A dishwasher leak and a random Instagram story led to Yelm residents Josh and Jesse Flake being featured on a recent episode of “First Time Fixer.”
The show, presented by Chip and Joanna Gaines, who also hosted the HGTV series “Fixer Upper,” focuses on first-time house renovators who take their home renovation dreams into their own hands. The Flakes appeared on the ninth episode of the fifth season, which is available to stream on Max, Discovery+, and Prime Video.
The Flakes, who purchased their home in May 2021, were forced to renovate their kitchen after a faulty part in their dishwasher flooded the room. The leak ruined their hardwood floors and their cabinets. After failing to work with a contractor through their insurance company, Jesse’s Instagram algorithm came to the rescue.
“I was up super late with my baby, and to keep myself awake, I was on Instagram and in my Instagram stories, I got this question that said, ‘Are you going through a home renovation?’ And I said, ‘yes,’ ” she said. “They were like, ‘You should apply to be on the show,’ and I thought it would be funny, so I filled out their application questionnaire at like 3 a.m.”
The Flakes did not expect to hear back about their application, but two weeks later, they received a call from a casting director who said they liked Jesse’s answers and wanted to set up a FaceTime interview.
“I wouldn’t have applied if I didn’t see the potential, but I really did not have any expectations for anybody to ever call me back,” Jesse said.
After the interview, they received two iPhones and equipment so that they could renovate their house and film it without camera crews constantly present. They began working on the house in late March 2023, but the project turned into something much bigger than just fixing the kitchen.
They also renovated the living room, kids’ bedroom, half bathroom and the playroom, with goals of finishing the project in 14 weeks with a $50,000 budget. Jesse, who said she was the brains of the operation, wanted the design of their new-look home to be “whimsical, timeless and comfortable.”
In the introduction of the episode, which includes shots of the Yelm water tower, the couple walks through the house before the renovation and describes their design process. Then began the work, as they knocked down walls, ripped out tiling and drywall, added doors and more. Jesse was even seen adding trims to windows with her newborn child on her back. The episode wraps with the couple showing the finished remodel to Jesse’s parents.
While the two work as real estate agents at Yelm Windermere Real Estate and knew some of what it took to renovate a house, they had never attempted a project like this themselves. According to Josh, the cameras often added pressure to perfect the house.
“There was a tremendous amount of pressure and stress,” Josh said. “There were five different rooms that we had to address, and we’re not professionals. We were in over our heads thinking we’d get it done within a certain timeframe. I am a perfectionist, which is to my detriment at times. I was like, ‘Shoot, you’re gonna be on national TV, so you better make sure that it looks perfect.’”
During the Flakes’ initial interview with the casting director, production liked the couples’ banter with each other, which made the show “entertaining,” according to Josh. Josh added that he felt an urge to perform, not just with the project, but to be funny and entertaining, as well.
“I felt like I was putting on an act just because we were gonna be on national TV,” he said. “I was like, ‘Let’s try to make this funny.’ It was actually hilarious when they produced it.”
“Because I was annoyed that he was being a goofball,” Jesse added. “He was doing too much sometimes.”
The project took a lot out of the Flakes, as they battled various illnesses, as well as balancing real estate work, taking care of three children and living in the home as they were renovating. Josh often had to prepare meals in the bathroom while the kitchen was under construction, as well as wash dishes in the bathtub. They took two more weeks than expected and spent $5,000 more than their budget. But when they finally finished their renovation on Aug. 22 — at least what was included in the show — and they watched the episode for the first time, the challenges were worth it. Not only was the house mostly renovated, but they had an episode to show to potential clients to help get to know them.
“I was super impressed with the episode,” Josh said. “I haven’t seen all of the episodes, but I thought ours was the most entertaining because there was so much transition. It was never boring. They put all the emotions of sadness, elation and the authenticity of real life.”
