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At the home of “My Big Fat Fabulous Life” star Whitney Way Thore


At the home of “My Big Fat Fabulous Life” star Whitney Way Thore

“My Big Fabulous Life” star Whitney Way Thore has recently made headlines for her 100-pound weight loss, but her latest on-screen project will see her embark on a very different kind of transformation: renovating her family home on her own.

The 40-year-old TLC star has spent the past nine years sharing every aspect of her life on screen, starting with her battle with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and the 200-pound weight gain she experienced as a result of the condition.

In the 12th season of her hit reality series, Whitney, who appears in the show alongside her father, Glenn Thoreand brother Hunter Thore– is dedicated to a new project: real estate DIY.

In a new episode titled “Heaven Is a Place on Earth,” Whitney and her brother learn that their father, Glenn, is considering selling the family home in Greensboro, NC, two years after his wife’s death. Barbara “Babs” Thore.

But Whitney and her brother have other plans and quickly devise a plan to convince their father to keep the house.

Whitney Way Thore begins renovating her family home on her own.
Whitney Way Thore begins renovating her family home on her own.

(DC)

The Thore Family Home is a single-family colonial-style residence in Greensboro, North Carolina.The Thore Family Home is a single-family colonial-style residence in Greensboro, North Carolina.
The Thore Family Home is a single-family colonial-style residence in Greensboro, North Carolina.

(DC)

Furniture and lamps that were removed from the Thore family's house are lined up on the sidewalk.Furniture and lamps that were removed from the Thore family's house are lined up on the sidewalk.
Furniture and lamps that were removed from the Thore family’s house are lined up on the sidewalk.

(DC)

“When my brother and I found out my dad was selling the house, we immediately tried to find ways to talk him out of it,” Whitney says in a preview clip shared with Realtor.com®. “The solution is to renovate the downstairs bedroom. Hopefully we can transform that space into something my dad will love.”

According to Realtor.com, the Thore family home is a two-story Colonial Revival with five bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms and 3,900 square feet of living space. The brick structure was built in 1980 and sits on a lot of just over half an acre. It was last purchased in 2000 for $382,500 and its current value is estimated at $687,489.

Obviously updates are needed, but since Glenn is hesitant to make any changes, Whitney hopes a transformation will convince him.

The room she wants to renovate first has all-white walls and baseboards, two windows that go almost floor to ceiling, “a gross carpet that’s probably been there for 30 years,” and an attached bathroom.

Whitney explains that this particular room has “been through a lot” as it was the setting for “many of my formative life experiences.”

An all-white room on the ground floor with an attached bathroom is ready for renovation. "My big, fabulous life."An all-white room on the ground floor with an attached bathroom is ready for renovation. "My big, fabulous life."
In “My Big Fat Fabulous Life” an all-white room on the ground floor with an attached bathroom can be transformed.

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As an adult, Whitney has moved back into her parents' house and now wants to freshen up the room for her father.As an adult, Whitney has moved back into her parents' house and now wants to freshen up the room for her father.
As an adult, Whitney has moved back into her parents’ house and now wants to freshen up the room for her father.

(DC)

“All my friends, we used to dance here,” she tells a representative of the flooring company that replaced the carpet with luxury vinyl floorboards. “It was like the playroom. We had a TV there, so my friend taught me that we danced and … used the TV as our mirror.”

Here she is and her former dance partner Todd Beasley filmed her first “107.5 KZL Fat Girl Dancing” videos, which went viral on the internet; and the room became her bedroom when she later moved back in with her parents.

“All our memories of the last 20 years are bound in this house and it actually feels like a big box of memories,” she muses.

After the space is cleared and the flooring company has inspected it, the renovation is in full swing and Whitney is immersed in the project with joy and dedication.

“Although renovating the room was initially just an attempt to convince my dad not to sell the house, it has given me something to look forward to and work on, and I’m really enjoying the process,” she says.

Whitney discusses renovation plans with a representative from the flooring company.Whitney discusses renovation plans with a representative from the flooring company.
Whitney discusses renovation plans with a representative from the flooring company.

(DC)

Whitney is checking flooring for the renovation she is currently doing "My big, fabulous life."Whitney is checking flooring for the renovation she is currently doing "My big, fabulous life."
Whitney checks out flooring for the renovation she’s doing on My Big Fat Fabulous Life.

(DC)

Earlier this season, while looking at LVP flooring samples, Whitney gave some insight into her interior design preferences, saying, “I don’t like farmhouse style, I don’t like rustic style, I don’t like chickens.”

She leaned toward a light floor, but admitted, “Ultimately, this is a Glenn Thore-style renovation, so I have to take his taste into account, knowing we have different tastes.”

To get a sneak peek at the progress in the room and hear Whitney’s thoughts on her childhood home, check out our exclusive clip from the new Season 12 episode “Who Let the Dogs Out” below.

“My Big Fat Fabulous Life” airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on TLC.

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