Magnolia Network launched with a lot of noise. Honestly, some of it was just fluff. But then came In With the Old Season 1, and it felt different. It wasn't just another show where a designer picks out expensive tile and calls it a day. It was gritty. It was slow. It was about people who were basically obsessed with saving crumbling piles of brick and wood that most sane people would have bulldozed years ago.
You've probably seen the glossy reno shows where a house is "transformed" in forty-four minutes. This isn't that. When In With the Old Season 1 premiered back in 2021, it introduced a revolving door of designers, builders, and preservationists who weren't working for a paycheck as much as they were working for a piece of history. Each episode focuses on a single project, usually a structure that has been neglected for decades.
The stakes felt real because they were real. If they messed up the structural integrity of a 19th-century barn or a forgotten Victorian, that piece of American history was gone forever. No do-overs.
What Made In With the Old Season 1 Different From the Pack
Most HGTV-style content follows a formula. You know the one: couple wants a house, couple finds a house, contractor finds a "surprise" mold issue that costs five grand, and then everything is perfect. In With the Old Season 1 ditched the scripted drama. Instead, it leaned into the technicalities of restoration.
Take the pilot episode featuring the McWilliams family. They took on a massive 19th-century home in Franklin, Tennessee. It wasn't about "open concept" living. It was about figuring out how to make a house built in the 1800s functional for a modern family without stripping away the soul of the architecture. They spent time discussing materials and techniques that most shows would edit out because they think the audience is too bored to care.
They were wrong. People loved it.
The show proved there is a massive audience for "slow TV" in the home space. We want to see the dust. We want to see the struggle of sourcing a specific type of reclaimed heart pine. It turns out that watching someone meticulously restore a pocket door is actually more satisfying than watching a sledgehammer go through drywall for the thousandth time.
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The Projects That Defined the First Season
If you look back at the episode list, the variety is actually pretty wild. You had a couple in New Orleans working on a Creole Cottage that looked like it might collapse if someone sneezed too hard. Then you had a team in Utah tackling a massive stone schoolhouse.
- The Franklin House: A massive undertaking that set the tone for the series. It focused on preservation over replacement.
- The New Orleans Cottage: This highlighted the unique challenges of humid climates and historical zoning laws.
- The Stone Schoolhouse: A masterclass in masonry and structural stabilization.
The producers made a smart move by not sticking to one geographic location. By moving around the country, they showed how "old" means something different in Massachusetts than it does in Texas. The building materials change. The architectural problems change. But the passion—or maybe the madness—of the renovators stays exactly the same.
Why We Are Still Talking About These Episodes
Authenticity is a buzzword, but In With the Old Season 1 actually had it. The people on screen weren't professional TV hosts. They were builders. Some were awkward. Some were stressed out. Some clearly forgot the cameras were even there because they were too busy worrying about a sagging floor joist.
That lack of polish is exactly why it ranks so well in the minds of DIY enthusiasts. It feels attainable, even if the scale of the projects is massive. It gives you the sense that if you just had enough patience (and a lot of specialized tools), you could save a piece of history too.
There's also the "Magnolia Effect." Being under the umbrella of Chip and Joanna Gaines' network gave the show a specific aesthetic—clean, thoughtful, and heritage-focused. But it avoided the "shiplap everything" trope that people sometimes complain about. It respected the specific era of each house. If the house was Federal style, it stayed Federal. If it was a mid-century oddity, they leaned into that.
The Technical Hurdles Most People Miss
Restoration isn't renovation. Let's be clear about that. Renovation is making something new. Restoration is returning something to its former glory while making it livable.
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In In With the Old Season 1, we saw the nightmare of "un-doing" bad 1970s renovations. You know the type. Dropped ceilings that hide beautiful original beams. Linoleum glued over hardwood. Pink bathroom tiles that were trendy for five minutes fifty years ago.
Stripping back those layers takes a physical toll. The show did a great job of showing the literal sweat equity involved. It also didn't shy away from the financial reality. While they don't always give you a line-item budget (I wish they would), you can see the cost in the specialized labor required. You can't just hire a random guy from a big-box store to fix a 150-year-old plaster ceiling. You need an artisan.
Sourcing Materials: The Great Treasure Hunt
One of the coolest parts of the first season was seeing where these materials came from. We saw people trekking through salvage yards, scouring Facebook Marketplace, and trading with other restoration junkies. It’s a subculture.
I remember one specific instance where they needed matching hardware for a set of windows. They didn't just buy "vintage look" knobs from an online retailer. They hunted down the actual period-correct pieces. That level of detail is why the show has such a high E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) factor for viewers who actually know their way around a wood shop.
How to Apply the Lessons from the Show to Your Own Project
If you're sitting in an old house right now wondering where to start, In With the Old Season 1 actually offers some pretty solid blueprints. It’s not just entertainment; it’s a lesson in patience.
First, stop tearing things out. The show repeatedly demonstrates that original materials are almost always higher quality than what you can buy today. Old-growth timber is denser. Hand-made bricks have character that machines can't replicate.
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Second, focus on the envelope of the building. In almost every episode, the first priority wasn't the kitchen cabinets. It was the roof. It was the foundation. It was keeping the water out. If the "bones" aren't dry and stable, your $50,000 kitchen is going to rot in five years.
Practical Steps for Historic Preservation
- Audit the "Originals": Before you start a demo, identify what is original to the house. Windows, trim, floors, and even old glass panes have value.
- Consult a Preservationist: Before you knock down a wall, find out if it's structural or if it’s part of the historical character of the home.
- Source Locally: Look for architectural salvage yards in your city. They are gold mines for matching missing pieces of your home's puzzle.
- Embrace Imperfection: An old house will never have perfectly level floors or 90-degree corners. That's not a defect; it's the house's "thumbprint."
The Lasting Legacy of the First Season
It’s been a few years since the first season dropped, and the show has continued to grow. But that first batch of episodes remains the most pure. It felt like a discovery.
It taught us that "old" isn't a synonym for "disposable." In a world where everything is made of particle board and plastic, there is something deeply grounding about watching a person spend three days sanding a single banister. It reminds us that things can last centuries if we just give them a little bit of attention.
If you haven't revisited In With the Old Season 1 lately, it’s worth a rewatch. Not just for the "before and after" reveals, but for the stories of the people who refused to let these buildings die. They aren't just contractors; they're caretakers.
To start your own restoration journey, your first step should be a "deep dive" into your local historical archives. Find out who lived in your house in 1900. Look at old Sanborn maps to see the original footprint. Understanding the history of your home is the only way to properly restore it for the future. Once you have the history, find a local craftsman who specializes in lime mortar or window restoration—investing in specialized labor early saves you from expensive mistakes later.