Young House Love

Home Decorating & DIY Tutorials

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Blogiversary 6: Did Somebody Say Oprah?!

The funny part about talking about our Oprah-related experience during blogiversary week is that we talked about almost appearing on Oprah’s show during our very first blogiversary week (spoiler: we got bumped last minute by Ty Pennington and some twins in need of a makeover). So it seems, now five years later, that things have come full circle. Was that an O pun I just made? Yes. Yes it was.

Oprah SG Original Short

First of all, the exciting news. For anyone who wasn’t able to watch or stream the short film when it aired on Sunday, the kind folks at OWN have generously provided a clip for us to share here. So here it goes.

The nice thing about working with Oprah’s team is they’re really good about encouraging you to pause and think more deeply about what a home really is and what it means to the people who live there. Even watching it back, and the way they edited a day’s worth of words and footage was thoughtful. It just really cuts to the meaning of home for us. And it was a reminder that as much as we can stress over how something looks and whether a project is turning out the way we want it to, those aren’t the things that make a house a home. They’re just a fun part of the journey if you can manage to sit back and enjoy the ride. Which is definitely what we strive to do everyday. We’re not trying to pretend that we’re philosophers, but Oprah’s editors sure can make you feel all warm and fuzzy.

Oprah SG Front Porch Quote

But wait, the most insane “is this real life?!” moment was when Oprah herself said our names in the intro, which was just before the clip above kicked in. Correct pronunciation and everything. So you know we had to tape it off of our TV, right?

Then right after it aired on Sunday, she tweeted a quote from our segment. Not only did she say our names, but she listened to us talk. #brainexplosion

Oprah Tweet

So how did this all come to be? Let’s rewind over ten months ago to last November when our book tour took us to Chicago, Oprah’s hometown. Through our publisher we learned that a producer at Harpo (Oprah’s production company) was hoping to chat with us while we were in town. Um, sure! Our trip there was quick, so the meeting was very casual – as in “meet us in the lobby of our hotel a couple of hours before we have a book signing” casual.

Chicago 3 Bean

Heather, the producer that you’ll meet here in a minute, was amazingly nice and awesomely enthusiastic about finding some way to collaborate. And when she tossed out the idea of a 3-minute short film, we thought it would be fun.

Oprah Instagram Chatter

Ok, and we lost our minds a little, as evidenced by this text-fest between Sherry and Roo.

Oprah Roo Text1

The shoot day was back in May, so we were still living in our old house. And since no behind-the-scene post is complete without a “Look, John had to put on make-up!” shot, here it is.

Oprah John Makeup

The day was pretty easy as shoots go. We had built up a good friendship with Heather (whom you can see standing on the far left below) so it was nice to finally have her over, along with a really nice team of talented crew-members.

Oprah Sherry With Crew

The hilarious happened-within-ten-minutes-of-the-crew-arriving-story is that Sherry threw out her back for the first time ever. She was doing some last minute cleaning in the living room while they were in the dining room setting up and she leaned over the sofa to put something away and said it felt like someone pulled a piece of her spine out like Jenga. She essentially fell on her face on the sofa, couldn’t move, struggled to roll over onto her back while praying that no one would see her floundering around on the sofa, and stood up very slowly. Then she slinked into the bathroom and called the doc, who recommended a high dose of tylenol and as much lying down as possible. Thankfully the pain-killers kicked in and she somehow made it through the day… but in person she was a lot stiffer than usual. Which explains why Sherry describes the walking scenes of us as “that time she waddled like a duck on national TV.”

Oprah SG Front Yard Quote

One of our favorite parts of the day was just watching the crew work their magic. Here’s how they got some of those pretty shots of our (very missed) frame hallway.

Oprah In Hallway

Clara was at school or napping for most of the shoot, but she was there for our fun little family activity of baking cookies. I love this shot because it looks like Clara’s on the set of her own cooking show.

Oprah Clara Cooking

We also took a brief visit over to the new house with everyone (our inaugural shoot in this place!) so they could capture some footage about our “next chapter” (to steal some OWN’s lingo). None of this footage made it into the final clip, which is probably good because I think we were all like “So, um, this is our new house. Please don’t look too closely yet…”

Oprah At New House

We’re incredibly grateful to Heather and the whole Harpo crew for their excitement to work with us. We’ve always been big fans of Oprah, and now we have an even greater respect for all of the people and work that stand with her. Oh, and for the record, never during this process did we meet or speak to Ms. Winfrey (as we learned she’s called around the office). But maybe in another five blogiversaries that will have changed. You never know…

Comments

  3. Laura says

    A million congratulations! Y’all looked so great. I was excited to see John’s “I ‘Run’ Richmond” shirt too!

    Off topic: have you seen the #hashtag video by Justin Timberlake and Jimmy Fallon. I saw it yesterday and laughed for an hour.

    Reply

  4. Patti says

    This is amazing! Maybe Oprah will mentor you guys with your own show on OWN, you know how she does that for people she believes in. Maybe a talk show about house and family related stuff? I’d watch! P.S. The hurting your back story had me laughing out loud…I think your back was feeling the enormity of the situation!

    Reply

  7. Olivia says

    Great Q&A! I was disappointed “Studying like it’s my job” wasn’t an option, or something else to indicate student-status. I’m sure lots of students read YHL, might be something you’d be interested in knowing :)

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Oh man, how did we miss that?! We tried to work being a student into the where you live question – although I’m sure many students don’t live on campus, so I wish studying like it’s my job was in there too! We also missed DIYing like it’s my job, which we can’t believe isn’t in there! Haha!

      xo
      s

  8. Rachael says

    oh my goodness–those twins with Ty Pennington that you got bumped off Oprah for?? I know them! He did room makeovers for their dorms, and I lived in the dorm with them at Baylor! Sad you got bumped off Oprah, but know that those sweet gals felt SO special from that experience-they talked about it all the time (in a really sweet-giddy kind of way).

    Also, love that Oprah short. makes me want to cry-and go hug my mom!

    Reply

  9. mary says

    Been reading your blog since before the name change. One of the big things that keeps me coming back is the love that shines through: the goofy jokes, the happy dances, your interactions with Clara and Burger, and the things you keep private–all speak love. Keep it up!

    Reply

  11. Evelina says

    Congratulations on the feature! You guys are so big-time and I am so excited for you!
    Quick side question: did the wallpaper of Clara’s dollhouse change? Or is it just the lighting that makes the green look a little orangey and fall-like? Also, does she still enjoy playing with it?

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      So funny! Must be the reflection or the lighting since its all still the same. She loves that thing! It’s in her closet now and she goes in there all the time to just hang out with Olivia and the gang.

      xo
      s

  13. Lauren (in PA) says

    I saw this a few days ago, through The Non-Consumer Advocate, which I also love…

    This gave me the blues for your old home!

    Reply

  16. Brenda says

    So exciting! If you hadn’t said anything about Sherry’s walking, I don’t think I would have noticed anything off.

    This is super random, but I’m rewatching and catching up on all of the Breaking Bad episodes on Netflix, and there’s an episode where Walt is in a home improvement store. When he grabbed Kilz, I thought, “That’s the brand that John and Sherry like!”

    Reply

  18. Barbara says

    I watched in on Tuesday and thought it captured the very essence of you two (and Clara). You didn’t look like you were walking funny at all!

    I wonder, just wonder if your “next chapter” will be featured on another segment one day…Oprah tends to do that!

    Reply

  20. JoAnne says

    What a great short film. You guys are genuine and that comes through loud and clear. Thanks for that! A humble spirit reaps a great reward.

    Reply

  22. Gudrun H says

    How awsome is this!!!
    Can you please tell me where you got those beautiful earings you’re wearing on the show, they would make a perfect gift for my BFF.

    Reply

  23. Melanie P says

    Congrats guys- this is soo exciting!! When the clip started with you walking on the old house front lawn, I was like “Wow! Those folks at Oprah are crazy good at video editing” Well…duh. Silly me didn’t even consider that this was filmed BEFORE you moved!
    Do you have a spot in the new house where you plan on doing another gallery wall?

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We have thought about a few places (maybe the upstairs hallway or our bedroom) and we have a pretty big collection of photos on the TV wall in the living room too. Can’t wait to see where all of our frames land!

      xo
      s

  24. AmyEmBee says

    At the risk of sounding awkward and stalker-ish (because, hi, I don’t *really* know you guys), I must confess that I teared up watching the clip. You just were so sweet, and this is such a huge deal! Yay for you!

    Reply

  26. Ashley Keylor says

    Just had to tell you guys that I loved your sweet OWN video. It turned out so beautifully!

    I also watched your 20 minute question video and I have to tell Sherry that she looked gor-geous! Your eyes were so so pretty and you do rock the pony. : ) Of course John was pretty too. ha!

    Reply

  28. Kristin says

    You should totally use the segment of Oprah saying your names on your answering machine!

    On another note, as a german it never came to my mind that someone could say your name wrong :-)

    Reply

  29. Tara Nyanga says

    I hardly ever comment, but I wanted to say that this video was great! i rarely watch videos of the bloggers I follow because usually I am disappointed once I hear their voices or see them in action…kind of like how when you read a book and imagine the characters in your head, you are often disappointed with the movie version. When I love a writer, it can sometimes be a disconnect when I see them “live”. But, in this case, your voices, your words, your family “in action” did not disappoint. I really appreciated it…it felt like you were just being normal and not “trying” to portray anything. Thanks for that.

    Reply

  30. Lisa E says

    Wow, I totally misread the paragraph about Sherry throwing out her back. I have no idea why, but I read that it was Heather that threw out her back. Sherry, I went home and watched the clip, not realizing it was you. So you see, you did NOT waddle like a duck. I couldn’t tell at all! Anyway, the clip was so sweet. I really am very happy for you guys. Love to see people get recognition that deserve it AND more importantly stay humble. Thanx for that. That in itself, is a huge reason you continue to grow in popularity and your followers remain loyal. :)

    Reply

  31. Becky says

    We are in the process of selling our very first home to move our family abroad. Your video made me cry! So many truths about what makes a home.

    Reply

  35. Kristen O. says

    I have to tell you that I was so excited to see the video of you guys. It has been really fun to watch your story unfold over the blogs and the book. I look forward to reading it when I have some “Mommy time.” I wish you guys nothing but happiness and success in your adventure as a family. Congratulations on finding such an incredible niche for yourselves.

    Reply

  36. Danielle Ferretti in Miami says

    Hi again ! I just wanted to add to my previous comment….

    When would you have thought that you would be sharing a TV program with A Hemingway ?! Like, a freaking-English-Lit-History Hemingway ?!?!

    And, I want to believe that THEY opened the show for you, the main attraction – as in a Rock concert…. Tickled me pink !!! Xoxox D

    Reply

  37. Lisha says

    I have been a long time follower of Oprah and have been following your blog for about 3 years….so put the two together and #brainexplosion for me!!! I watched the clip like 3 times in a row!!

    Reply

  39. Amanda C says

    OMG Sherry, I feel your pain! I threw my back out for the first time yesterday! I was paralyzed, and still in SO much pain!!! I had to work from home today, and I feel like my boss thinks I’m playing hookey, but they just. don’t. understand. the. PAIN!

    Reply

  40. Kristin says

    I haven’t read my blogs in weeks =/ and I missed this awesome news! Congrats! So exciting! And I love the video =) Watched the entire thing while sitting at my office at work ;)

    Reply

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