Local siblings star on HGTV’s ‘Restored by the Fords’
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
This summer, while working with her brother Steve on a renovation in Swissvale, Leanne Ford noted that she liked country living while he preferred an urban vibe. Remindyou of another sibling duo?
“It sums us up perfectly, too — #donnyandmarie!” laughed Ms. Ford.
At 10 p.m. Jan. 2, HGTV will air the first full season of “Restored by the Fords.” He is the contractor and she is the interior designer. Both grew up in Upper St. Clair.
“We have been making forts in the woods since we were kids,” said Ms. Ford.
But they really began working together after high school.
“I had outdoor recreation-type jobs and things like that,” Mr. Ford said. “Construction was always a go-to as a way to make money in between my fun jobs.
“Leanne and I just happened to be in the same city at the same time and projects just kind of collided.”
Ms. Ford worked in the fashion industry for 15 years. “I was always decorating my rental apartments because a creative soul is a creative soul,” she explained.
She said her brother pitched in to help when she moved back to the area.
“It was actually my first place in Pittsburgh and Steve helped a ton with it,” she recalled.
One of her decorating projects showed up in Country Living magazine.
“That was a big deal for me. People started calling for me to do their homes and I just asked Steve if he could keep helping,” she said.
HGTV aired a pilot episode of the show last year. In addition to their joint projects for the show, brother and sister also work separately. Mr. Ford is the owner of Surf Pittsburgh, which allows people to surf on the Three Rivers behind his 23-foot long Centurion Enzo surf boat.
“All things considered, we’ve gotten along amazingly,” his sister said. “I always come up with different or strange ideas and by now Steve should be used to it. He always finds a way to make it work.”