Hallmark Tackles Personal Renovations In New Series ‘Home Is Where The Heart Is'

Forbes

20-03-2025

When Luke Macfarlane walks into a home, any home, even those of his friends, he immediately begins to assess the construction and décor.
'Anybody who knows me knows that when I come in I will immediately want to know, like, 'oh, how are these made? And what's this? Who helped you with this',' says Macfarlane
His inquisitiveness comes from a genuine love of construction and furnishings. 'I can speak a lot about design and woodworking, because those are things that I'm really interested in.'
Now, Macfarlane gets to use his knowledge, and passion, in the new series Home is Where the Heart Is. In Hallmark's first entry into the renovation genre, Macfarlane and designer Olivia Westbrooks take viewers inside homes that are overdue for a facelift and then proceed to use their talents to update the residence while still keeping the history and uniqueness of the home intact.
Most of Macfarlane's work has been as an actor, appearing in numerous Hallmark films, so switching to a reality series presents a new challenge for him. 'I mean, acting is really about responding to what's in front of you, so in that way acting is very similar to what it's like to be a human being. That being said, I remember our first day when we were meeting a family for the first time. We walked up to their house and I definitely remember when the doors opened and I was like, 'Oh, these are real people.''
Macfarlane says that once everyone got used to the equipment, 'The most important thing is it's just a conversation with somebody. And I was amazed at how quickly all our homeowners eventually came around to, 'oh, let's just look at each other.' They all became very comfortable.'
Before ever even raising a hammer or painting a wall, Westbrooks says that she and Macfarlane were guided in their choices by, 'leaning into the stories of the families.'
'We asked them about the history of the home and said, 'tell us about your fondest memories, what did you love about growing up in this house' and the things that,' she explains.
She adds that the hardest part for the duo was, 'deciding what do we touch and what don't we touch. I know how to modernize a space, make it look fresh and new, but this was different because we wanted to honor and respect the house and the memories of the people who live there.'
'I think some people have this idea that design is about going into a space and telling people what it is that they need,' says Macfarlane 'But this it's less about that, and more about figuring out together the way the space is going to make them feel the most comfortable.'
However, Westbrooks admits that this doesn't mean that she and Macfarlane were always in agreement right away. 'Yeah, there was a lot of give and take. With us, he's the woodworker, I'm the designer. He doesn't want to paint something and I do. And it's the same with deciding what to keep and what not to keep. You know, it's all a compromise, but in a good way. We would come to a happy resolution.'
The pair realize that there is a multitude of home renovation shows on the air but say Home is Where the Heart Is is different for several reasons.
'I feel like with this, the stakes are different,' says Macfarlane explaining, 'A lot of home design shows are driven by the concepts that, 'we're running out of time, we're running out of money,' and we are not driven by that. We're driven by the thought, 'Is what we're doing going to serve this family and tell their story'?' And, I think that what's unique here is that we spend just as much time with the family as we do at the house.'
Westbrooks says that, 'From a design perspective, I mean, let's be honest, not everybody has the budget or the desire to do a full gut renovation.. A lot of people are in situations where it's like, 'this is my house. I can't move walls. I can't move plumbing. But what can I do to update my house right now within the footprint that we have?''
In light of this, Westbrooks says that what viewers will see is, 'a lot of really big transformations just using paint, wall coverings, and decor.'
With every renovation, what Macfarlane and Westbrooks are hopefully doing, she says is, 'We want to inspire people to reflect on their own family history and their own life story in their homes. On our show, we ask, 'Who are you? Where do you come from? What's important to you?' Then we figure out how to make that the sole focus of your space. I just don't think a lot of other shows have that kind of soul.'
'Home is Where the Heart Is' is streaming now on Hallmark+