Home at Last With Tan France: Guest House

Hello everyone.

My name is Tan France.

You might know me from the likes

of Next In Fashion or Queer Eye,

but today I'm letting you in

on my most personal project yet,

the build of my dream home.

I'm gonna take you through to the likes of my spice kitchen,

my cottage, my closet, the exterior, interior,

and pretty much everything in between.

You're gonna love it.

Come and join me, won't you?

[classical music]

When it came to the house

and how we occupy the space,

I knew it wasn't just gonna

be my husband and my two children.

We love to socialize, we love to have people over

and I thought of all of my travel,

all of my stays at people's homes,

all of my travel for work.

Over the last five years, I've probably

stayed in a hotel a thousand times,

probably more than a thousand times.

I know what it is to occupy a guest space.

I know what needs to be in there

to make you feel the most comfortable.

And so I think that we've come up with the optimum

situation for that space.

And so I'm really hoping that our guests will come.

Our guests will love it.

[gentle music]

[Tom] Hi, I am Tom Fox with the Fox Group.

And I'm Cara Fox.

Welcome to our office.

We are helping Tan and Rob build their dream home.

It's good to see you, how are ya?

We sat down with Tom and Cara last year to talk through

every one of the designs that Rob and I

had come up with and then to see

how that would work in real life.

[Tom] Tan and Rob, they're trying to create

all these incredible intimate spaces.

And you know when they love something,

you know when they don't love something,

they know what they want.

This, love this.

That's the one want.

It's been quite the challenge and the process has

been just amazing.

Okay, sorry Rob had to go, baby, you know who it is.

But can we talk about the guest cottage?

[classical music]

Basically the vibe is, we want it to feel

like someone is visiting a really chic guest house

in the middle of nowhere.

Whatever we can do to maximize the space

so they feel like they can stay as long as they want.

I don't want them to stay long.

I want them to stay for a maximum of two nights,

but I want them to think, oh, I should stay a week.

That's a hard cutoff date I got it.

There's definitely a cutoff date,

so I want the experience of a nice getaway,

but I want the convenience of an actual home.

A kitchen space and a bathroom

that feels like a full bathroom,

not just a tiny hotel bathroom.

I would love for there to be a dishwasher, a fridge,

a hub or a stove top

where they could actually make something.

Could we customize this to make it the same green

as we have in the main house?

We absolutely can.

I love the pink and green, quite honestly.

It's the Golden Girls thing and as you know,

me and Rob are Grandmas, we love those Golden Girls.

And then the bathroom, don't love a shower

over a bath, personally.

If you don't have room for both,

it's just a shower.

It's a big shower.

Big shower.

I still wanna go for wooden floors.

Could we get something like this?

Yes, we have some wood samples even

you can choose the wood.

Love that already.

Do you want the dark?

It's kinda a dark walnut, it's beautiful.

Could we create a cabinet or something

where they can unload their toiletries?

We can do a corner cabinet painted in this

beautiful rojo color.

Great, a lot of brass.

Same kind of light fixture,

so again, it's really cohesive.

[Cara] Perfect.

[Tan] Does that all sound good to you?

Beautiful.

Would you wanna stay here?

Is the question.

I would never leave.

If you build it, they will come.

What're you looking at me for?

If you build it!

[classical music]

In February, we got to walk the space

that will eventually be the guest cottage

and really figure out how it should function.

There are so many aspects of the house that aren't just

for me, aren't just for Rob.

It's how is this gonna cater to my family

so that people who visit, who I consider my family

have a space to say that they feel really comfortable in.

[music fading]

I have a son who is unruly.

He is a true toddler

and sometimes people don't wanna

stay in the house with a toddler.

I'm one of those people, I just can't get rid of mine.

So I wanted a space where my friends can come and visit.

There's going to be a bed in here with side tables,

that's probably gonna go just there, in front of that window

and got this idea from my good friend Gigi Hadid.

I stayed at her guest house recently

and she had a kitchenette, almost

kind of like a galley kitchen

where you can make your own coffee or tea.

Pretty much live for a few days in that guest space

and feel really, really comfortable.

And then I wanted to have a space

that was a decent space for a bathroom.

So we haven't actually figured out exactly what

this is going to be yet, where the shower's gonna be,

where the toilet's gonna be, where the vanity is gonna be.

But this whole section is going to be the bathroom.

So at this point I wanna call in Tom and Cara.

This is the one space we really haven't

fully locked in.

Yeah, I mean we have two really great options.

We can turn this into the water closet.

[Tan] Yeah.

Which is plenty big for that.

And it would give us plenty of space

for as big a shower as you'd like here.

My only worry was if we had a shower in here,

is there enough room in here for a decent sized vanity?

Lemme just tell you, a lot of the people

that are gonna stay in this guest house are entertainers.

They come with a lot of cosmetics.

I think you still get at least a 48 inch vanity.

Oh really?

Yeah, and at least a four and a half foot wide shower.

So it's not small in any way, shape, or form

Good, when you go to a hotel

and you're staying for a couple of days,

I go with a massive suitcase with 20 outfits.

I need to be able to open my darn suitcase

and when I'm staying in New York,

every now and then, if I'm in a small hotel,

I can't even open my own suitcase.

So that's my only thing.

Yeah.

We just need at least some room somewhere

where somebody could open their suitcase and unpack.

Okay, the seating area would be a good spot to put,

you know, a couple chairs

and maybe a big, you know, coffee table.

Maybe even a bench in front of the bed.

As long as you've got a place to sleep, a place to sit,

and really comfortably get ready for the day.

I think we're golden.

Wonderful.

And then the kitchen, we know it's gonna be small,

but it's gonna be functional and hopefully gorgeous.

And we'll tie in what we're doing in the main house kitchen.

So that feels again cohesive.

Correct.

I think especially with the natural light coming through,

it's gonna be the perfect area to get ready in.

Couldn't agree more.

You will wanna stay here.

Not all of you can, my invite list is very specific,

but you will all wanna stay here.

[classical music]

It is been a minute since I visited the site,

so I'm just hoping so badly that we are on track.

That's my biggest concern.

How about the guest cottage?

How are you feeling about that?

It's like the coolest little thing.

It's so cool.

It's like we've built another house.

I know.

I'm so excited to see the vaulted ceiling

in my room, the guest room.

I haven't seen the cottage for probably two months.

And at that point the walls weren't even finished.

There was no crown molding.

There was no paint whatsoever.

And so now hopefully there will be tiles up, paints in.

So I can't wait to get up there.

Are you worried that Tan is going to expect it

to be further along today when he sees it?

Well this happens with every client when they go away.

Like Tan's been off shooting all around the world, right?

Yeah.

So I feel like when clients like literally travel,

they think everything should be done

and you're like.

It's nerve wracking because a lot

of what's been going on is like

behind the scenes, behind the walls.

'Cause this is kind of like the bland before the beauty.

Yeah.

[instrumental music]

I am so relieved for so many reasons.

Oh, good.

Space was such a concern.

Like I wanted so much in here

and I was so worried that this is gonna be tiny.

It's perfect.

Like we can fit everything in here

and somebody's not gonna feel like they're...

[Cara] Cramped.

Completely cramped.

I want it to feel cozy but not cramped.

[Cara] Yeah.

The kitchenette.

[Tom] Next week, it'll be here.

[Cara] Next week.

Okay, are you happy with it?

You've seen it and it's good.

It's the most charming show piece ever.

Great.

But I mean you designed it, you drew it

To be fair it was Rob.

Rob was the one who was like,

we should do the arch on top,

which I think is beautiful.

And we're going with the green, right?

To match the paper.

[Cara] Yep, the green.

Beautiful, beautiful!

It's gonna be stunning.

I love it so much.

And then in the bathroom we've decided to go

with something dark.

So glad we're going with that dark rojo,

it's beautiful, beautiful.

Because this is bright and airy.

I want that to feel like...

[Cara] Moody.

[Tan] Yeah, like a moody luxury hotel.

And yes to a seat in the shower.

I think that was gonna be a laundry room.

[Cara] Laundry room.

We've thought about the shower even in there.

Yeah.

I'm so glad we put the toilet in that little room.

Yeah, it would've felt like a cramped little shower.

No one wants that.

And quite honestly, I know my friends,

they're too lazy to do laundry.

There was no way they're doing their own laundry.

[classical music]

[Cara] So what's going on at the cottage?

Couple weeks away from putting in the final details.

That's crazy.

[Tom] So the cabinets are in ready to receive

the countertop and the marble arch.

[Cara] How did the rouge turn out?

[Tom] In the bathroom?

[Cara] Yeah.

[Tom] It's incredible.

That tile.

Just the samples of it when we were designing it out.

It's the most unique, bold color.

It's so dramatic, I can't wait for you to see it.

Ooh.

[orchestral music]

It's actually starting to look like a cottage in here.

[Tom] They finished the kind of the first part

of the install of the cabinets and then...

[Cara] So pretty.

Obviously it's not finished,

We still have that huge arched marble piece

along with the floating shelves, so.

All those things will make this come together.

And once the wallpaper goes up, matching it,

it's really gonna transform the space even more.

This color, I don't think it could've turned out better.

It's perfect.

[Tom] It's the perfect muted green.

Yeah, and I love the way it pops against

the bathroom color.

[Tom] Let's go take a look at that.

[instrumental music]

[Cara] Oh, it's beautiful.

[Tom] Isn't that amazing?

That is so spectacular.

Yeah, there's a subtle white of the floor

but with this like super bold tile.

[Cara] Yeah.

[Tom] It's really dramatic, it's really stunning.

[Cara] It's a pop.

[Tom] Yeah, it's incredible.

[Cara] It's beautiful.

Yeah, we're ready for the next stage,

which would be obviously, you gotta get

the bathroom vanity in here

and the countertops and different things like that.

But we are pushing along and making this happen.

We're getting close.

Yeah.

[classical music]

Being in Salt Lake City, it's not like LA or New York,

but we do have Sundance Film Festival.

We have people who come on tour here,

major artists that come on tour, comedians also.

And so for those people I wanna have a safe space,

a really private space where they feel right at home.

So many of my friends are traveling, they're on tour,

and I just wanna give them that little break

from that hotel.

And I've got a lot of people coming to stay very soon.

So the likes of Antoni stayed, Jonathan, Phineas,

Brandi Carlisle, Kelsey Ballerini, Mindy Kaling, Gigi Hadid.

Antoni Porowski, my costar,

and also one of my very best friends is gonna be staying

right here within the next couple of weeks.

So I wanna make sure it's set up for him.

[bell ringing]

Thank you.

So I'm gonna be going shopping with Tan

to find some additional pieces,

things that make it feel like home.

I'm really excited for that.

Okay.

Okay.

Should we talk styling?

I love color and I see many things over here in particular.

That yellow thing, can we have a look?

[Cara] Yeah.

This is a really special piece

So we don't have much color, as you know,

like we've gone for really muted shades of the cabinet.

Very monochromatic.

Yeah, and so

to have just a little pop of color

would be so nice.

It's made by a local artisan and it's...

[Tan] Gorgeous.

It's one of a kind.

I would love to see the pepper and salt grinder.

[Cara] Oh yes.

I do love just how ornate they seem.

My only issue is, if you met my son,

you'd know he would use this as a weapon

against his younger brother.

It is so interesting how having these kids are dictating

what we can and can't have in the house.

For sure.

Everything's a weapon or a way to hurt themself.

I will give it some thought.

[Cara] Okay, love it.

Thank you so much.

I do love these large...

[Cara] Oh, a ginger jar.

Gosh, how big's the ginger that you're buying?

[Cara laughing]

I think traditionally they're called ginger jars

and then they just started making them, you know,

the same shape, massive.

Okay, okay, we do need some greenery around the house.

Oh yeah.

Just fake plants that look real.

'cause I will kill real ones.

I've truly, in the 15 years we've tried

so many times to keep a plant alive.

It's just not happened.

Imagine that ginger jar with a massive something in it.

Oh, pretty, yes.

[Tan] Would be gorgeous.

Yeah.

[classical music]

[upbeat music]

I feel like clients really

always want to impress their guests

and they try to make a guest suite extra special,

extra inviting, extra linens, florals.

So guest spaces are actually really fun to design

'cause we get to go, you know, a little extra over the top.

It's also fun to add a lot

of personal touches from the homeowner.

This is one of Tan's collections.

The color in this guest suite is so dramatic.

It's such a pop.

It's not something you'd probably pick in

your daily bathroom.

And so I think that's what makes it so special.

[upbeat music]

I think for guests it's so important to

have steamed sheets.

It's that extra special touch

that just makes people feel like

they're at the nicest hotel.

[upbeat music]

[gentle music]

This came together better than I ever expected.

I wanted it to feel comfortable and cozy and welcoming.

But I don't think I expected just

how much like home it feels.

I could spend days, weeks, months,

probably not months guests, go home.

But I could spend so much time here.

The main house has so many spaces that I'm so excited about

and I just wanna be there.

But the thought of also staying here

and treating it almost like a staycation

is something I'm so excited about.

'Cause that's how comfortable I find this space.

This galley kitchen.

I was thinking, okay, I want it to be somewhat practical

but I can't imagine we're gonna be able to do much with it.

'cause it's such a small space in here.

However, we've added a hub, we've got a sink,

we've got a dishwasher,

we've got a place to store things, we've got a fridge.

I could cook a whole meal here easily.

I really want this to feel like a space

where it is your space.

You can get away from my crazy kids and my husband

and actually feel like you're

completely alone in this space.

Grandma Golden Girls wallpaper.

You know, I love it.

Golden Girls is my version of comfort

and a stripe in that color is so Golden Girls.

Green for me is just the most warming color.

It's the most inviting color.

It's not offensive.

We've tied in this green,

which is slightly different to that green.

The bed is an olive green.

During the design of this house, I thought

I want the house to feel classic.

But everything else, I want it to feel really modern.

That's why we chose this.

I want it to feel modern.

The bed is very much modern.

And so I think those combined make it feel as cozy

and comfortable as you would be at your grandma's house.

But you turned it into yours.

And a lot of the people that will be staying here

I think are super cool.

And I'm really hoping that they think it's super cool

and not just granny's home.

You know what I mean?

And then we have the bathroom.

[gentle music]

So I wanted it to feel dark, almost haunting,

but in obviously a really chic way.

This color I think is incredible.

We found a tile that matches the paint.

I kept saying to Cara, I don't want burgundy,

I want rojo.

And I know my pronunciation of is that's terrible.

I dunno how you pronounce it,

but I want it to feel almost brownie burgundy.

I want it to feel unctuous and rich and old.

And I think it's gorgeous.

I stayed at a hotel recently in New York

by recently, I mean a year ago.

And I thought that the vanity was beautiful

'cause it was wooden and I really wanted to find a way

to incorporate that into this house.

And so I thought that the guest bathroom was a perfect spot.

We're not gonna have guests year round,

so this should last a fair amount of time.

'cause it's not gonna get too much wear and tear.

And I wanted to tie in this vanity with the wooden floor.

And then we've got a cabinet for linens

and whatever else somebody might wanna store

whilst they're staying here.

When I'm staying at a hotel,

I do love to be able to spread my products around

and I want to be able to put whatever else I want,

like blow dryer, whatever in a closet.

And so having that here is wonderful.

Cara, you close by?

Oh hey.

I am, hello.

Thank you so much, it looks gorgeous.

I'm so happy with it.

I think it turned out beautifully.

Every little thing that we've incorporated into this

I think is perfect for a guest.

The kitchenette, amazing.

[Cara] It's so pretty.

[Tan] Yeah, so good.

I think this whole cottage has so many pretty features

and we've actually installed a Ring Battery Doorbell Plus.

Oh wow.

So you can actually greet your guests if you're not home.

Oh great.

So if you're like a minute away,

you can greet 'em.

Tell 'em you're a minute away.

No, tell them the keys under the mat, let yourself in.

Exactly, yes.

Get the kettle on, I want some tea.

Love.

You're ready and waiting.

Yeah, love, thank you so much.

Tom's actually downstairs, do you wanna test it out?

Yes.

Let's do it.

[Tan] Let's.

[soft chiming]

Hey Tom, do me a favor,

come up to the cottage.

I've had the door unlocked.

Okay, great, see you one sec.

See you in a sec.

[classical music]

Awesome, Cara, thank you so much.

You know me using that all the time

to judge everyone's outfits.

Thank you, thank you.

I can hear him coming up.

Can you hear that little pitter patter?

[Cara] I hear it.

[Tan] Look at that dainty man, hello, mate.

[Tom] Dainty, thank you.

[Tan] Gorgeous, mate.

It's absolutely gorgeous.

They're not recognized.

Yeah, so Farrow and Ball, custom wallpaper

that you knew we always wanted this to be green.

They did that custom green for us, love so much.

The cabinetry is custom.

A shade that ties in with the wallpaper.

But as far as bringing it all to life, any problems,

any challenges, any stresses?

Obviously lots of stresses.

[Cara laughing]

[Tom] Like you mentioned the Farrow and Ball wallpaper.

It's incredible, it's this nice subtle detail.

[Tan] Yeah.

[Tom] Along with the really incredible, minimalistic,

more contemporary kind of furniture.

[Tan] Yeah.

Right, and it's sleeker

but it all fits together really well.

Were you ever worried about that blend?

A thousand percent.

[Tan] I had a feeling, in those meetings

when we were like, we want the house to feel classic.

But everything that's in it to feel modern.

It makes itself feel not too stuffy.

It's not too grandma.

It's got that pop of life

Coming together.

Would you feel comfortable and cozy here?

I would feel perfect in this space.

It's so inviting.

It's actually, it's a great plan,

it's a great mix of the two.

[Cara] And if you love modern, you love it.

If you love traditional, you love it.

Okay, so I have to ask you, do you have guests lined up?

I do.

Can we hear about him?

Yeah, I mean, you know, Antoni's always gonna come stay.

Yes.

But I think Gigi and her daughter are planning

to come stay, which I would love.

I want my kids to play.

I want them play in that pool, yeah.

See this view.

[Tan] Yeah.

Enjoy Utah.

Yeah.

Get 'em, fall in love with it,

so they'll build next door.

That's what I want.

I could not be happy with the cottage.

I think it's turned out amazingly,

actually better than I ever expected.

I was nervous many times thinking,

I don't know if it's gonna feel like we want it to feel,

it's gonna feel too small,

but it actually is like the best version

of a cottage I've seen in a long time.

So thank you so much, I love it.

So happy to hear that.

Love it so much, nailed it, nailed it.

Thank you.

[Cara] Thank you.

[classical music]

I think what's special is that

you can really tell Tan and Rob gave their guests

the prime view, some of the prime art.

It just shows how much their guests really mean to them.

[Tom] Could not agree with you more.

I'm actually really excited to hear

what their guests have to say about the space.

[Tan] Hello, my lord.

Hello.

Hi, how are ya?

I'm good, sorry, I'm literally getting ready.

I love our shirtless...

[Antoni] I apologize for being shirtless.

No, it's okay, I love our shirtless FaceTimes.

I've got a surprise.

Can I show you something?

Show me, show me everything.

Okay, the cottage that you'll be staying at,

at my new home, I wanna show you around.

Oh!

[Tan] Ready?

[Antoni] Show me, I'm so excited.

Okay, great.

[Antoni gasping]

Wait, it looks so different than what I thought.

Yeah, I know.

[Antoni] Oh, that is beautiful.

Lemme show you the bathroom.

Show me my bathroom.

Staining brass fixtures.

Yeah.

And now it's like a rose gold situation.

Ainn't that nice?

Oh, the tile work, unreal.

I know, I'm so happy with it.

Right, question is, do you think this is the kind

of place you could stay for longer than a weekend?

Oh my gosh, are you kidding me?

I could stay there for a month, I'm moving in.

Great, I was literally about to say then move in.

And I'm moving in.

Good, this will be your second home.

It's so beautiful, I'm so excited for you guys.

Thank you very much, I love you very much.

I can't wait to have you over here.

I love you, I'm so happy for you.

Thank you, my love, love you very much.

I'll speak to you soon, bye.

I'm such a social person and I love my friends

and family so much.

I want them to want to come here.

I want them to see the space as a private safe retreat.

[classical music]

The guest cottage was such an important component.

From the very start, was to make sure that guests felt

welcome and comfortable in our home.

So now to see this cottage come to life, it's gorgeous.

It's inviting, it's welcoming.

I cannot wait for the first guest to arrive.

I think they're gonna love it, they might not want to leave.

That's a problem.

[classical music]