Hallmark is getting into the home makeover docuseries game. The company launched a new TV show titled Home is Where the Heart is. Starring actor-woodworker Luke Macfarlane alongside cohost-designer Olivia Westbrooks, the series is a first of its kind for the platform. Here, we’re breaking down everything longtime Hallmark fans and home renovation show obsessives need to know about what might just become their latest obsession.
What Is Home Is Where the Heart Is About?
Home Is Where the Heart Is follows Macfarlane as he channels his woodworking skills to help families in and around Atlanta transform a special room in their home, which has been inherited or holds a sentimental meaning to the owners. He works with cohost and designer Westbrooks to draw on the past and present to refresh to interiors while maintaining soul and charm.
How Can You Watch?
The series is exclusively streaming on Hallmark+. The first two, roughly 40-minute episodes are currently available, and new episodes will drop weekly on Thursdays through April 17.
Who Are the Stars?
Luke Macfarlane
Hallmark fans likely recognize Macfarlane for his roles in a handful of Hallmark Channel movies, from Christmas Land to A Valentine’s Match. The Los Angeles-based Canadian actor and Bros star first got a taste of home renovating at an early age. “Building has always been a part of what my family did together,” MacFarlane tells House Beautiful. “My father was a wonderful teacher, and when I was 12, my parents did an addition to our family kitchen and my sisters and I were unpaid general labor.”
The siblings excavated a foundation, hung drywall, pulled electrical wire, and installed crown molding. “This was very formative when understanding how a home is put together,” Macfarlane says.
Throughout high school and college, Macfarlane took on carpentry jobs while pursuing an acting career. “Over [COVID-19], I was terrified the film industry was going to be shut down, so I took on a few commissions,” Macfarlane says. “A friend of mine is actually an acoustical engineer, and I built him a prototype for a new speaker that was going into some very fancy home studio.”
Now on HIWTHI, Macfarlane has appreciated the chance to use his expertise for families in need. “The truth is, most people simply do not have the time, money, or ability to transform their environment, but it can make a huge difference in how they feel.”
When he’s focused on his own home, Macfarlane gravitates toward an “eclectic modern” interior style marked by contrasting yet collected pieces. “Texture is very important to me in my home,” he says, calling out Morris & Co. fabric, George Nakashima furniture, colorful glazed pottery, and steel tables with rust-red legs. If you fill your home with pieces you love, he says, “they can all live happily together.”
Olivia Westbrooks
Westbrooks is an Atlanta-based interior designer and founder of an eponymous design studio. She was especially drawn to HIWTHI because of her own experience of having to make the tough decision with her siblings to sell their childhood home despite their desire to keep it. “I once heard a wise man say that if you desire something, give it to someone else,” she tells House Beautiful. “Working with these families to help transform the homes that hold so many memories while also honoring their loved ones was my way of doing just that—giving them what I had longed for.”
Honoring each family’s legacy meant unearthing heirlooms tucked away in attics. “We transformed sentimental treasures into meaningful décor—displaying a grandmother’s china as wall art, framing handwritten family recipes, and repurposing sentimental objects like bells or cowboy boots,” Westbrooks says.
The designer does this for her clients outside of the show, too. In a recent project, she styled bookcases in a study with “a framed menu from a Michelin-starred restaurant” from a special anniversary dinner and “a concert poster from an unforgettable Adele performance.”
Westbrooks believes every part of design is personal, including seemingly broader categories like paint. While she doesn’t have a single go-to shade, she has favorites within color families. “For whites, I often turn to Benjamin Moore’s Decorator's White or Sherwin Williams’s Shoji White—both are timeless and versatile,” she says. “Blues tend to be the most popular with my clients, so I use them often in my designs. But if you ask me my personal favorite? Hot pink! I adore Sherwin Williams’s Dragonfruit—a bold, vibrant shade that radiates energy. Not many people are daring enough to use it in their homes, but when they do, it makes such a statement!”
Kelly Allen is the Associate Editor at House Beautiful, where she creates design, culture, and travel content online and in the magazine. She’s been on the team since 2019, writing features on dreamy TV sets and movie filming locations, in-depth city guides, and inspiring home tours. From researching ethereal estates to discovering can’t-miss set decoration details onscreen, she’s always eager to answer burning pop culture questions through a design lens. In her five-year career, she’s built a strong network of designers across disciplines to tap for their invaluable expertise. Her background includes honing reporting skills while tackling viral news for Delish and contributing to Cosmopolitan’s entertainment coverage. When she’s not watching every new film and TV show, she’s browsing vintage home stores, attending industry events, and wandering around New York City—highlighting it all on Instagram.
