NEED TO KNOW
Jonathan Scott is revealing the one design element that will always be forbidden in his home.
The HGTV host and expert builder, 47, explained his least favorite type of lighting while giving a tour of his newly-renovated New York City abode alongside fiancée Zooey Deschanel for Architectural Digest.
As the pair bring viewers into their stunning kitchen, Deschanel points out, “If you look up, you’ll notice that there’s no recessed lights in this place.”
“That’s a swear word in our house,” Scott chimes in, referring to the type of can light that’s built into the ceiling and ubiquitous in many modern homes.
Deschanel then goes on to explain why they prefer to avoid recessed lighting in their homes altogether.
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“We were able to put beautiful lights everywhere, or we have a chandelier or a pendant, a sconce or a lamp. The lighting feels magical and moody,” she says.
Scott notes, “This is the side effect of being engaged to someone whose father is a world class cinematographer,” referring to his fiancée’s six-time Oscar-nominated dad, Caleb Deschanel.
The rest of the tour consisted of a detailed look at the remaining spaces in their maximalist property, which they first toured together in late 2019 — just a few months after they first met while filming an episode of Carpool Karaoke.
Deschanel and Scott, who got engaged in August 2023, opened up about how the home they’ve created now looks completely different from the original property they toured. The contractor and actress partnered with New York City-based interior designer Young Huh to renovate the space and help bring their vibrant vision to life.
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“This place looked absolutely nothing like the way it does now when we first looked at it. It had great ceilings, but that’s about it,” Deschanel said, joking that her initial reaction to the space was, “Ew, gross.”
Scott said the property “was totally raw and stripped down, like an abandoned 1980s office building” at first. However, the couple were drawn to a number of qualities it had, including the property’s high ceilings, prime location, large square footage and three terraces.
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“You don’t really get a space like this in most New York apartments. We love that we have three private terraces. It just feels like we can get that little slice of what we have in L.A.,” Scott said, referring to their primary residence in Los Angeles that they also spent years renovating.
