Brice and Brooke Gilliam Ditch Typical Reno Roles in New Magnolia Show: He Designs, She Builds

The Nashville-based couple are the stars of Making Modern, now streaming on Chip and Joanna Gaines's Magnolia Network

Published on October 13, 2021 01:06 PM

Bryce + Brooke TV Show — Photo: Magnolia Network

Meet the Magnolia Network design duo turning stereotypical home reno roles on their head: Making Modern's Brooke and Brice Gilliam!

The Nashville-based couple, whose show started streaming on Sept. 10, are entirely self taught and have built out their business on the side while maintaining full time jobs — Brice is an orthodontist and Brooke is a pharmaceutical rep — and they're eager to bring fans along for what they hope will be a "relatable" ride.

Notably, they're also flipping the traditional gender roles when it comes to home renovation TV shows, with Brice as the designer and Brooke as the builder on their projects.

PEOPLE spoke with the pair about how they got their start, what it's really like working with your spouse and their new bosses, Chip and Joanna Gaines.

"Brice and I met downtown in Nashville. Honestly, it was love at first sight," Brooke tells PEOPLE, adding that they were first connected by mutual friends at a bachelorette party. "A month later, he told me he loved me. Six, seven months later, he proposed, and we've been married working on our 10th year now."

Brooke and Brice, who each grew up with a "tendency to want to customize everything," embarked on their first joint project — converting a built-in desk area into closet space — while living together in a small apartment in Washington, D.C.; the experience sparked their desire to collaborate further, and soon Brice was drawing up designs for their first home.

"We started building in 2015," says Brooke, who addsthat they ultimately "didn't have a fantastic experience with our builder," which prompted her to want to get more involved in the process.

She would "watch and learn" as the builders went to work around the house and ultimately began picking up new skills under their tutelage.

"They would take time out to help explain things to me and let me practice. And because of that, it just gave me even more of a hunger to do things myself. And here I am now," she says.

After moving in, "we just started doing project after project after project to customize our own stuff," she explains.

"Our neighbors were always cheering us on, watching us as we were working on our house and trying to get it finished. And once we finished, a neighbor across the street, Emily, asked me if I would be interested in doing a bathroom renovation for her in her studio." The bathroom led to another bathroom, and then a kitchen; the projects soon caught the attention of other friends and acquaintances, and "from there, it just spread by word of mouth, which is pretty much what a small town does."

"I think that it's crazy, because our house came before those smaller projects," adds Brice. "So we were able to learn on a big scale."

They developed their style along the way, and explain that modern "can be all encompassing of new things."

"Modern is clean, crisp lines, kind of minimalistic, not a lot of mess," says Brice. "We are trying to show a livable, functioning version of modern. It doesn't have to be sterile and hospital-like."

When it comes to his favorite part of working with Brooke, Brice shares, "I get to spend true quality time with my wife, which is incredible. We can lean into one another, and play off each other's talents, and maybe one person is better at this than another, which is great. It just brings us closer together."

As for Brooke, she loves the collaborative aspect. "I'm not good at designing, but I am good at being comfortable in a house," she says. "So it's easy for me to be like, 'Oh, they're going to need a footstool right here, because that's where I would want to prop my feet up.' And I think that that's what makes us so great. And also in the process of building, I don't have to call a designer and have somebody come out [...] — Brice is there with me. So it's working on the fly with each other."

The pair regularly get inspiration from Magnolia Network's creators and their new bosses, Chip and Joanna Gaines.

"I think anybody that's into design and build, if they said they didn't look up to Chip and Jo, they'd be crazy," Brooke tells PEOPLE. "Because I feel they are such an inspiration on so many levels, whether it's just the design aspect, the build aspect, their relationship, their marriage, how they are with their family, how they are in their community. I don't think you could have two better role models."

She adds, "To have the opportunity to be part of their network is ... I mean, I could get choked up talking about it, because not only did I not think I'd ever be on TV building, but to be a part of something so special that the Magnolia Network has created is just an absolute honor."

Reflecting on what they hope viewers take away from Making Modern, the couple explain that they want people to feel "that they can join in, and follow along, and be part of our story" as they continue to build their business.

"I want girls in general to feel they can do anything that they want to do," adds Brooke. Her advice for other women looking to build? "If you want to learn, find a mentor and learn. Ask questions. Don't be afraid because you don't know how to use a nail gun, or a drill, or whatever," she says. "Pick out who you look up to, and ask them questions. And if they won't answer, go to the next person. You may love it, you may not, but at least you can say you've tried."

Making Modern is now streaming on Magnolia Network.