‘Home Again With the Fords’ Siblings Steve and Leanne Ford Share Tips to Modernize Your Home (Exclusive)

Sibling home designers Steve Ford and Leanne Ford are back on the small screen Tuesday night with the series premiere of their new HGTV show, Home Again With the Fords, helping people move back to where they grew up. With each house full of love and history in its walls, the brother-sister renovating duo is challenged to respect the home’s past while updating it for a new generation. But with millions of homeowners currently turning to do-it-yourself projects amid the pandemic, the Work in Progress authors tell PopCulture.com exclusively there are smart ways to modernize your home to make it all your own.

“It’s more a matter of combining the worlds, right? So, we really like to walk into a space and think, ‘What can we keep here? What’s the charm?’” Leanne said in our series, PopCulture @ Home. “We don’t want to rip that all out and start over, which I think is unique to us as a team. We really work hard to keep as much of the character and history of a home as possible. But that being said, we live in modern times with modern amenities, so you don’t want to live in a museum.”

The Pittsburgh native adds how it’s all about a “combination of making something modern” and then adding a blend of magnetism. “Making it feel charming or historical is our sweet spot of what we’ve been doing,” she said, adding how it’s all about being discreet. “I hide appliances a lot. I had Steven vinyl a range — an appliance — to make it a different color. You can buy ranges that look old. Old lighting. It’s just about charm. For people that have a modern home that want it to feel a little bit older, bring in some old stuff. Always bring in some vintage, which is soul.”

Steve echos his sister’s sentiment, revealing how it’s a lot of “finding what you really love about the house and complimenting those things and then cleaning it up to your taste, really.” When it comes to helping viewers find their own decorating style like how the siblings manage to create their own vibe with neutrals, Steve said it’s all about layout. “When we are doing design work — Leanne’s doing design — it’s a starting point of a canvas and then everything beautiful comes in front of that,” he said. “It’s more about the products and the placement of products and things in the house.”

Leanne further shares how it’s important to not just “ignore” the trends, but everyone on HGTV. “I would say ignore all of us, ignore trends, ignore what everybody else is doing and think about what you’re drawn to,” she said. “I mean, there are so many amazing styles out there and in so many different ways.”

The mother of one adds how her love for neutrals is prominent in all her designs because her brain is “all around crazy town,” she opts for a little “simplicity” now and then. “I think I’m thinking so much creatively at all times, so I’m drawn to something at least simple. And I stuff so much, so I like to keep it tonal, right? So, it feels better. But that being said, different people love different things, and dive into what you love and be proud of it. Enjoy it.”

Home Again With the Fords premieres Tuesday, Feb. 2 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on HGTV. Their memoir, Work in Progress: Unconventional Thoughts on Designing an Extraordinary Life is now available at Amazon. For more with the Fords and all your favorite reality TV stars, keep it locked to PopCulture.com for the latest.