Kristin Cavallari’s Tennessee Farmhouse Is “Exactly What She Wanted Aesthetically”

She may always be a girl from Laguna Beach, but Kristin Cavallari has found her place in Tennessee. The former reality star and Uncommon James entrepreneur, 35, opened up her Franklin, Tennessee home to My Domaine in their new digital issue, The Entertaining Issue. She shared why she embraces the peace of the countryside and why she is never going back to reality TV. 

Cavallari bought a three-story farmhouse set on 38 acres at the beginning of the pandemic, following her split from former NFL player Jay Cutler. There, she lives with her three children, Camden, 10, Jaxon, 8, and Saylor, 7, who are able to explore the property on their go-karts.

“We are out in the country, where it’s peaceful and calm,” says Cavallari. “I feel very lucky. They are outside playing all day; it’s almost like an old-school way of raising kids.”

Cavallari’s love of the space comes after a childhood of frequent relocations. But when she and Cutler split in 2020, she searched for a space she could truly call her own.

 “I walked in and knew immediately that it was my house,” she explained. “It was the energy more than anything. It’s like it was calling my name. Had I waited a month, I never would have gotten it because that’s when everyone started moving out here. To this day, I thank my lucky stars that it all worked out. Honestly, it was like everything just aligned for me.”

Now, she says it’s “the first house I’ve ever lived in that is exactly what I wanted aesthetically. This is the first time I can truly say I really love my house.” Of course, that didn’t come right away. There was an 18-month renovation that included gutting the kitchen, finishing the basement, transforming the bathrooms and adding on to her closet. A pool was put in, and a glass greenhouse was built. She had to leave for a six-week period when there was no functioning kitchen. Now, the kitchen has a quartzite island with a handmade mosaic tile backsplash, created to evoke a rustic vibe. Unlacquered brass and ceramic hardware in the kitchen complete the look, which can be seen on the cover of Cavallari’s upcoming third cookbook, “Truly Simple: 140 Recipes for Healthy Cooking,” which comes out next April.

The dining room is another highlight since it’s a space where Cavallari can connect with her kids every night over dinner. “I’d rather hang out with them than anyone else, especially where they are right now,” she says. “Their ages are so fun because I can talk to them about real things that are happening in their lives.” There is one piece from her old home still present in the space, however: a white plaster chandelier.

While Cavallari spun from “Laguna Beach” to “The Hills” and then to her E! Series “Very Cavallari” until 2020, she says her days in reality TV are, as she once famously said, Dunzo. 

 “I’m not going back to reality. There’s no way,” she stated. “I have worked in entertainment for so long, and there’s a level of stress that comes with it that’s not conducive to my life right now.”

While she still has to travel sometimes for work, it’s in Tennessee that she’s putting down roots.

“To be able to come home to this environment is so nice for me,” she concluded. “I can’t say enough good things about Tennessee. It’s very grounding for me and I feel so at ease here. This is home as far as I can see into the future.”