Ty Pennington Reveals Major Home Renovation Project for His New Wife

Ty Pennington’s wife Kellee Merrell may be a social media manager, but she’s now also testing her hand at home renovation. After the newlyweds purchased a gorgeous 19th-century home in Savannah, Georgia, they have been hard at work renovating the property into the home of their dreams, and the HGTV star recently took to social media to show fans his wife’s latest renovation project: the bathroom.

In a Monday, Jan. 31 update, Pennington kept his promise of “making more of an effort to show you the design process” as he shared a gallery of images highlighting his new bride’s vision for her bathroom. Sharing everything from a photo of himself expertly installing tile on the floor to Merrell’s “bathroom moodboard,” Pennington teased in the caption, “next up in the main house is my wife’s bathroom… yes we have separate bathrooms!” As part of her vision, Merrell is opting for neutral tones and checkered tiled flooring. However, Pennington explained that the project is “not AS MUCH of an overhaul” as other projects in the house.

“The bathtub/shower tile had recently been replaced and while it wouldn’t be Kellee’s first choice, she said it felt wasteful to rip it out, so we’re leaving it as is (just switched out the faucet for gold instead of chrome),” he continued. “Kellee prefers baths over showers so there’s no need for glass or a shower curtain. To break up the white tile, we’re going to hang art over the bath, do a creamy limewash on the walls, harlequin marble floors and a new vanity with a stone vessel sink.”

This marked the latest renovation update from Pennington, who purchased the Savannah, Georgia home with Merrell, his then-girlfriend, amid the coronavirus pandemic. Earlier this month, Pennington admitted that he realized “I’ve been kind of a bad Instagrammer. Just completing renovations but not showing the ‘before’ or much of the process.” He vowed to “do my best to make more of an effort moving forward. It’s hard sometimes to balance it all but wish me luck ha!” This month alone, Pennington has opened up about he and his wife’s planned renovations to the carriage house on their property, as well as their finished bedroom.

Pennington first met Merrell, who is from Vancouver, back in 2010 while he was filming a TV show in Toronto.  While romance didn’t immediately spark during that initial meeting, the two remained in touch over the following years via mutual friends, with romance eventually blossoming in 2020 when they decided to quarantine together amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. After Pennington proposed over the summer, the couple tied the knot at their Georgia home in December.