Bethany builder making progress on homes for DIY show
The TV crews have been spotted and the construction crews have been on the scene as the DIY Network Show "Big Beach Builds" has started taking shape near Rehoboth Beach.
Star of the show, Bethany Beach's Marnie Oursler, who's pilot was picked up by the network, couldn't say much, but is excited for what's coming up for the show.
"We have some big renovations," she said.
"Big Beach Builds" will focus on Oursler and her crew renovating houses at the Delaware beaches.
"I'm a fifth generation home builder," said Oursler, the founder of Marnie Custom Homes. "I grew up in the field. People say instead of a pacifier I had a two-by-four in my mouth. I grew up in the field. My dad taught me."
The company is able to build some of the biggest houses at the Delaware beaches and that's important for the theme of the show.
"We have some awesome, awesome locations," she said. "A lot of waterfront, beachfront and oceanside houses in some really cool areas. We have a lot of neat builds and I definitely think we are going outside the box of what people would think to do when they renovate, so I think we're going to bring a lot of value to viewers."
To read more on the project: Bethany Beach builder's television pilot gets picked up
Oursler could not go into specifics of what they are doing on the show to ensure nothing was given away, but she was able to comment on some of the things they are doing to the houses.
"With some we are doing big outdoor spaces," she said. "We have done some big interior renovations, we have done some big exterior renovations, so a lot of what we are doing is making the houses more conducive to the lifestyle of the homeowner so we are providing that value to the owner in terms of creating and reorganizing their houses so they can utilize them better here at the beach."
Oursler said the company that will be producing the show, Leopard USA, found her "probably a year ago" through Internet searches.
"They interviewed me," she said, "and then it came down to the reel and we pitched it to HGTV and the DIY Network and they really liked it."
"Big Beach Builds" will be airing on the DIY Network this fall. A pilot show aired on HGTV this past February, which was well received, thus spawning "Big Beach Builds" and launching Oursler's career in television.
Oursler began her career in 2003, two years after she was graduated to college. She moved to Bethany, where her family spent vacations during her childhood. In 2004, she built a house for herself because she was unable to afford a builder. She built her second house in 2006 and in 2007 Marnie Custom Homes was founded.
rghughes@dmg.gannett.com