Oftentimes on House City, Ben and Erin Napier work with shoppers who’ve a historical past or connection to Laurel, Miss. Possibly they’ve known as Laurel house their complete life or maybe they’re returning to the place they used to reside, however hardly ever do the Napiers get to work with somebody who got here to Laurel on a whim. On a current episode of the hit HGTV collection, Erin revealed that “Ms. Ackie,” aka Acquelyn Donsereaux, came over Laurel for her birthday, and after experiencing the small Southern hamlet, she determined, “What if I lived right here?”
Buying and selling the hustle and bustle of New Orleans for Laurel, Ms. Ackie informed the Napiers to basically do what they do greatest. They discovered her a house with the potential to be remodeled, and she or he was all in. She actually informed Erin, “Do what you are feeling like.” Between giving Erin freedom with wallpaper to in the end receiving a particular undertaking in honor of her father, Ms. Ackie skilled the Napier transformation as if she had been one of many followers.
Ms. Ackie Skilled ‘House City’ First Hand
Ms. Ackie was an instantly jovial character the second we met her on House City. She clearly was the lifetime of the celebration, however as Ben and Erin launched her to us, we discovered that she was able to decelerate. On a whim, she got here to Laurel, of all locations, to have fun her birthday, and the subsequent factor you already know, she’s the small city’s latest resident. In fact, when you’re coming “house” to Laurel, the Napiers should be concerned. After displaying her a pair of properties, Ms. Ackie selected the property with rather less attraction and historical past, opting to present the Napiers a clean palette to play and create. By doing so, she was signing off on permitting the couple to embark on their reno fantasies. Fairly than seek the advice of with Ms. Ackie, Erin went to city. Ms. Ackie knew she was going to get daring wallpaper that was the desires and whims of Erin. She simply had no concept it might be within the cupboard within the kitchen!
All through the walk-through, Ms. Ackie was overjoyed with what her new pals created. She knew {that a} leap from NoLa to Laurel was a drastic shift. The vitality was going to be completely different because the tempo was slower. However now, Ms. Ackie is bringing her story and character to Laurel. It was a refreshing perspective to see House City do one thing completely different whereas nonetheless sustaining Erin’s signature fashion.
The distinctive component of this makeover was that Ms. Ackie entered the episode basically as a beginner to the city, a fan of the present, and the Napiers, and simply requested for the House City expertise. It was an opportunity to see an outsider come into the House City world and have the Napiers make the most of their fame as leverage to meet their consumer’s dream. It’s the closest factor to pulling again the curtain on House City as we’ll get. Have the Napiers turned Laurel right into a vacation spot in the identical approach that the Gaines turned Waco into the brand new place to be?

Associated
Erin Napier and Joanna Gaines’ eye for design come from the identical household tree.
Erin Napier Introduced Ms. Ackie’s Father’s Story House on ‘House City’
A lot of the Napier’s mission on House City, and even House City Takeover, is to protect historical past. It is why every episode, when the Napiers take their shoppers on a house tour, they introduce the property by title by means of its former, or present, residents. From there, the Napiers share the house’s story and the way they plan to protect it whereas starting a brand new chapter. Whether or not it is by means of the skeleton of the house or by means of the people who used to or are about to reside inside, Ben and Erin be sure that tales proceed to be handed down from technology to technology. Ms. Ackie’s renovation was a novel expertise as a result of how historical past was included was a bit completely different.
Fairly than having roots in Laurel that may be expressed by means of her new house, Ben and Erin needed to discover the story inside Ms. Ackie and produce it house. As Laurel’s latest resident, Erin was wanting to convey a bit of her household historical past to Laurel. Ms. Ackie’s father was the celebrated musician Huey “Piano” Smith. She commissioned a sculpture of his likeness to be crafted to sit down on prime of a classic piano on a wall adorned along with her father’s legacy in picture and tune. Ms. Ackie could also be new to Laurel, however she’s begun a legacy. Ought to this house ever discover new house owners, Ben and Erin will proudly have an opportunity to name it the Dansereau Home and inform the story of Ms. Ackie, the intense and spunky daughter of Huey “Piano” Smith.
House City airs Sundays at 8:00pm on HGTV. All episodes can be found to stream on Max.