The Junk Brothers on HGTV

Giving New Life to Curbside Castoff Furniture

© Maureen K. Fleury

Jan 2, 2009
Broken Furniture Left at the Curbside, jeltovski@morguefile.com
Canadians Steve and Jim Kelley search neighborhoods for pieces of furniture left at the roadside and transform the trash into treasure before returning it to the owner.

The show, Junk Brothers, begins with Steve and Jim Kelley driving their truck at night looking for discarded furniture at curbsides. Once they find a piece with potential, they haul it back to their workshop.

The brothers take turns at designing the new piece of furniture and sharing the tasks required to finish the job. There are two pickups during each show so Steve will orchestrate one transformation and Jim will do the other.

In the course of the program, Jim and Steve explain to the audience what they are doing. For example; if they are staining furniture, they will tell the audience how many coats they are applying and the correct way to do the task.

By the middle of the program, the first piece of furniture is done and ready for delivery. The very last job is affixing a Junk Brothers plaque on the furniture.

The piece is delivered to the home owner during the day. Jim and Steve sneak the furniture to the front door, ring the doorbell and hide while the owner comes outside to discover the new piece at their doorstep.

The second part of the show begins with another night time curbside collection of a piece of furniture and the transformation in the shop and delivery to the home owner.

Junk Brothers Furniture Transformations

The Junk Brothers show a lot of creativity and skill throughout the show. They have talent in many areas such as furniture upholstery, welding, carpentry, and refinishing, steel and plastic fabrication.

Now in season three, here are examples of transformations done by Jim and Steve Kelley:

  • A coffee table made into a wardrobe cabinet
  • An iron gate transformed into a fireplace screen
  • A shutter door made into a canopy bed
  • Two bikes turned into a karaoke stage
  • A wrought iron bench converted to a keyboard station
  • A computer monitor transformed into an artist table
  • A fireplace tool set made into a mailbox stand
  • An ironing board converted to a water feature
  • Two car seats turned into movie theatre seats
  • Two metal chairs made into a bathroom vanity
  • A pine dresser converted into a storage trunk
  • A kitchen stove transformed into a barbeque
  • A bicycle made into a ceiling fan

About Jim and Steve Kelley of the Junk Brothers

The father of Jim and Steve Kelley owns a furniture restoration business in Ottawa, Ontario so the sons learned the trade at an early age. The family business is still in operation but Jim and Steve recently branched out to their own businesses. Steve opened a restoration company and Jim specializes in repairing damaged furniture.

Outside of their respective furniture restoration businesses, Steve restores antique furniture and conducts workshops on furniture restoration. Jim does furniture transformations similar to what is done on the Junk Brothers show.

Related Articles on HGTV Programs:

Divine Design with Candice Olson

Canadian Designer Sarah Richardson

Holmes on Homes Makes it Right on HGTV


The copyright of the article The Junk Brothers on HGTV in Home & Garden TV is owned by Maureen K. Fleury. Permission to republish The Junk Brothers on HGTV in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.


Broken Furniture Left at the Curbside, jeltovski@morguefile.com
       


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Comments
Jan 3, 2009 4:07 PM
Guest :
I really love the concept for the show. There are a lot of DIY people out there that can create their own designs. Often those designs have more personal value that store bought items. We have a lot of readers write into Furniture Fashion expressing an interest in DIY designs. We will pass this information along. <a href="http://www.furniturestoreblog.com/">furniture fashion</a>
Jan 18, 2009 6:04 PM
Guest :
I truly enjoyed watching the Junk Brother on HGTV and I am very disappointed they are no longer a regular program. I would rather see more of them and programs like their's and a lot less of House Hunters on HGTV. Personally with the ecconomy the way it is, more people need to know how to make something out of nothing. Again I love their show.
June Armstrong
Mar 5, 2009 6:03 AM
Guest :
I just love this show. I watch it every morning on HGTV here in PA, US. I wasn't aware that the show wasn't going to be a regular program anymore. That is very disappointing and I agree with the comment below about seeing more shows like this than House Hunters and Property Virgins. Enough is enough with those shows already.! The JUNK BROTHERS are an inspiration to us especially with the economy the way it is today. These other shows, especially House Hunters aren't realistic at all. I haven't watch a show yet within my price range. Where are all these people that can afford a new home priced anywhere from $250,000 on up? Unless these poor souls are taking their mortgage to the max, I can't imagine how many people can afford this today especially with the ages of some of the potential homeowners. Don't max yourself out to where you are house poor. Show more of the JUNK BROTHERS and similar shows rather than making us watch other's buy homes they eventually will have to foreclose on.
Apr 29, 2009 6:49 AM
Guest :
i really thought people liked the idea of recycling and going green but some of our viewers would rather watch people buy houses beyond their means and go broke and cancell a very good show that gives you good ideas of how to recycle and maybe help a neighbor with his or her junk too.it is to bad people are still stuck on spending that allmighty dollar instead of trying to save a buck or two..my vote is for the junk brothers... B.K.
4 Comments