Joanna Gaines is a doting mom-of-five, and is incredibly proud of all her children.
While the Fixer Upper star is relatively private about her family life, she couldn't resist opening up about her "fearless" daughter Ella, 18, in the Spring edition of Magnolia Journal - the quarterly lifestyle magazine she founded with husband Chip Gaines in 2016.
In the copy, the interior designer opened up about the family's newly renovated vacation home in Colorado, and explained that Ella had played a big part in the design process.
Following in the family's footsteps
The college student was given the task of taking the lead on decorating the guest cottage after expressing an interest in interior design.
© Nick KelleyJoanna and Chip thought it would be a fun project for the teenager to work on before starting college, and it sounds like she did a wonderful job.
Praising her fearless approach to designing the space, Joanna wrote that she learnt a lot from her daughter.
© WireImage"In recent years, Ella has expressed interest in design, and Chip thought taking on the small guest cottage would be a perfect first project before she left for college. It was such a sweet, full-circle experience for me: getting to teach her what I've learned, but also watching her come into her own style and take the reins," Joanna explained. "I learned a lot from the way she fearlessly went big in this small space — like her decisions to paint the once all-white box a deep green and to remove the original closets to carve out these archways and little nooks."
Getting the family involved
© InstagramJoanna also revealed that it wasn't just Ella, but her younger sister Mikey who played a special role in the design of their vacation home. "Mikey, my younger sister (and the ultimate Plant Lady), helped me choose indoor plants for styling, and Ella, our oldest daughter, led the way in creating the look and feel of the small guest cottage. I think, overall, that was the real gift of this project: watching how our family has already started to make our mark on this place—from early dreaming to renovating to our first stays here," she wrote.
© Photo: InstagramJoanna and Chip's home set up
Joanna and Chip have raised their five children in Waco and to them, that will always be home. However, after many visits to Colorado for vacations, they felt it was time to invest in another property there. "Our farmhouse in Waco will always be home, our first place for everyday life and family gatherings. But over time, Colorado has become its own character in the Gaines family story, thanks to a decade's worth of spring break ski trips to the mountains," Joanna wrote.
Joanna and Chip are doting parents to five children - two of whom have flown the nest. Their oldest son Drake is a baseball player and college student, while their oldest daughter Ella is in her first year at college, having left home in September 2025. They are also parents to Duke, 17, Emmie, 15, and Crew, seven.
