It’s the most famous white oak tree in Texas. Maybe the world. You know the one—it stands right in front of that iconic 1895 farmhouse in Crawford, just outside of Waco. When people think about the chip and joanna gaines house, they usually picture the Fixer Upper reveal. Shiplap. A big kitchen island. Happy kids running around a sprawling 40-acre property.
But the reality of that house is a lot more chaotic than a 42-minute HGTV episode suggests.
Honestly, it wasn’t even a "house" when they bought it. It was a wreck. A tiny, two-bedroom Victorian that had been sitting in a field since the McKinley administration. Most people would have bulldozed it. Chip and Jo? They spent eighteen months living in a cramped rental with four kids while slowly pieceing this thing together. It wasn’t a quick flip. It was a grind.
Why the Farmhouse Almost Didn't Happen
There’s this misconception that because they are the "First Family of Refurbishment," everything they touch turns to gold instantly. That's not how it went down with the chip and joanna gaines house. They actually owned the land for a while before they even touched the structure.
The original house was tiny. Roughly 1,700 square feet. For a family that eventually grew to include five children, that’s basically a closet.
Joanna has talked openly about the "waiting period." They didn't have the massive Magnolia empire back then. They had a small shop and a construction business that was doing okay, but they weren't exactly swimming in cash. They had to be patient. They added a large primary suite wing and a massive kitchen, but they kept the original footprint of the old house intact to preserve the soul of the building.
It’s interesting. Most celebrities build these 15,000-square-foot mega-mansions the second they get a paycheck. The Gaineses stayed at about 2,500 square feet for a long time. Even after the additions, it’s remarkably "normal" by Hollywood standards. It feels like a home, not a museum.
The Shiplap Obsession Started Here
We have to talk about the shiplap. It’s the design trend that launched a thousand Pinterest boards and, frankly, probably kept Home Depot in business for a decade.
In the chip and joanna gaines house, the shiplap wasn't a choice. It was a discovery. When they started ripping off the old wallpaper and rotting drywall, they found those horizontal slats of pine underneath. Back in the late 1800s, this wasn't an "aesthetic." It was structural. It was cheap wood used to hold up the wallpaper.
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Joanna saw it and decided to leave it exposed. That one decision basically shifted the entire trajectory of interior design in the 2010s. If that house had been built with different bones, we might all be living in houses full of exposed brick or floral wallpaper right now instead of white wooden slats.
Living in a Fishbowl
Imagine trying to raise five kids—Drake, Ella, Duke, Emmie Kay, and Crew—while the entire world knows exactly where you live.
That’s been the biggest challenge. Fans started showing up. A lot of them. People would drive out to Crawford, pull over on the side of the road, and just stare. It got so intense that they had to install a massive gate and security system.
It’s the downside of the "approachable" brand. Because people feel like they know Chip and Jo, they feel like they’re invited to the farm. They aren't. It’s a private residence.
Despite the fame, the house has remained a working farm. It’s not just for the cameras. They have goats, chickens, horses, and a massive garden. Chip is actually out there doing the work. You see him on Instagram covered in literal dirt because he’s fixing a fence or dealing with a sick animal. It’s gritty. It’s loud. It’s definitely not the curated, quiet life people see in the Magnolia Journal.
The Kitchen: The Heart of the Brand
If you look at the kitchen in the chip and joanna gaines house, you see the blueprint for every project they’ve done since.
- Huge windows for natural light.
- A massive island (the "center of the gravity").
- Industrial lighting mixed with antique wood.
- Open shelving (which everyone hates cleaning, but looks great).
This kitchen served as the "test lab" for Joanna’s design theories. She realized that if she could make a cramped 1800s farmhouse feel airy and functional, she could do it for anyone.
The black-and-white color palette? That started here. The mixture of metal and wood? Here. It’s the "Magnolia Look" in its purest, most authentic form before it was replicated in Target aisles across America.
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What People Get Wrong About the "Farmhouse Style"
A lot of critics call the chip and joanna gaines house "cookie cutter" now. But that’s because they’re looking at the clones, not the original.
What made the Crawford farmhouse special wasn't that it was "modern farmhouse." It was that it was honest. Joanna didn't try to make an 1895 house look like a 2024 glass box. She used salvaged materials. The flooring in the attic? It was reclaimed from other old houses. The doors? Mostly found at antique sales.
The real "secret sauce" is the imperfection.
- The floors creak.
- The walls aren't perfectly straight.
- The layout is a bit wonky because of the additions.
In a world of "McMansions" where everything is perfectly symmetrical and made of cheap drywall, this house had character. That’s what people were actually responding to on TV. They didn't want shiplap; they wanted a home that felt like it had a story.
The 40-Acre Reality
The property itself is massive. It’s not just the house. There’s the "Garden House," which is Joanna’s sanctuary. It’s a smaller outbuilding where she keeps her plants and does her potting.
Then there’s the barn. The silos (not the Silos, but their actual farm silos). The chicken coop that looks better than most people’s apartments.
It’s a massive operation. Maintaining 40 acres while running a multi-million dollar media empire is objectively insane. Chip has joked that he’s the "world’s most expensive farmhand." He’s out there at 5:00 AM because the cows don’t care if you have a meeting with Discovery+ at noon.
Is the House Still the Same?
The house has evolved. You can't live in a place for over a decade with five kids and keep it a time capsule.
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When baby Crew came along, they had to rethink some spaces. They added a nursery. They’ve changed the furniture. Joanna’s style has leaned a bit more toward "sophisticated moody" lately—darker woods, more brass, less "distressed" white paint.
But the bones are the same. The oak tree is still there.
One of the most human things about the chip and joanna gaines house is that they haven't left. They could afford a mansion in Austin or a penthouse in New York. They chose to stay in Crawford. There’s something to be said for staying put in the place that grounded you before the fame hit.
Actionable Takeaways for Your Own Space
You don't need 40 acres in Texas to get the "Gaines" vibe. If you’re looking to bring some of that farmhouse energy into your own home, stop buying "farmhouse decor" from big-box stores.
First, look for the "soul" of your house. If you have original wood floors, stop covering them with grey LVP. If you have a weird nook, don't drywall it over—turn it into a built-in bookshelf.
Second, focus on "The Island." Joanna’s biggest design win was making the kitchen a place where people actually hang out, not just a place where food is made. If your kitchen feels closed off, see if you can open up a sightline.
Third, embrace the dirt. A real home—like the chip and joanna gaines house—isn't a museum. It’s okay if the mudroom actually has mud in it. That’s what makes it a home.
If you want to replicate the look, start with these three steps:
- Source one "anchor" antique. Find a piece of furniture with a history—an old harvest table or a salvaged door. Use that as your focal point.
- Prioritize natural light. Strip back heavy curtains. If you're renovating, add windows. The Gaines' house works because it feels connected to the outside.
- Contrast textures. Don't make everything wood. Mix in matte black metals, linen fabrics, and stone. It prevents the "rustic" look from feeling like a Cracker Barrel.
The legacy of the Gaines farmhouse isn't about a specific type of wood or a color of paint. It’s about the idea that an old, broken-down thing is worth saving. Whether it's a house or a piece of furniture, the value is in the restoration process itself.
Stop looking for "perfect" and start looking for "potential." That’s the real lesson from the house that started it all.