‘Fixer to Fabulous’ Christmas Special Was a Season Highlight for Dave and Jenny Marrs (Exclusive)

Of all their inventive and inspiring renovation projects, Dave and Jenny Marrs from HGTV’s Fixer to Fabulous say that giving a local animal shelter a makeover was a season favorite for them.

The couple wanted to give back to the community and found that an animal shelter facelift was designed for both the animals and volunteers fit the bill. “I think my favorite project of the year was definitely the animal shelter just because it was so different,” Dave told Showbiz Cheat Sheet.

“And it was just such a community-led project,” he continued. “Where the community really got involved and just everyone pulling together to create a beautiful space. Not only for animals but for the amazing people that are running these shelters. And I just thought it was just a really good feel-good episode and project.”

Jenny and Dave Marrs share how they selected an animal shelter to be their ‘Fixer to Fabulous’

Being true animal lovers, renovating the Bella Vista Animal Shelter was a no-brainer for the family. “We were just brainstorming really with our production company and with the network about ideas for a holiday special,” Jenny said. “And we just all went through a ton of ideas. And we kept going back to, you know, just something that helps, really.”

“We just wanted to do something to help them somehow, someway,” she recalled. “And yeah, we are big animal lovers. That’s a big part of our family and what we do in our lives. You know, we have a lot of animals. So it’s one of those things that Dave, I always say like one of the things we love about our show is that it’s something that’s good for the whole family, and everyone can watch it.”

“We always try to not be controversial, right?” she added. “So there’s always controversial things out there right now, especially now more than ever. Somebody’s going to pick apart everything. But you know what, who can pick apart animals? Everybody loves animals, right?”

The shelter volunteers were more concerned about the renovation for the animals than their own space

“We were like, here’s the deal, everybody loves animals,” Jenny continued. “This feels like a really good project that everyone can watch that everyone can love, and was going to make everyone smile. And what more do we all need right now than that?”

“I love doing stuff for the animals, it was fun,” Dave said. “I think it’s much more for the amazing people that take care of these animals. And I haven’t seen the show yet, we don’t get to see it until they air. But when we were there talking to, you know, the director and the employees at the animal shelter. It was so hard getting anything from them on how can we improve the spaces that you guys use?”

“All they wanted to talk about was what can we do for the animals?” he recalled. “What can we do for the animals? And at the end of the day, we needed to make it go, and we really wanted to do as much as we could for like the cat room and the dog room. We wanted to make a beautiful kitchen and a really nice entry and reception area. And an amazing play area when people come to adopt the animals.”

Do Dave and Jenny Marrs end up adopting an animal?

Dave and Jenny said the reveal was a warm and comforting space for both the humans and the animals. “One of the things we wanted to create was a really welcoming space and entry for when people are arriving,” Jenny said. “It feels like it’s kind of an extension of home. When we got there the first time, it really felt cold and sterile and just not warm and welcoming, you know, kind of depressing, to be honest. And so we wanted people to arrive and feel like, ‘Oh, this is such a warm, welcoming, joyful place.’ And I think at the end, it reminds me of home, and that’s what I want, and I want my animals to be part of our family.”

The team updated the kitchen and entryway, but also a new cat room and dog run. “It’s better and happier, but it’s also safer for the animals, which was a big concern for everyone,” she added.

Being a family of animal lovers, was it difficult for the Marrs to walk away from the project without adopting an animal? They teased to “stay tuned.”

New episodes of Fixer to Fabulous air Tuesdays at 9 pm ET/PT on HGTV and are available to stream the same day on discovery+

Fixer to Fabulous Holiday Surprise airs on Tues, Dec. 14 at 9p ET/PT on HGTV.