I Took Joanna Gaines MasterClass on Designing a Home (Review)

Home is where the heart is. That’s true. But there is no harm in wanting to make your home look aesthetically pleasing and feel like an extended part of you at the same time. Function and style are both important.

So, does the Joanna Gaines MasterClass succeed in helping us transform our house into our dream home? Is it worth spending 1.5 hours of your valuable time? That’s what this review will reveal.

Quick Review: Joanna Gaines MasterClass

Criteria	Rating
Content Quality	4.0/5
Engagement Level	4.2/5
Instructor Expertise	4.6/5
Practicality	4.5/5
Value For Money	4.0/5
Community & Support	3.0/5
Overall Rating	4.0/5

Who Is Joanna Gaines & Why Should You Learn from Her?

Joanna Gaines is an American Interior Decorator. And, if you have seen the TV series Fixer Upper (2013-17), you would know how great she is.

As for why you should learn from her, she is a self-taught genius in her field. She didn’t go to fancy schools to learn designing and decorating.

So, who better than her to teach us mere mortals who only consider refreshing or renovating our house because it looks increasingly dreary by the day? (If you are a professional and want to watch the class to gain insights, ignore my question.)

Who Is This Class For? 

Joanna Gaines MasterClass isn’t just for design enthusiasts. It is for anyone interested in changing their house’s look to make it more homely, comfortable, and liveable. You will be happy with the course no matter what budget you have for successfully transforming your home to mean something.

Pros and Cons

I have provided a table of what’s great about the class and what could be improved so that busy bees like you can know the worth of the class at a glance.

What You’ll Learn

Joanna’s class only has three acts: define the story you want to tell, build out your story, and bring your story to life. The act names may seem bizarre, but they are not. She feels every home has a history and tells a story. Making your home tell your story is what the class is all about. And by ‘story’, she merely means the feelings the decor evokes. How we design to get those results tell people about us.

Determining the Function and Feel of the House

Before you start running around haphazardly albeit excitedly to design/re-design your house, think about what you want. Gaines explains how deciding in advance what you want a particular space or room to feel and its function makes you less prone to make mistakes or changes during the process.

Pick three words or phrases to describe the look and feel of the room you want and work with those in mind.  If you have a hard time finding the words, she has a tip for that, too! The story of Butler’s pantry is insightful. Next, she moves on to finding the ‘hero’. The hero is the thing that would catch your eyes the second you enter the room. It can be anything. Build the room around the hero.

From Floor to Ceiling

Once you have visualized what you want the space to look like, use the ground-up approach. What type of flooring do you want? Then move on to the walls, windows, and light fixtures. Who knew choosing what kind of hardwood floor and the texture & color of the wall you want can be overwhelming? Fortunately, the three words we chose will help narrow down the choices.

I liked how she took the time to explain how to create the design tray and what went on in her head during it. It is practical and sort of like a mood board, I guess. Once done with that, we have to pick the rug, furniture, and accents keeping in mind the layout of the room and what you want it to feel like. 

Dear God, choosing fabric and texture for your furniture – leather, linen, corduroy, blah, blah, blah – sounds so exhausting. Her tips are quite useful, but ultimately, it is in our hands. We have to be creative while designing. Thankfully, choosing accents (items that add character to the room) is much more pleasant. She also explains how pants spruce up the room.

The Case Studies

The third act, bringing your story to life, consists of Joanna explaining how she renovated and redesigned the Castle, Minty Green, Lakehouse, and her farmhouse. They truly look amazing after renovation and design. The budgeting tips and the homework (pun intended on her part) are excellent.

She acknowledges that our homes and projects won’t resemble the projects she worked on and emphasizes it shouldn’t. The most important thing is getting a sense of home at the end of the process. As your idea of ‘home’ evolves, so will your designs.

Joanna Gaines MasterClass Cost

The three annual MasterClass membership plans – Standard, Plus, and Premium cost $120, $180, and $240 respectively. Choose a plan that best suits your requirements to access the Joanna Gaines interior design masterclass. The plans are available at half their rates now for the holiday season.

Kelly Wearstler’s Interior Design, Frank Gehrey’s Design and Architecture, Shea Mcgee’s Design A Space You Love Session, and many more interesting classes are available if you subscribe.

Final Verdict: Is Joanna Gaines MasterClass Worth It?

Gaines’ design process is surprisingly simple but effective. Her ‘three-word’ method is quite handy. The class clearly explains that luxury and elegance alone don’t make a home. You should feel comfortable and happy in it and even small changes can make that happen. Therefore, yes, the Joanna Gaines MasterClass is worthwhile.

FAQs

1. Is Joanna Gaines MasterClass free?

No, the class isn’t free. You have to subscribe to a plan to get access. Fortunately, you have a 30-day money-back guarantee if you are unsatisfied for some reason. So, subscribe and have fun!

2. Can I download Joanna Gaines MasterClass?

Yes, you can download the class using the app version if you have subscribed to the Plus or Premium plan.

3. What kind of training does Joanna Gaines have?

Joanna has no formal education in design, but she is extremely successful in her field. Her innate ability to nail what a place should look like makes her class all the more interesting. For crying out loud, she made the ‘farmhouse-chic’ style popular. And, she is still a formidable and successful figure in her field.

4. What is the duration of Joanna Gaines MasterClass?

Joanna Gaines MasterClass has 19 videos spanning 1 hour and 25 minutes.