listeners, there's this amazing front door.
0:57
They have this amazing light.
0:59
They actually have a-- there's really custom welcome sign.
1:04
This is what your visitors foresee.
1:07
This is their entrance.
1:08
So it's springtime, get out there, clean it up, freshen it up, have
1:13
it looking good for your visitors.
1:17
They have amazing views.
1:20
They've done some fun hanging chairs to overlook the views that
1:24
they have here at the lake house.
1:26
But I mean, the decks are, like it says, they're perched in the trees, so
1:31
they have the water view, and they have just really-- the design is special.
1:36
You can tell they took a ton of time and really thought through all of the details.
1:41
Yeah, you have to look at both of the entry doors.
1:43
The color that they've used in the kitchen is stunning.
1:48
They've done a lot of just detail work throughout, and there's a
1:52
special spot on the exterior where they've got a deck and a porch
1:57
underneath with a television, which is really cool, some outdoor showers.
2:02
I mean, they have got it going on, and it really is perched amongst
2:06
the trees when you check it out.
2:07
And I want to say, we are highlighting the Perch Treehouse today because
2:12
it's a segue into our episode.
2:14
The Perch Treehouse is hosted by Lucy and Daphne, who were competitors
2:20
of Sarah and her husband, Nick, on the HGTV show, Beach Flip.
2:27
And I cannot wait to turn the table and interview Sarah.
2:32
And the thing I think that's most shocking, that I cannot wait
2:36
to share with everybody is the compensation that they received
2:41
for this competition show on HGTV.
2:45
Let's get into this.
2:46
This is so exciting.
2:47
I mean, I don't even need to look further than right across the
2:50
table from a former HGTV star.
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Yes, I'm going to say star.
2:55
It doesn't matter if it was one season.
2:57
Sarah, I want to go behind the scenes.
2:59
I want to do a tell-all.
3:01
Let's get into it, everybody.
3:03
I mean, so many people want to be on HGTV.
3:06
They want to be on a reality show, but you have been there, done that.
3:12
So I'm going to ask some questions that I can't believe I've never asked you before.
3:17
What have I been doing?
3:19
And I hope this is going to just entertain our listeners, but also
3:24
shed some light on what it means to actually be on a HGTV show.
3:31
So tell us about it.
3:33
It was 2015, Beach Flip, Alabama, Gulf Shores.
3:38
And it was a competition show.
3:41
There were four couples?
3:42
Sarah: Yes.
3:43
Annette: Okay.
3:43
And you were all vying for a prize.
3:46
Sarah: Yes, it was a cash prize, which I feel like none of us really cared about.
3:49
We wanted the accolade of winning.
3:52
Annette: Okay.
3:52
So that was my first question is like, what was the motivation
3:59
to be on the HGTV show?
4:02
Because I know there's going to be a lot of steps to even get you to Alabama.
4:07
So was it something that you had desired?
4:09
Was it like, hey, this is going to put us on the map.
4:12
What was the why in the beginning?
4:14
Sarah: So Nick and I, prior to this, I was all in on Broadway musical theater.
4:21
I had blinders on.
4:22
I was focused on the great white way, and I had been doing it.
4:27
Nick had come to New York City to be with me and--
4:30
Annette: He had blinders on in a different way.
4:32
Sarah: No, he really did.
4:33
He had blinders on.
4:33
I told him, its either come to New York or you don't.
4:36
And so he came, but he had blinders on to pursue his career
4:40
in architecture and space planning.
4:42
I had a-- hopefully, listeners, you can relate.
4:46
I had this coming to myself moment of, I don't know that I want to
4:51
do musical theater anymore, which I never thought would happen.
4:54
Annette: But this was also after 15 years, listeners.
4:56
Sarah was very successful and had been a professional actor for quite some time.
5:01
So it wasn't one summer in New York then she hang up her--
5:05
Sarah: No.
5:05
But I never thought that would happen.
5:06
I knew where I wanted to be buried in New York City after all of my Tony Awards.
5:11
I was very focused on it.
5:12
But when I was being honest with myself, like, why wasn't
5:14
I going to auditions anymore?
5:15
Why was I not caring about practicing anymore?
5:18
And I really-- so anyway, fast forward to Nick and I, I've always loved houses.
5:23
Nick and I bought the house that we were living in.
5:26
It was a house in New York City, and we were short-term renting
5:29
it, obviously, the basement.
5:31
And I was going to YouTube university.
5:33
My dad was an electrician and a big DIYer growing up, so I
5:36
helped him tile, hang wallpaper.
5:38
I painted my own living room and bedroom.
5:40
Listeners, you're probably all like, yeah, me too.
5:42
So I knew I loved houses.
5:44
Nick had drywalled his way through college.
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And in my brain at that point, early 2010s was like, oh, so then
5:50
he knows how to do everything else.
5:51
He can literally do anything.
5:53
He's he drywalled for five years.
5:55
No, that was-- honestly.
5:56
So anyway, when I was leaving Broadway and I was thinking of what I else I
6:00
wanted to do, I was pursuing a career in professional organizing and starting
6:04
my own business, but also helping Nick.
6:07
He was also doing handyman jobs in New York City, which people will pay
6:10
you a lot of money because they don't have ladders in their apartments.
6:13
So he was hanging TVs, changing light bulbs.
6:16
He was making barn doors.
6:17
I remember barn doors were a big deal.
6:20
And then of course we renovated our home in New York City in Queens, and
6:24
we were getting ourselves into it.
6:25
We replaced the entire support beam in our Queens home.
6:30
There was a large eye beam in our front yard, no permit.
6:36
And we were just learning how to-- so anyway, we were doing this in
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Instagram, which just came on the scene.
6:41
Annette: That's what I was going to say.
6:42
Is social media even a thing at this point in time?
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Sarah: So I can't remember if we were just late to the party, if it
6:46
was still becoming a thing, but we started documenting all of this on
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Instagram under our handle nesters.
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And then a producer DMed us and said, hey, there's this
6:57
show that you should apply for.
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Annette: Ooh, okay.
6:59
I had assumed this whole time that you were a true Sarah Karakaian, you were
7:04
scouring the internet and putting out applications and sending in videos.
7:08
So they scouted you.
7:12
Sarah: Yes, they did.
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Annette: Or maybe they-- and not to not say that you're not
7:15
amazing, but maybe they were sending out hundreds of DMs a day.
7:17
Sarah: No, they were.
7:18
Annette: Okay.
7:18
Sarah: Yeah.
7:18
Annette: But you took action.
7:20
So you got the DM, and it said you should try out for-- did it say the exact show
7:25
or was it just like, hey, send in a--
7:26
Sarah: No, it was a concept at that point.
7:29
I think it was like, we're looking for-- it's a competition show on the beach.
7:32
You should apply.
7:33
Annette: And what was the application process?
7:36
Sarah: It was online at first, if I remember correctly, and we had to,
7:40
I think, just surpass that phase.
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Annette: Maybe send in some photos of some work that you had.
7:44
Sarah: Yes.
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And then I'm sure it was followed by a lot of interviews on Zoom.
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And honestly, another reason why this episode is cool, because I know a lot
7:52
of our own members in HBMM are having their spotlight on HGTV episodes, one
7:58
of our coaches was on A&E, I believe.
8:01
Annette: Mm-hmm.
8:01
Sarah: With his tiny homes.
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So I'm hoping I can shed some light on my experience.
8:05
Obviously, this is a long time ago now, so things have changed, but yeah.
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So it was an online application, and then once we passed that,
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we moved on to video interviews.
8:13
After that, it was live, in-person auditions.
8:17
Annette: This is where I want to dig in.
8:19
I know it was a while ago, but when you got the first email,
8:23
when you got the first Zoom interview, how excited were you?
8:29
Did you think, holy smokes, this is it?
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We're going to be on HGTV.
8:33
We're the next chip and-- what was going through your mind?
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Were you super excited or were you just like, I'm going to play it cool.
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And if it happens, it happens.
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Sarah: Nick was very, very excited.
8:45
You have to understand I was a professional auditioner.
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So I've had--
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Annette: Ooh, you got no a lot.
8:49
Sarah: I got nos three times a day every day.
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And I even had a signed contract, flew to a location to do a regional
8:56
show, this was in 2008, only to be told go back home and kick out your
9:01
sublet because the show's not opening.
9:04
So I really never got like excited excited or planned my future until
9:08
I was like on stage opening night.
9:09
Annette: Okay.
9:10
That's fair.
9:12
During the interview process, was there anything else really extra you had to do?
9:17
Was it any time out of your day, any financial commitment or were
9:21
you just like showing up, tell them who you were and how you would be
9:24
able to participate in the show?
9:26
Sarah: They want to see your projects that you're doing.
9:29
They want to see you and your partner working together.
9:32
They want to make sure you're going to look good on camera.
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So I don't remember the video process, but I am pretty sure we submitted just
9:40
self-taped videos of us changing lights, and painting walls, and pouring cement
9:46
into our basement, things like that.
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Annette: Live action type working together.
9:50
Sarah: Yes.
9:51
Annette: From the time you got the DM until the time that you
9:54
actually said, hey, you have been chosen, what was that timeline?
10:00
Sarah: I feel like it was forever, four to six months.
10:03
Annette: Okay.
10:03
That actually doesn't seem like that long.
10:05
Sarah: No.
10:05
And at the time-- and actually, well, a little spoiler alert, we've had other
10:08
opportunities to do HGTV shows, and they, I mean, I think two years before.
10:15
But they weren't competition shows.
10:18
It may have been longer.
10:19
It was a long time ago now.
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Annette: Right.
10:21
But I just want to offer that to everybody, that it isn't something like--
10:24
Sarah: It's not immediate.
10:25
Annette: Yeah.
10:25
It's not a normal-- sometimes when you're getting courted for a
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job, they need to fill the thing.
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This is a show.
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There's so much production into it.
10:32
All right.
10:33
How do they tell you that you've been chosen?
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Is it an email or they play coy?
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Do they say, let's get on a Zoom.
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And I know I've got to jog your memory here.
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Sarah: I feel like it was a call or an email from the producer.
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Annette: I'm assuming, which is a buzzkill, if you get chosen, I don't
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feel like you can go out and party with your friends and family because it seems
10:54
like there's a lot of NDAs and quiet.
10:56
So is it like this celebration between you and Nick?
11:00
I mean, is that pretty much the first thing is the contract?
11:03
I feel like those contracts would be air tight.
11:06
Sarah: Yes.
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And we didn't know to ask.
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We didn't have any other friends who were on a network reality show.
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We didn't have a lawyer we could call.
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I'm sure we could have found one, but we didn't think that.
11:15
Annette: Not like the amazing Scott Brown.
11:17
Sarah: Scott Brown.
11:18
Annette: Call Scott Brown.
11:19
Sarah: No.
11:20
Yeah.
11:20
No, we did not.
11:21
Annette: Oh, okay.
11:21
So could you tell anyone?
11:23
Sarah: No.
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So I had to get permission.
11:25
So at the time, I was working at the hotel.
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Annette: Okay.
11:29
Sarah: And I knew that-- we did know enough that when-- so I think we
11:33
found out fall of 2014, and we had to leave for Gulf Shores, Alabama, I
11:38
remember it being February of 2015.
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And we were there for two months, so February and all of March.
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Annette: Okay.
11:43
Sarah: And I had to leave my job.
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And this not just like a-- this is a high end hotel, and
11:49
I had a management position.
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So it was a big deal for me to leave.
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And so I had to tell them.
11:55
Annette: Okay.
11:56
I mean, what is that conversation, like you and Nick?
12:00
Because I'm sure, I mean, maybe your position, but was
12:03
it a paid leave of absence?
12:04
Is it like, hey, we're just going to take this chance?
12:08
No money coming in during--
12:09
Sarah: That's right.
12:10
Annette: Okay.
12:10
And could you tell your parents?
12:12
Can you tell your family, or can you tell them conceptually, hey, I'm doing this?
12:17
Sarah: We have an opportunity.
12:18
Yeah.
12:19
And I'm sure I told my parents, and we had a dog.
12:23
So we had to tell-- I don't remember where we sent Hero, but we sent our dogs
12:28
somewhere, or it was someone's house.
12:30
Annette: Oh no.
12:30
Sarah: Maybe my friend lived in the house--
12:31
Annette: Fortwo months.
12:32
Sarah: Whoever that friend is, they're going to kill me for not remembering.
12:34
Vinny did.
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Vinny lived in my house.
12:35
Annette: Okay.
12:37
You had to leave the dog behind.
12:38
So that's also something in the contract of two full months.
12:43
You got to leave your job.
12:45
And did you and Nick decide that earlier on like, hey, if we get this,
12:49
we're just going to figure out how to bounce for two months and make it work?
12:53
Sarah: Yeah.
12:53
Because once we got it, I won't lie, at that point, while I wasn't like,
12:57
okay, they could still boot us or find another couple, and that's probably
13:00
very true, but at the same time, you can't help but let your mind wonder.
13:04
Is this the thing that's going to change our lives?
13:07
Annette: Yeah, I feel like once you get the yes, the swirling
13:10
of thoughts has to be like--
13:12
Sarah: Can I share one other little anecdote?
13:15
Because I want to show this to any listener out there who might also be
13:18
being shopped right now by a network.
13:20
It's funny because when we went to our audition in person, this
13:22
was like the final callback--
13:23
Annette: Oh shoot.
13:24
Okay.
13:24
Sarah: And this was actually a big production callback.
13:28
They put you in a room, they gave you pictures of rooms, and they
13:32
gave you five minutes, and you had to design the whole thing.
13:34
And you have to remember, everyone, at the time, I was going to school
13:37
for interior design because I was transitioning out of musical theater
13:40
into-- but I didn't have years of clients.
13:43
I had done one house, my own.
13:45
You know what I mean?
13:46
I didn't have all this experience yet, and so I was so nervous.
13:50
And once they give you that five minutes, you then go with all the fancy producers
13:54
who are amazing human beings, and they put a picture up of the room, and you
13:59
have to tell them what you would do.
14:00
Annette: Oof, pressure.
14:01
Sarah: Okay.
14:02
And I am trained musical theater.
14:05
Give me script.
14:06
I will perform for you.
14:08
They don't want you performing.
14:09
They want the real you.
14:11
Thank the Lord for my husband, Nicholas Karakaian, who is--
14:15
Annette: I can see it.
14:16
Sarah: A character of all characters, and he-- you guys, it was a beach prop.
14:22
It looked like a Golden Girls home that we had to bring to 2015.
14:25
And I don't remember, but Nick brought in Star Trek to the conversation,
14:30
had the producers howling, and I'll never forget leaving.
14:34
It was somewhere on 14th Street, and I was so upset at Nick.
14:38
I was like, how were we talking about Star Trek?
14:43
I was typical Sarah, just stressed.
14:47
Annette: Just so everyone knows, Star Trek comes up in every conversation with
14:50
Nick, so you can only imagine when your partner brings up that thing that you
14:54
hear about all the time that no one else wants to hear about, and he did it again.
14:58
Sarah: He did it in front of producers, but I guarantee you--
15:01
Annette: It's the reason.
15:01
Sarah: He's the reason we got picked.
15:04
It was not for my savvy tile selections.
15:09
It was Nick being the character.
15:11
So anyone out there, I just implore you to be yourself because they've
15:15
been looking at you for reasons that you didn't even know they were looking
15:18
at you for, just being yourself.
15:20
So anyway, I wanted to leave people with that.
15:21
Annette: That's a good point.
15:22
All right, so you leave that final, you're going to Alabama, Gulf Shores.
15:26
Do they let you have any prep work like, this is the house that you're
15:30
going to get, this is your budget?
15:32
Sarah: Nothing.
15:32
Annette: Ooh.
15:33
Okay.
15:33
So you can't even start ahead of time
15:35
Sarah: No.
15:36
But I could have.
15:37
Had I had done a million houses, I could have put a concept together.
15:41
And I am a Enneagram 3.
15:43
I let the unknowns roadblock my brain.
15:48
I could have put a concept, a general concept together, and colors, and a vibe.
15:53
And I knew I wanted a beach.
15:54
I knew I wanted the Hamptons.
15:56
I knew that, and that did help me.
15:58
That did serve me when we get there.
15:59
Annette: Right.
15:59
You started your--
16:00
Sarah: But no, they don't tell you square feet.
16:02
They don't tell you how many rooms.
16:04
They don't tell you anything.
16:05
Annette: Oh.
16:05
Fun but nerve-wracking.
16:07
Sarah: It was an adventure, for
16:09
Annette: Adventure.
16:09
There you go.
16:10
When you get to Gulf Shores, where do they put you up?
16:14
Are you in another house?
16:15
Are you at a hotel?
16:16
Obviously, you didn't stay in the property that you flipped, right?
16:20
Sarah: No.
16:20
They put us up in the most gorgeous, most giant vacation rental, first
16:27
row on the beach of Gulf Shores.
16:29
Annette: You didn't have to stay with the other contestants, did you?
16:30
Sarah: Oh, we all lived in this house.
16:31
That was part of the content.
16:34
Annette: Oh, it was.
16:34
Sarah: And how about this?
16:35
They told us in the van.
16:36
They picked us all in the airport.
16:38
I don't remember what happened after that, but we'd driven this van to the house and
16:40
they said, okay, when you get in there, you have to run and find your room.
16:44
Annette: Oh, it was like the old school, um, MTV where they were like--
16:48
Sarah: Choose a room.
16:49
And they of course, documented this.
16:50
And you guys, it was, I don't remember how many bedrooms, but it was, I
16:53
mean, 7, 8, 9, 10, 14 bedrooms.
16:55
Again, Sarah, so stressed about at getting a room I'm not even
16:58
thinking, Sarah, you're on the beach.
17:00
Pick a room where you can see the water.
17:03
I just picked a room.
17:05
Annette: You didn't get one with, uh--
17:06
Sarah: No.
17:06
Annette: Oh.
17:09
Bad move.
17:09
Sarah: And I think I may have been the only--
17:11
Annette: Big, huge mistake.
17:11
Sarah: Only team who didn't pick--
17:13
Annette: Oh my gosh.
17:14
Sarah: Yeah.
17:14
Again, just take a breath, everyone.
17:17
Don't be like me.
17:18
Annette: At what point in time do you get to meet the fellow contestants?
17:23
At the airport?
17:24
Sarah: I think it was at the airport.
17:26
Annette: Ooh, wow.
17:26
Okay.
17:27
And at this point in time, is this when you are like, it is quiet time.
17:31
You cannot talk to friends.
17:33
You cannot talk to family.
17:33
They take
17:34
Sarah: your
17:34
Annette: Ther
17:34
Sarah: phone.
17:35
Annette: What do you mean they take your phone?
17:37
Sarah: You could not have your phone until-- we had
17:39
days off, maybe once a week.
17:42
At that point, you had like phone time, and you could call home.
17:48
Annette: I wonder if it's still like that.
17:49
Sarah: I don't know.
17:51
Annette: Literal, they took your phone.
17:53
Sarah: Because you cannot Instagram your experience.
17:55
You know what I mean?
17:57
Annette: Right.
17:57
If something gets leaked, the whole show's done.
17:59
Sarah: Yeah.
17:59
it's not fun that way.
18:01
They had to do it very seriously.
18:03
They didn't want you getting inspiration from anywhere.
18:05
Annette: Oh, that's true too.
18:06
Sarah: Ifon our days off we wanted to go see a movie, we all had to go see a movie.
18:10
We all had to experience the same things while we were there.
18:13
Annette: To try to keep it controlled.
18:14
Sarah: Yes.
18:15
So that no one got a leg up.
18:17
Annette: Interesting.
18:19
Sarah: Yeah.
18:20
Annette: Okay.
18:20
Since you're talking about the home, and the boundaries here, and
18:24
the contestants, they put you up in this amazing house, how are they
18:28
taking care-- are you truly talent?
18:31
Sarah: You're talent.
18:32
Annette: Everything's taken care of.
18:32
Okay.
18:32
Sarah: Yes, we had free housing and free food.
18:35
Annette: Okay.
18:36
Is there compensation coming in while you are there filming?
18:41
Do you get paid at the end of the show?
18:44
Do you get paid in the beginning 50%, 50% when it closes?
18:48
Do you remember the compensation, and how that happened?
18:51
Sarah: If you win, you got the prize money.
18:53
Annette: Do you remember what that was, prize money?
18:56
Sarah: The prize money was 50,000, I think.
18:58
Annette: Ooh, okay.
18:59
But nothing else?
19:01
Sarah: Nothing else.
19:01
Annette: What do you mean?
19:02
Sarah: Nothing else.
19:04
Annette: Wait.
19:05
Not like, hey, here's $5,000 for being talent?
19:10
Sarah: No.
19:11
Annette: Eight weeks, no compensation, unless you are the grand prize winner?
19:17
Sarah: That's right.
19:18
Annette: I'm very, very surprised by that.
19:19
I thought there'd be a little something, something.
19:22
Sarah: No.
19:23
Annette: Really?
19:25
Sarah: Uh-uh.
19:25
They do future cast with you.
19:28
Annette: What's that mean?
19:28
Sarah: Let's say this show took off and they want us all back to do
19:32
season two or something like that--
19:34
Annette: Then you might get a--
19:35
Sarah: In your contract, they tell you what it would look like if you were to
19:38
succeed with the show moving forward.
19:41
But I mean, it's a competition show.
19:42
Do you want to see the same competitors each season?
19:44
I mean, I guess something could take off.
19:46
They want to be prepared for that.
19:47
Annette: Or do something different.
19:48
So it's the-- yeah.
19:49
They're future casting selling you the promise.
19:51
Sarah: Mm-hmm.
19:53
Annette: Let's just spoiler alert.
19:56
We ain't got the 50k, right?
19:58
Sarah: We didn't get the 50k.
19:59
Annette: So it's okay.
20:01
Oh man.
20:02
I'm really, really surprised that there wasn't any.
20:05
Sorry, I'm stuck on that.
20:06
Do you know-- could there have potentially been other contestants that
20:10
got compensation, they worked it in their contract and you just don't know?
20:14
Sarah: That's true.
20:14
I'm pretty sure we had conversations with our castmates, who were
20:17
amazing human beings, all of them.
20:20
But again, they could be just being nice and not telling us.
20:22
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20:23
Annette: When the competition starts, sorry, I went all the way to the
20:26
end first, is it day one, this is your budget, this is your team, or
20:31
is it also very like, hey, we're going to start in the kitchen?
20:33
You get four days to do the kitchen.
20:35
Then you do the bathrooms.
20:36
How scripted, I guess, or how controlled is it?
20:39
Did you really do the whole house, or did they-- do you see three rooms that
20:44
they show on TV, like the kitchen, the dining room, and a bathroom?
20:48
Was it like, here's your house, here's the budget, have at
20:51
it for the next eight weeks?
20:52
Sarah: So it was, here's the house, here's the budget.
20:55
But it was, okay, this week we're going to be filming the living room.
20:58
This week we're going to be filming the two bathrooms.
21:01
We were all doing the same room at the same time.
21:03
And there was one bathroom.
21:05
They were essentially beachfront duplexes, two of them.
21:09
So each team got their own side.
21:11
And they were identical, square footage, layout, everything.
21:14
There were just mirror images of each other.
21:16
And there was one bathroom that wasn't included in what we did.
21:19
But here's the fun part.
21:21
The homes were owned by homeowners, and they were actual vacation rentals.
21:25
And these homeowners were promised, if you can trust your home to us and these
21:30
competitors, who they didn't know who the hell we were, then you could get--
21:35
and they got to keep the furniture.
21:36
Annette: A free upgrade.
21:37
Sarah: A free upgrade.
21:38
Annette: That sounds like they're the ones that were winning in the whole.
21:40
Sarah: But you don't get to pick what it looks like.
21:42
You don't get to pick anything.
21:44
Okay, so there's--
21:45
Annette: From what I've seen, every week--
21:47
Sarah: No, they--
21:47
Annette: We'll put the link below, uh, in the show notes.
21:50
You can look at all of the before and after.
21:53
Trust me, these homeowners won on this, uh, competition show.
21:59
Did you each get the same amount of time to work each day, or if you wanted
22:03
to work 18 hours, could of you, or was it like, we drop you off at 7:00, the
22:08
van's going to pick you up at 8:00?
22:10
Oh, so that's how they did it?
22:12
Sarah: Yeah.
22:12
Annette: If you were like, no, I want to sleep here and work all night.
22:14
Sarah: We could vote.
22:15
I feel like I remember us voting like, hey, do you want another hour or two?
22:18
Annette: To everyone.
22:19
Sarah: But everyone has to do it.
22:20
Annette: Okay.
22:21
Was the square footage-- you said they were duplexes.
22:22
Sarah: Mm-hmm.
22:23
Annette: So everyone had the same exact square footage, same exact setup?
22:27
Sarah: Yes.
22:28
Annette: And I can foresee this in these beach places being
22:30
very cookie cutter or identical.
22:32
Sarah: Mm-hmm.
22:33
Annette: Okay.
22:34
And let's talk about the other contestants.
22:36
What were their backgrounds?
22:38
Was it all husband and wife duos?
22:41
What were they?
22:42
Sarah: So there was Martha and Alex.
22:42
They won the show.
22:44
They, at the time, were not married.
22:46
They are now married, happily, with beautiful children.
22:48
There's Lucy and Daphne.
22:50
They're the only all-female couple, and they were best friends.
22:53
Daphne is an amazing real estate agent, and now has this
22:57
stunning tree house on a lake.
23:00
And Nick and I are going to go there this August actually.
23:02
We're all still friends.
23:03
Lucy sells and makes architectural hardware, jewelry.
23:06
So if you've ever seen pictures of me with hardware, jewelry from
23:10
house-- and her home is gorgeous.
23:12
She is a talented interior designer.
23:15
And there is, Mahdi and Mel, and they were-- were they married at the time?
23:19
No.
23:19
Because we went to their wedding a couple years later.
23:21
They were also boyfriend, girlfriend, and they were another team.
23:24
Annette: Were you nervous about the competition?
23:27
Could you research them ahead of time?
23:29
Sarah: No.
23:29
Annette: Did you do any research?
23:30
Because, I mean, if--
23:30
Sarah: They don't tell you.
23:31
Annette: Okay.
23:32
Could you have your laptop?
23:33
Could you have a computer?
23:34
I'm like, could you go--
23:34
Sarah: They gave us each a laptop to use when we got there.
23:39
Joss & Main was a sponsor of the show, and so they had a curated list of things
23:45
we could pick each week for whatever space we're doing that we could pick
23:48
from, or we could call local stores.
23:51
But it was not easy.
23:53
It was not-- you had a very limited amount of time to design it.
23:57
If things were out of stock, you had to start over.
23:59
Annette: Okay.
24:00
And what did your-- I mean, was it just Nick and you?
24:03
Did each of you get a painter, a carpenter, a tiler?
24:08
What did your team, if you had a team, what did that look like?
24:12
Sarah: Yes.
24:13
These are the unsung heroes.
24:15
Okay.
24:15
So let me tell you this, the work was very real.
24:19
And I don't remember the exact times.
24:21
We got dropped off 6:00, 7:00 in the morning, and we came home at midnight.
24:26
And we were working.
24:30
So they were hosts of the show.
24:31
It was Nicole Curtis, David Bromstad, and Josh Temple, all amazing humans.
24:35
And they were the talent.
24:37
We were also talent, but we were also--
24:40
Annette: So you're not just designing.
24:41
You're in there like, oh--
24:42
Sarah: Hanging tiles, painting, caulking, everything.
24:46
But each team had a dedicated carpenter.
24:49
Shout out to Mark Peria, who behind the scenes-- he's funny because
24:54
he would always send screenshots with him working in the background.
24:57
The talent in this man and all of the carpenters we were assigned,
25:01
they called him carpenters, but they could do anything, was endless.
25:05
And Mark's dedication to Nick and my vision for this home was admirable.
25:10
I'm sure he could have made much more money with a traditional
25:13
client, and he had a blast, I think.
25:17
We still talk today.
25:18
We're very close.
25:18
And then there was a small team of contractors who would help if anything
25:24
happened with plumbing or electrical.
25:26
Annette: They could go aroundin each of the places.
25:27
Sarah: And we had a GC.
25:28
Annette: Oh.
25:28
Sarah: So we also had a GC who was licensed in the area, and knowledgeable,
25:32
and worked in Gulf Shores, and he made sure that we were following.
25:36
Annette: Um, it'd be interesting to maybe have Mark on the show,
25:38
and just from the tradesperson's perspective, and how do they get chosen?
25:43
And then they're just working with these random people.
25:46
That sparked a whole new thing in my mind.
25:47
I've never thought about the people actually performing the work.
25:51
I want to dig into a couple of--
25:53
Sarah: maybe it's
25:53
Annette: vanity.
25:54
I don't know.
25:54
Okay.
25:55
Every day when you're going to the show, do you care what you're wearing?
25:58
Are you putting makeup on?
26:00
Do you feel like you're being recorded?
26:02
What goes through your mind about how you're going to
26:06
be showing up to the world.
26:08
Because it's like you're-- I mean, you're competing, you're
26:10
doing a lot of laborious tasks.
26:14
How does that play into your mind, and decisions, and how you're
26:18
showing up to actual work perse?
26:21
Sarah: At first, it starts out with makeup and hair in the morning.
26:23
Wake up super early and caring into not caring.
26:28
Not caring because I'm just throwing this opportunity away into, I am stressed
26:33
about getting it done and having an idea, because every room you did had
26:37
to have something that you DIYed.
26:40
Let me go--
26:40
Annette: Oh man.
26:41
You've got to be super creative in such limitedamount--
26:43
Sarah: But also-- yeah, creative with limited amount of time.
26:46
So Nick and I would dream up building a built-in, but I learned very quickly--
26:51
Annette: The time.
26:52
Sarah: After one or two failed attempts that like, I don't have time to do that.
26:55
So how do you do impressive things that don't take long?
26:59
And again, I was very new to the-- so I started a blog and all that
27:03
stuff, and we were DIYing our home, and I was still really new to it,
27:06
so I didn't have that skillset yet.
27:09
Annette: Right.
27:09
Of like, what can be super impactful, but done--
27:12
Both Annette & Sarah: In short amount of time.
27:15
Annette: All right.
27:15
And then let's just get it out there.
27:17
You're with your husband, there's $50,000 on the line.
27:20
What is this tension?
27:21
Is there fighting?
27:23
Is there like, can you go behind a door and yell at each other?
27:27
Was it there?
27:28
Or did you work well to-- I don't know.
27:32
I imagine cameras bring a different amount of pressure just being there.
27:38
Sarah: This is where my trained self flourished.
27:41
In front of a camera?
27:43
Let's go.
27:43
And I can--
27:45
Annette: Fourth wall it.
27:46
Sarah: I can fourth wall.
27:48
Nick, on the other hand, again, is like a reality show star because he
27:54
cannot, which is good for reality TV.
27:58
Annette: Right.
27:58
He lets it fly.
27:59
Sarah: He lets it fly.
28:00
And so we had to come up with a code word for when we were both
28:03
getting ticked off at each other.
28:05
Annette: Ooh, smart.
28:06
Sarah: We did.
28:07
And the word was lunchbox, which is funny.
28:08
So you can't hear that word and not laugh.
28:11
Annette: Where did come from?
28:12
Sarah: I don't know.
28:13
Annette: This is genius.
28:13
Sarah: We made it up, and it did help.
28:15
Because when we're just at each other's throats because you are
28:18
tired, you are hungry, you--
28:21
Annette: Away from home.
28:21
Sarah: Away from home, you are tapped out on ideas, you are worried about what
28:26
your teammates doing because you can't see what they're doing during the week.
28:29
You know what I mean?
28:30
So we had to say lunchbox a couple times.
28:32
You have a dedicated camera person.
28:34
Ours was Corey.
28:35
He was amazing.
28:36
And they cannot talk to you.
28:38
You cannot build a relationship with your camera person.
28:40
Annette: What?
28:41
Sarah: Because they--
28:41
Annette: Oh, I want to be friends with them.
28:42
Sarah: No, you can't.
28:43
And we did too.
28:44
Because they need to be unbiased, and they just need to get the content.
28:49
Annette: Right.
28:50
So you couldn't have a conversation with him.
28:52
Sarah: And you cannot hide behind doors.
28:54
They will find you.
28:55
You have mics on.
28:57
Annette: Did you fight?
28:57
If we went back and watched Beach Flip, would there be any moments of--
29:01
Sarah: There's me crying because the countertops weren't right.
29:06
I'll never forget the first night, you guys.
29:08
The first challenge was the kitchen, and we sat down with the cabinet guy,
29:12
and they gave us each, I think, five or 10 minutes to lay out this kitchen.
29:16
And again, we had two kitchens under our belt at this point.
29:19
So now I can be like, oh yeah, I want a 30-inch there, and an 18.
29:22
I knew what I could tell you now, and so getting home that night and just being
29:28
mad at myself because when we finally got the kitchen, we did not order the
29:32
cabinets that we should have ordered.
29:34
And, um, so I did a lot of like self-fighting.
29:37
Annette: Mm-hmm.
29:38
Okay.
29:39
Let's talk about the tears.
29:40
Sarah's told me a lot of stories about Twitter and her tears.
29:43
They did capture you crying quite a bit, right?
29:45
Sarah: I cried a lot.
29:47
Annette: And so people would say something on Twitterabout it.
29:48
Sarah: Oh, Sarah's crying again.
29:49
I think I even had a hashtag.
29:51
I really don't know.
29:51
I'm sure one of you will find it.
29:53
Yeah, I cried over these countertops.
29:54
That was the biggest one because I really wanted these marble looking countertops
29:57
and they gave me ones that would've been great, but again, under pressure,
30:00
you're just like, I wanted these ones.
30:02
Annette: Oh my gosh.
30:03
Sarah: And they loved getting me ugly crying.
30:05
Annette: Oh my gosh.
30:06
We're going to have to find clip.
30:07
Sarah: And I don't cry.
30:08
Annette: Can we please find the clip and put it on Instagram?
30:10
Sarah: I'll try to find it.
30:11
Annette: Okay.
30:12
That sounded not--
30:13
Sarah: No.
30:13
Listen, it's out there, so I will try to find it.
30:16
Annette: Oh, so good.
30:18
All right.
30:19
So lunch boxes are being said, tears are flying.
30:24
How are you feeling during this whole thing?
30:27
Is there a moment-- did you ever want to quit?
30:29
Sarah: No.
30:30
Oh, heck no.
30:31
Annette: All right.
30:31
And is there ever--
30:32
Sarah: Iloved it.
30:33
Annette: Oh, all right.
30:33
Great.
30:34
That was going to segue into that, but when it's week 5, week
30:37
6, week 7, is it like you're grind-- is seven days a week also?
30:42
Did you get two days off?
30:43
Sarah: I think we got one day off.
30:44
Annette: One day?
30:45
Sarah: Mm-hmm.
30:45
Annette: Okay.
30:46
When you're through this, when you go back to the house, do you talk
30:48
to your competitors about what you're doing or is it tightlipped
30:52
around there about the duplexes?
30:54
Sarah: Our camera people, and we always had a producer at the house.
30:57
Annette: Always?
30:57
Sarah: Yeah.
30:58
Annette: Oh my gosh.
30:59
Sarah: So our listeners, when you watch these reality shows, I mean, I
31:01
think they probably still are pretty close to this, it is pretty real.
31:06
Ours was pretty real.
31:08
So we would talk about it, but also we were all really good competitors.
31:13
We wanted to win.
31:15
We all had a really good relationship.
31:16
We're still friends.
31:17
We're all going to go to Daphne's Treehouse in August, but--
31:20
Annette: But you were keeping things tightlipped.
31:23
All right.
31:23
And then what did it look like?
31:26
And I haven't watched your show, but I know on a lot of reality shows, they'll do
31:29
these like snippets where you're dressed up, and you're talking with the host.
31:33
How did they plan for that?
31:35
Did they let you know, hey, the host is going to be coming by today and
31:39
interrupt you for X amount of time?
31:41
How did they tee that up to you?
31:43
Sarah: I don't remember exactly, but we all got pulled away from the
31:47
projects the exact same amount of time.
31:49
Annette: To make it fair.
31:50
Okay.
31:50
Sarah: Mm-hmm.
31:51
And there were days that-- we knew schedules.
31:54
Like, okay, you'll be working from this time and this time.
31:56
We'll have, I think they were called on the flies.
31:58
That's when you go off the side and you talk with your producer
32:00
and give an update of what's going on, or, hey, this happened.
32:03
And that setup takes forever.
32:05
And it was also February and March in Gulf Shores.
32:07
It's not warm.
32:08
Spoiler alert.
32:09
It was so cold.
32:10
So that whole thing, all that's pretty planned out.
32:13
Yeah.
32:13
Annette: Okay.
32:14
And then the competition show, who was voting on your spaces?
32:18
Was it the public?
32:19
Was it the producers?
32:20
Was it the homeowners?
32:21
Sarah: This is why it's fun, because of what we do now now
32:24
that Thanks for Visiting is what I do in short-term rentals.
32:27
So these were all active vacation homes, and the whole premise
32:30
was doing smart renovations to increase the value of the home.
32:36
Annette: For just the overall value or for the nightly rates?
32:39
Sarah: Market value.
32:40
But that's the thing.
32:41
These homes, they're duplexes.
32:43
They're never going to be someone's primary residence.
32:46
They could be, but they're just not.
32:48
Annette: There's still going to be a beach home on the primary.
32:50
Sarah: Yeah.
32:51
So you had to make decisions that would impact them being great vacation rentals.
32:55
So of course, ADR and occupancy.
32:58
And so at the end of the show, we had appraisers come on.
33:00
At the beginning they told you what the value was, and at the end
33:03
they tell you what the value is.
33:04
And whoever increased their value the most won.
33:07
Annette: Really?
33:08
Sarah: Yeah.
33:08
Annette: Fascinating.
33:10
And it was a group of appraisers?
33:12
Sarah: They were real Gulf Shore, Alabama appraisers.
33:16
Annette: Interesting.
33:16
Sarah: Experts.
33:17
Annette: Okay.
33:18
Sarah: What have you.
33:18
And so I will offer you this too.
33:20
I went in there, again, we had our short-term rental in the basement of
33:23
our Queen's home, but I was not yet this-- I didn't learn all the things
33:28
that I know now about value of property.
33:31
And so one of the first competitions was the primary bedroom, and there's these
33:36
two closets in the primary bedroom.
33:38
And not only did yours truly paint them, which that's where I should have stopped.
33:42
Opening the door and seeing a bright pop of color, super fun.
33:46
But yours truly, again, I told you I was becoming a professional
33:49
organizer, and I was in it.
33:51
I loved it.
33:52
I could tell you how much room you leave for long hanging,
33:55
short hanging purses, shoes.
33:58
So I spent $1,000, maybe more on outfitting each of these closets in this
34:03
primary bedroom with closet organizers.
34:05
Dumb.
34:06
Annette: Do you think-- would you say that was your biggest mistake in the home?
34:10
I'm calling it a mistake just so you know.
34:11
Sarah: No, you should.
34:13
Yes.
34:16
Okay.
34:17
And I'll never forget.
34:18
So each week you do these things and then the hosts tell you, why they
34:22
think that was a good or bad decision, and I've never-- so Nicole Curtis,
34:25
number one, everyone, is so smart.
34:28
She knows her stuff.
34:29
She does not play around.
34:30
She is the real deal.
34:31
They all are the real deal.
34:33
But I remember her saying, Sarah, these people are coming for a week, and they
34:37
don't need to organize their clothes.
34:39
They're going to throw their suitcase on a-- I mean, some people might,
34:41
but like they're going to throw their thing on a luggage rack.
34:43
Annette: One person in 1,000.
34:45
Sarah: Yes.
34:46
She was like, you just-- and we had a budget.
34:48
Annette: Oh, blew a ton of your budget.
34:49
Sarah: I blew a ton of my money on something like that, and I could
34:52
have done something else with it.
34:53
And so I'm grateful I made that mistake the first episode, because
34:57
then again, my mind started to shift.
34:59
I'm like, oh.
34:59
Annette: To short-term or not.
35:00
Okay.
35:01
Sarah: The value of the home is perception of the buyer, and if investors are going
35:06
to buy this home-- so I learned a ton.
35:08
Annette: Okay.
35:09
Any other large mistakes like that that you're like, I would definitely
35:13
would not do it again on another?
35:16
Because listeners, that's actually high value right there for any
35:20
short-term rental, is not putting a ton of money into the closet spaces.
35:25
Sarah: Don't do that.
35:26
And there was these beautiful views.
35:28
Then Nick and I made smarter decisions moving forward because we
35:31
also weren't idiots either at point.
35:33
We were smart enough to find a home in one of the most expensive real estate
35:36
markets in the world, tap into the Airbnb thing, which wasn't a thing yet.
35:40
You know what I mean?
35:40
And we've put faith in it.
35:41
So we were also weren't dumb.
35:42
So we took that, and there was a room where there was these giant closets.
35:46
It was half closet, half room.
35:48
And we removed one of the closets and put a desk there.
35:52
Annette: Oh, nice.
35:52
Sarah: Um, now, thinking back, we probably could have fit a bed
35:55
there, but the fact that we took out storage and made it functional--
35:59
Annette: Larger square footage usage.
36:00
Sarah: Correct.
36:01
That was a good decision.
36:02
And also we all had these sliding doors that looked out in the ocean.
36:05
I forget what we did to them, but we made that more-- I don't know if we
36:08
made them bigger or what we did, but we did something to really focus on
36:11
that Gulf Shore view of the ocean.
36:13
So that was also good.
36:15
So we made good decisions there.
36:16
I probably spent money that I shouldn't have spent in some other places.
36:19
Annette: How much money did you get?
36:20
Do you remember?
36:21
Sarah: I don't remember.
36:22
Annette: And was it a-- I'm just making up a number, let's say it's 20 grand.
36:26
Sarah: Yeah.
36:26
Annette: Could you spend it all in one swoop?
36:29
And how did the spending go?
36:31
Sarah: I feel like every episode, if you won-- every week was a chance to "win".
36:37
And if you won, I think you got more money.
36:39
Annette: Yeah.
36:40
Do you have a spreadsheet?
36:41
Who's doing the math for you?
36:43
Sarah: The producers are.
36:44
Annette: They are.
36:44
Okay.
36:44
So they're keeping track of like, you bought this much paint, you
36:46
bought this much whatever, blah, blah, blah, and they'rekeeping
36:49
track of what you have left.
36:50
Sarah: Yeah.
36:50
Annette: That's nice.
36:50
Sarah: So if you won that week-- I think you got like, okay, if you win this
36:53
week, you get an extra a $1,000 to your budget, an extra $2,000 to your budget.
36:55
So if you weren't winning, you had to be even more creative on less money.
37:00
Annette: Okay.
37:01
Did you win any of the individual challenges?
37:03
Sarah: We did.
37:05
I don't remember which.
37:07
Annette: Which ones.
37:07
Okay.
37:08
Sarah: I feel like I won the guest bedroom and maybe--
37:11
Annette: Were those the appraisers that--
37:13
Sarah: No, those were the hosts.
37:15
Annette: They were the ones deciding.
37:16
Hey, Nick and Sarah, are you one this week?
37:18
Sarah: Yes.
37:19
Correct.
37:20
Annette: Now, that type of stuff, would everybody come together?
37:24
Was that part of the filming and like, Lucy and Daphne, you won
37:26
this week, and they'd cheer you--
37:27
Sarah: They'd walk you into each space, and the hosts would tell you why they
37:30
liked it, why they didn't, and yeah.
37:35
And then obviously the viewers got to see, compare all of our rooms.
37:38
It was fun.
37:39
On Instagram, they would show all of our rooms, and Instagrammers got to vote.
37:42
Annette: Oh, okay.
37:43
So that would be live even though, or it was once it went live?
37:46
Sarah: Once it went live.
37:47
Oh yeah.
37:48
It aired the summer of 2015.
37:50
Annette: That was going to be one of my questions, is when--
37:52
Sarah: June or July.
37:53
Some summer kickoff.
37:55
Annette: Okay.
37:55
And so was it the last and final day?
37:58
Is that when you found out who the winner was?
38:01
Sarah: Pretty much.
38:02
Annette: Okay.
38:03
And then you and the competitors, did you guys have a celebratory
38:08
dinner of like, we finished.
38:09
Sarah: We did.
38:10
Annette: Did it feel so complete when it was complete, or was it still
38:14
wild because no one had seen it yet?
38:17
Sarah: I just remember it feeling awesome to finish.
38:19
The house looked great, in true Sarah fashion.
38:22
I really was just excited for the people who owned the property.
38:25
We did a good job.
38:26
And I knew that it would stand out on their online listing.
38:30
And we were all best friends, and we are still.
38:33
I went to Martha and Alex's wedding, Mahdi and Mel's wedding,
38:35
and then Lucy and Daphne's.
38:37
We almost moved to Birmingham, Alabama because we wanted to take over the world.
38:39
Lucy and Daphne, the connections we made were real.
38:43
And even with the host of the show, Josh Temple, still supports us on Instagram.
38:48
Annette: Nice.
38:48
Sarah: Yeah.
38:48
I would never take it back, and we can always say, I see you on HGTV.
38:53
And so while we're not HGTV stars, we still got a lot of opportunities
38:59
because of that experience.
39:01
So we got paid to speak after that at different home and garden shows.
39:05
Annette: Oh, cool.
39:06
Sarah: Nick and I, when we were bloggers, we worked with some big
39:09
brands because of that accolade.
39:11
We worked with Lowe's for a while, and yeah.
39:13
Annette: You can have it on your brag bar forever.
39:15
Sarah: You can, and you do.
39:16
And I earned that.
39:18
Annette: New York Times best seller as seen on HGTV.
39:21
Sarah: Yeah.
39:21
Annette: So I think with that being said, you would absolutely do it again.
39:29
Sarah: I think it would depend.
39:30
Here's why.
39:31
Because I'm in a different place.
39:34
We now have almost, however many years ago that was now of fixing up
39:38
homes, of running vacation rentals, of running short-term rentals under
39:42
our belt, that I don't know if a competition shows, just to get something
39:47
on my resume, where I did that.
39:50
And so now, what you and I are building with Thanks for Visiting, I
39:54
have different wants and needs now.
39:56
So if we were to get our own show, I would consider that.
40:00
Annette: Right.
40:00
Okay.
40:01
And then what do you think though-- all of the lessons learned there, what
40:06
is the number one thing just about television period that was like, oh,
40:12
that was completely, totally unexpected?
40:15
Is there something that you learned that made an impact or like, wow, that
40:21
was way different than I anticipated?
40:23
Sarah: I am not going to lie.
40:24
I told you when we first met that if I could have done anything differently when
40:28
the show was airing, I would've engaged even harder with opportunities on my
40:33
own and leveraged me being on that show.
40:36
I would've invested in a PR agent.
40:38
Annette: Oh yeah, you have discussed this.
40:40
So you would've handled-- and I didn't touch on that.
40:42
Let's touch on that.
40:43
So when you left, you still couldn't tell anybody about your experience.
40:48
So February, March.
40:49
It comes out maybe--
40:51
Sarah: June, Ithink.
40:52
Annette: Okay.
40:52
Did you have a party?
40:53
Did you have this huge event where your friends and family could watch?
40:56
And then did you watch it every week?
40:58
Did you have a watch party when it came out?
41:00
Sarah: We did.
41:00
Annette: Youdid.
41:00
Okay.
41:01
Awesome.
41:01
And that's fun.
41:02
And then how did you stay tightlipped about the winner?
41:05
Because were your friends and family like, did you guys win?
41:07
Sarah: Listen, you signed a contract.
41:09
And I'm not messing around with HGTV.
41:12
Annette: They will come and get you.
41:13
Sarah: Yeah.
41:15
No.
41:15
We didn't tell anybody, and it was fun to watch it because you don't
41:18
know how they're going to edit it or cut it and show who you are.
41:22
They had this little thing where they called him nosy Nick because Nick
41:25
would go and ask the girls, Lucy and Daphne, next to us, if they had an
41:28
extra set of, I don't know, screws.
41:30
Annette: Oh, to see if he could see inside.
41:32
Sarah: Yeah.
41:32
And they like-- of course, Nick is going to see and tell me like, oh my God, they
41:36
this really cool thing with the ceiling.
41:37
But Nick is not this like cheater or copycat.
41:41
But it was fun to lean into that.
41:44
Annette: Have that persona, nosy Nick, a it'd be like, went
41:47
over there to check it out.
41:49
Do you by chance know what the winners did with their money that they won?
41:53
Sarah: What Martha and Alex did with their money?
41:55
I don't know what they did with it.
41:58
Annette: Interesting.
41:59
And then were you and Nick dreaming up what you would
42:01
do with the money if you won?
42:03
Sarah: We probably were, buying a rental, finishing our house.
42:07
You know what I mean?
42:08
Annette: Right.
42:08
Something like you had some thoughts around it.
42:11
But I love, um, I think it's interesting what you said your takeaway was.
42:17
I think it's like most things in life is the real work actually
42:21
starts after you're complete.
42:23
With the show, what I heard was that you should have capitalized when
42:29
it was airing, hired someone in PR to get you out there while the show
42:34
was hot or while it was airing.
42:36
Sarah: Right.
42:36
I thought that maybe HGTV would do that for us.
42:39
But you do remember their focus was the show, not Sarah and Nick necessarily.
42:44
So Sarah and Nick could have done more to get more opportunity during that time
42:48
and capitalize on our 15 minutes of fame.
42:51
And you need to remember too, I mean, this is before streaming was
42:54
big and people still had cable.
42:56
And a lot of people watch HGTV, obviously, but they don't necessarily hone in
43:01
on, oh, that couple, Sarah and Nick.
43:03
Annette: Right.
43:04
Sarah: So if you have this opportunity, anyone out there right
43:07
now, just know that you are in charge of leveraging that opportunity
43:12
within your contractual agreement.
43:15
But we did a lot of fun stuff.
43:17
Annette: I love that.
43:18
No, that's such a great tip.
43:20
Actually, let's circle it back to-- we have a lot of our members, they're
43:24
going to have opportunities to be highlighted by people with super large
43:29
YouTube channels, people with large Instagram followings, TikTok followings.
43:34
You cannot just say, hey, I did my part.
43:38
You have got to help keep that flame alive.
43:41
I mean, obviously, they're going to do the work that they want to do.
43:45
Sarah: They're going to offer you the deliverables promised.
43:46
Annette: Yes.
43:47
But you need to promote.
43:49
And I'm not saying it in a selfish way, but their goal is to promote themselves.
43:53
Yes, you're helping, but that is where-- and it goes with being on Airbnb or Vrbo.
43:58
You have to self-promote.
43:59
If you want the direct bookings, you have to promote it yourself if
44:02
you are on the show and you want to get some love after doing that PR.
44:06
But I think that's a HGTV hot tip there from Sarah.
44:12
Sarah: We've got friends who have shows, and I've got friends who had
44:16
one season, and I've got friends who are, I mean, multiple seasons now.
44:19
And they had to put the work in too to make it catch fire.
44:24
Annette: Well, and I think, and hopefully we'll have, um, some of
44:28
these said friends on the show.
44:29
They've been on before, but specifically talk about this because I think the
44:33
show is still "a loss leader" for them.
44:36
It is them getting the real estate estate deals.
44:38
It's them getting the street cred from other things.
44:41
Because at the end of the day, the show itself is not supporting their
44:46
family with the earnings from it.
44:47
Sarah: No.
44:48
I know you do make money, obviously, and whether or not-- let's say you do
44:51
get your own show and it is the Bob and Susie show, you might be getting
44:55
paid your first, like season one, and then as you continue on with seasons,
44:59
you get paid more and more for sure.
45:01
Reality shows, I don't know.
45:02
I didn't get paid.
45:03
Maybe someone else did.
45:04
Congratulations if you did.
45:05
I sure didn't.
45:07
Correct.
45:08
Again, you have to leverage.
45:09
And how many opportunities are there to be Chip and Joanna?
45:12
And again, I really believe if you read their books and their content,
45:16
they put a lot of work into taking that opportunity and helping it blow up.
45:21
This is why they have their own network now.
45:23
They did a lot of work.
45:24
They are smart marketers.
45:26
They made smart decision with their 15 minutes.
45:29
And also they had to meet up with opportunity.
45:31
The world had to love them too.
45:33
Annette: Absolutely.
45:34
All right.
45:34
This was fun, but I'm still sad you didn't win the money.
45:38
Sarah: I'm not sad.
45:39
It looked good.
45:39
Annette: Okay.
45:40
And then my last question is, do you ever go back and watch any the episodes?
45:45
Sarah: No.
45:45
Absolutely not.
45:47
No.
45:48
And actually, I say it looks good, but if anyone out there
45:51
is going to go look at it--
45:53
Annette: They all will, by the way.
45:54
Sarah: I would make all different decisions.
45:58
I learned so much.
45:58
Annette: Forgive me for what I've--
45:59
Sarah: Forgive me, for what I've done, the colors I chose and the decor I picked.
46:03
Annette: It's also almost a decade ago.
46:04
Sarah: Almost a decade.
46:05
I'm telling you, when you have a camera person on you, and you have
46:07
someone breathing down your neck, and a budget, you make decisions that maybe
46:12
you're not proud off down the road.
46:13
What I mean it looks good, it looks much better than what it was,
46:15
and the quality of work was good.
46:18
Annette: Awesome.
46:18
Well, no, thanks for sharing, and anyone out there, if you are on a show,
46:24
getting ready to be on a show, or your show is going to air, let us know.
46:29
Email us.
46:29
We'd love to share your story especially if it's fresher.
46:33
Ours is a little dated, but we'd love to hear if we have any
46:36
listeners with their own experience.
46:38
So it would be wonderful to hear from you.
46:40
Sarah: Thanks for sharing my story, Annette.
46:42
It was a definitely a highlight of my life.
46:45
It was a lot of fun, and I really appreciate the network for giving
46:48
Nick and I the opportunity.
46:50
So with that, I am Sarah Karakaian.
46:52
Annette: I'm Annette Grant, and together we are--
46:54
Both Annette & Sarah: Thanks for visiting.
46:55
Sarah: We'll talk to you next time.