New Details About Chip And Joanna' Relationship Show A Different Side To The Couple
The husband-wife duo behind HGTV’s Fixer Upper renovated over 80 homes during their show's five-year run. And while the audience fell in love with Chip's go-get-'em attitude and Joanna's stellar home-design skills, very few people watching at home truly knew the couple, who had a love story that was both charming...and completely bizarre.
Post-College Romance
In 2001, Chip and Joanna Gaines met for the first time in Waco, Texas. They had just graduated college, and it was already time for a lifelong commitment. The two didn't meet in some home design shop; Chip first saw Joanna in an unlikely place.
Tires for Sale
A tire commercial! While working for her father's tire shop, Joanna starred in all the cheesy commercials of the family-run business, reminding viewers that "at Jerry Stevens Firestone, we promise to care." The awkward future TV star must have stood out because Chip never forgot the face.
Enamored
Nor did he want to! “I mean, I got my brakes fixed once or twice a month whether I needed them or not just to try to have the opportunity to meet this fox," Chip recalled in 2020. He saw her photos scattered around the shop. On one visit, he finally got a chance to meet her.
Cringe Behavior
On that day, when Chip visited the Waco tire store, he noticed Joanna right away! He had walked in and said, “Hey, you’re that girl in the tire commercials.” Let’s just say Joana was turned off — he asked for her "story" — but she gave him a chance to redeem himself.