Zooey Deschanel Surprises Her BFF With the Open-Concept House of Her Dreams

Zooey Deschanel has known her friend Sarah for 35 years. Inseparable since early childhood, the pair have gone through life’s ups and downs together since they were five years old. Recently, Sarah returned to school to become a therapist and had to downsize to a cramped 900-square-foot El Segundo, California home with her hubby and two young kids. As a surprise for her BFF, Zooey enlisted the help of the Property Brothers to treat Sarah to the open-concept house of her dreams.

Season 2 of Celebrity IOU airs Mondays at 10PM on HGTV Canada and will Stream Live and On Demand on the new Global TV App, and on STACKTV with Amazon Prime Video Channels. HGTV Canada is available through all major TV service providers.

Jonathan Scott and Drew Scott pose on either side of Zooey Deschanel and her friend Sarah on Sarah's front lawn

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Best Friends for Life

Zooey Deschanel and her longtime pal Sarah have known each other for a remarkable 35 years. They’re so close, in fact, that they’re practically sisters – sharing treasured childhood photos and stories from their early days together. But when Sarah had to downsize to a 900-square-foot home in El Segundo, California with her husband and two young kids while she went back to school to become a therapist, Zooey decided the time was right to treat her friend to the home renovation she deserved. Naturally, she turned to the Property Brothers (including boyfriend Jonathan) for help.

Zooey Deschanel crouches behind some bushes with Drew and Jonathan Scott

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Surprise!

Drew and Jonathan Scott – ever the practical jokers – encourage Zooey to surprise Sarah by ringing the doorbell and ducking behind the bushes in front of her stucco home. You can see the anticipation written on their faces.

Watch as Zooey Deschanel wonders if she’s in over her head by joining forces with the Property Brothers.

The pre-renovation living room with pastel blue walls, hardwood flooring, minimalist furniture and plenty of natural light

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Before: The Living Room

The interior of Sarah’s home is a tight squeeze, with lots of tiny rooms in already cramped quarters. With only three weeks to complete the entire renovation, Zooey points out that Sarah’s an amazing cook so a spacious kitchen would be ideal. Jonathan and Drew decide on an open-concept design that will allow plenty of natural light while making the entire main floor feel infinitely more roomy.

The post-renovation living room now an open-concept space with a clear view of the kitchen

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After: The Living Room

Zooey was sure to tell the brothers that Sarah loved mid-century modern design with lots of warm colours and textures. To honour that, Jonathan and Drew tore down the wall separating the living room from the kitchen and added minimalist touches that instantly elevated the room.

Another angle of the pre-renovation living room with a giant wall blocking the kitchen

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Before: The Wall

Other than the mounted television, there wasn’t much purpose for the large wall that separated the living room from the kitchen area. Not only did it make both rooms feel significantly smaller, but it also blocked out a lot of that cheerful California sunshine – and, to us, that’s the real crime.

A mid-century modern open-concept living room and kitchen area with lots of natural light

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After: Wall, Be Gone!

The absence of the wall immediately opens the house up – and the medium tone hardwood floors that run throughout were hand-selected by Zooey herself! After all, when she thinks of her friend Sarah she thinks of warmth and sunshine, so it’s a fitting colour choice.

Zooey Deschanel and Jonathan Scott review samples for the hardwood floors

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Going Through Samples

Zooey was 100 per cent involved in every aspect of design and decor, including the selection of the hardwood floors that run throughout the entire renovated space. Bonus: she got a helping hand from her beau, Jonathan. Check out the Celebrity IOU sneak peek to find out what other stars are partnering up with the Property Brothers.

The narrow kitchen before the renovation with pastel blue walls and limited storage space

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Before: The Kitchen

There are plenty of work-arounds for narrow cooking spaces, but considering that Sarah loves spending time in the kitchen, this was in need of a major facelift. With its outdated cabinetry (that was a struggle for Drew and Jonathan to tear down) and limited counterspace, the entire kitchen needed to be gutted from top to bottom.

An open-concept kitchen that overlooks the living room from the marble waterfall island

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After: The Kitchen

This versatile kitchen includes custom cabinets and pantry space – a luxury for the mom-of-two who loves to cook with the kids. Jonathan and Drew kept the original cool blue vibes, but added a sintered stone island with sleek waterfall siding and pendant lights. Find more inspiring Property Brothers kitchen transformation trends to keep an eye on.

The pre-renovation kitchen with a stacked washer-dryer in the kitchen next to the farmhouse sink

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Before: A Kitchen No-No

Sometimes space is tight and we have to make do with what we’re given – but it’s hard to wrap our heads around a stacked washer/dryer in the kitchen, next to the sink. Jonathan and Drew made the quick decision to reallocate it to a different area of the house, leaving more space for cooking and home entertaining.

The kitchen island with four chairs pulled up and plenty of new storage space

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After: More Space

Voila! With the awkward stacked washer/dryer now a distant memory, the Property Brothers were able to utilize the extra space by adding plenty of pantry storage. Find more stunning Property Brothers transformations that will inspire you to renovate ASAP.

A narrow, outdated dining room with a plain wood table and shiplap walls

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Before: The Dining Room

After taking a peek at the dining room, Jonathan and Drew immediately made the decision to gut it from top to bottom. Gone are the outdated shiplap walls and room partitions. The brothers saw it as a great opportunity to make the kitchen-dining area one cohesive open-concept space. Although they didn’t renovate a bathroom this time around, Drew and Scott transformed these bathrooms from outdated to outstanding.

The renovated dining area transformed into a modern breakfast nook with custom-made chandelier

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After: The Dining Room

It was Zooey’s clever idea to install a chic dining banquette (with additional storage underneath!) in favour of a larger, clunkier table. Jonathan and Drew loved the idea so much you could almost see them formulating a plan to make Zooey the third Property “Brother.” And that custom-made chandelier? Zooey had plenty of input on its design as well. Feeling inspired? Check out our favourite Property Brothers dining rooms.

Jonathan Scott, Zooey Deschanel and Drew Scott take a break from renovating the living room to pose for the camera

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The Dynamic Trio

Although she admitted she wasn’t as keen on the messy tear-down portions of renovations, Zooey still gamely tagged along, helping Jonathan install the hardwood floors and assisting Drew as he added the modern white frame windows. Her favourite part? Adding the little decor flourishes at the end.

Drew and Jonathan Scott look on as Sarah and Zooey Deschanel marvel at the renovation

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Shock and Aww!

Sarah was moved to tears by the transformation. By tearing down the walls and creating an open concept, her 900-square-foot home now has more room for hosting guests, creating delicious meals and for her kids to play.