HGTV stars Erin and Ben Napier are no strangers to home renovations — so when it came down to renovating a place for themselves, the couple was up for the challenge.
As the cover stars for the November issue of Southern Living, which hits newsstands on Friday, October 21, the Napiers gave an exclusive look at their new English-style home in Laurel, Mississippi.
Erin fell in love with the property before she ever stepped inside. After eyeing it for years, Ben found a listing of it in spring of 2021. “I was in love immediately—and that scared me to death,” she told the outlet. “I thought, ‘We don’t need another house…but maybe we do.'”
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Coincidentally, Erin was 9 months pregnant at the time and their downtown home was just starting to feel small. The couple wanted a place where their kids, now 1-year-old Mae and 5-year-old Helen, could roam free — just like she did when she was younger. “My playtime consisted of climbing a lot of trees and digging for arrowheads in the woods,” Erin recalled. “That’s not something our girls can do in town. I want their bathwater to be dirty at the end of the day.”
As the couple gave Southern Living a tour of the home, they shared some of their design inspirations. Their kitchen, for example, was inspired by the British series Downton Abbey. “The kitchen is all new, but I wanted it to feel like it was 1930,” Erin told the magazine. “I wanted it to be like the downstairs from Downton Abbey — a classic and casual English style that’s utilitarian but kind of elegant.”
In another space in the house, the couple was inspired by analog objects, including a typewriter, record player, and transistor radio. “I come here in the mornings to drink my coffee and type notes to Erin and Helen,” Ben told the outlet. He also joked that having a typewriter makes for “the next best thing to a handwritten note” given his questionable penmanship skills.
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In August, Ben put his typewriter skills to work when surprising his wife for her 37th birthday. “Happy birthday to the love of my life,” he wrote in a note that Erin shared on Instagram. “This year, I am giving you the most luxurious gift there is. Time.”
As a present, he gave her a schedule for the week, which included a movie matinee with her mom, a lunch date with him, and solo time with her painting studio.
It’s safe to say Erin loved the gift. “I should tell you that Ben isn’t perfect. No one is,” she captioned the post. “But he is completely perfect for me. I had a good cry this morning. Husbands: give your wife time for her birthday.”
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