Behind the Scenes: HGTV's Design on a Dime Etsy Episode

Remember my quick trip to Los Angeles at the end of September? Well I promised a follow up and I'm finally excited to share more details!

At Etsy, we've been working on a special partnership with HGTV on an upcoming episode of Design on a Dime slated to air tomorrow, Saturday, Dec. 10 at 8p/7c.

We collaborated with the episode in a way where several items from Etsy sellers were selected and featured in an L.A. living room makeover. I was at the taping of the episode to help answer any questions about the items featured and Etsy in general while the filming took place among a few other behind the scenes tasks. I'd never been out to L.A. before or been on the set of an episode filming, so it was all pretty exciting from my point of view.

Once we pulled up to the makeover house, the backyard looked just like a scene from the show — tents popped up with building stations and camera equipment everywhere:


Once inside the home, I got a chance to meet the hosts of the show — Casey Noble (who you may recognize as a Design Star finalist) and Joel West. The home was in a state of mid-makeover madness — Casey was going over plans for the design and organizing the featured Etsy items sent in by Etsy sellers while Joel was in the midst of one of the room's larger focal points (you'll have to wait and see). The room's overall vibe was a mix of an industrial and vintage feel.


Both Casey and Joel, along with the entire production crew, were incredibly nice and down to earth. I couldn't have been more impressed — everyone was really excited to talk about Etsy. Not only did they mind my snapping a few behind the scenes photos of my own, but they invited me to get a couple shots with them as well:


Already a fan of and avid viewer of HGTV shows, it was fun getting a behind the scenes look at how these series' are filmed and put together — not to mention understanding how much preparation, planning, and work goes into each episode for months on end. While the actual on air segment will be edited down to probably just a few minutes, it was a pretty awesome feeling getting to hear Casey, the homeowners, and the crew rave about Etsy for about an hour.

I was blown away by how easy it was for Casey to breeze through the Etsy shopping segment — there were no line cards or teleprompters, no "lines" so to speak. Everything she said during the segment came straight from Casey without any pre-rehearsals and it only took a couple takes to capture the scene.

Here's a shot of Casey preparing for the Etsy shopping segment where they showed her shopping for the items featured in the episode.


Once the Etsy segment shoot wrapped up, I got a chance to have dinner and get a quick tour of the Hollywood hills. Then after a jet-lagged night's sleep, I was on the plane headed back to the East coast almost as quickly as I had departed. It was a quick trip, but definitely an incredible experience for the memory books.

In gearing up for the show's airing, HGTV is looking for new home decor Etsy Treasury lists inspired by HGTV.com. Their favorite collections will be featured on HGTV's blog, Design Happens! If you're interested in making an inspired Etsy Treasury collection of your own, learn more about how it can be featured on HGTV's blog, here.

Learn more about the partnership right here on HGTV's official Etsy Profile and find a slideshow of each of the Etsy items featured in the episode here. Hope you'll be watching with us tomorrow night!