The Fixer Upper Tour and our Day 30 at the Magnolia Empire

Wow! What a day! The day started with 8:30 am reservations at Magnolia Table, Chip & Joanna’s restaurant. It was only about 10 minutes from our campground. We didn’t need the reservation we made as there were plenty of tables. It was a Tuesday morning though, so not their busiest time. By the time we left, it was starting to get crowded, so it was good that we went early.

The restaurant is truly beautiful —as you would expect from Joanna.

The food was delicious and reasonably priced for such a famous place. I got Joanna’s special recipe for biscuits and gravy ($11.99). Jim got a breakfast taco ($4) and breakfast potatoes ($4.50).

After breakfast, we went to Magnolia Market at the Silos. The silos are historic and were used in the cotton industry. Joanna liked their look, and Chip surprised her by buying them. There’s nothing in them now except Joanna’s Christmas decorations for the whole Magnolia area. The Silos are the centerpiece with all of the Magnolia businesses around them.

All of the shops are decorated beautifully. I enjoyed looking around, the atmosphere, and the Christian music playing throughout the property, but I’m not a shopper and found the prices very high. There’s so much more than shops though. They have a small ball field, food trucks, a coffee shop, a bakery, picnic tables, lawn games, and a renovated church.

We tried cupcakes at the bakery- strawberry lemonade and orange creamsicle. They were $5 each and worth every penny!

After exploring the Magnolia “city”, we took the Fixer Upper Tour. We ended up being the only people for the 2:00 time, so we received a personal tour! The tour company was Brazos Tours, and they were great. The tour started at Clint Harp’s old shop. We got to learn about him, his shop, and see his fixer upper house next door. He and his family have since moved, and they’re selling the house. We were told the quick fame he gained from the show was difficult, and they moved somewhere where they have more privacy.

From there, we went by many of the Fixer Upper properties, and we heard updates and stories about all of them.

WE ALSO GOT TO GO INSIDE THE 3 LITTLE PIGS HOUSE! It’s from season 3, episode 13- the Downs family. It was SO surreal going into the house. It was even more beautiful in person.

The couple who had it renovated actually sold it, and it’s now being used as a vacation rental. The Downs had been disappointed in the safety of the neighborhood, and even had a car crash into their house. Believe it or not, because Joanna had relocated the fireplace, the fireplace stopped the car from going into their bedroom while they were sleeping. They sold the house right after that incident.

If you’re a fan of the show, you will recognize these! Forgive me, that I forgot some of their stage names…