If you love watching home restoration shows, you’re certainly familiar with Michael and Ashley Cordray’s Restoring Galveston where the local Galveston Island couple share a passion for restoring some of Texas’ oldest homes.
Galveston is home to some of the most charming historic homes. From traditional cottages to majestic homes with grand entrances, the Cordrays have a knack for uncovering hidden charm and bringing weathered old homes back to life.
Their favorite thing to highlight is their beloved city of Galveston. “Galveston is a spectacular town, with so much to offer, always something going on. Still affordable compared to many other coastal communities,” he says. “We’d still be doing this regardless of the production company or not.”
“We've been lucky enough to work on lots of houses over the seven seasons of Restoring Galveston, and we always want to know about the home's history.” he shares. “I'm also a real estate agent and have sold hundreds more homes than we could ever work on, and the history of those are just as important as the ones we have owned. The history of the island kind of weaves its story through its architecture and we love the story of Galveston.”
Michael explained that, although they both have preferred paint colors and materials, they do not purchase supplies in bulk for use across multiple projects. Each project is approached as a custom endeavor; there are no pallets of tile or backsplash acquired for cost-saving over time. Every house receives unique personalization informed by their expertise and influence. “We’ve already been incredibly involved from the start,” shares Michael. “We have our own unique style and let each house speak for itself.”
Work-Life Balance
The successful couple is intentional about having a healthy work-life balance and about spending time with their four daughters, as a family, carving out meaningful time throughout the workday. Fortunately for Michael and Ashley, in a smaller community like Galveston the projects are not spread out too far. The proximity allows the couple to fluidly keep up with their family obligations.
“We are as busy as anyone I know,” says Michael. “Somedays it does not feel that anyone is as busy as we are, but I think we do a really good job of family time. We take the girls to school each morning and pick them up. Even throughout the day, geographically, Galveston helps us since everything is so close. Sometimes we can come home for lunch with the girls and see the girls before our evening family time.”
Respecting the Home’s History
From start to finish Michael says projects come together fairly quickly. While working on one project, the renovation duo is simultaneously looking at purchasing the next several properties. They always own the property that they work on, collecting items along the way. Michael laughs, admitting they face storage issues. From old lumber to old furniture, the pair often buy items they don’t have an immediate use for but know they will end up being the perfect fit for a future project.
“Ashley's always had the ability to come up with fun ideas; I embrace it, execute it, and fight it sometimes,” Michael joked. “We always roll with our unique style and tend to fight trends.”
Michael explained that he and Ashley initially had different visions for a recent restaurant project. He leaned toward an '80s or '90s aesthetic with bold, vibrant colors, while Ashley preferred a more vintage look inspired by the 1920s or '30s with muted tones. Ultimately, they found common ground in a '60s–'70s color palette, blending retro hues with a modern interior design style.
Rather than focusing on trends, the Cordrays always want to respect the home's history, preferring to save the original doors, or opting not to paint trim, and always embracing the original beauty.
“A lot of times you go into projects with the best of intentions, but you don’t know what is behind the wall until the drywall comes down,” says Michael. “We’ve seen enough projects to expect the worst and typically we are pleasantly surprised. Usually, it’s some fun original materials like shiplap or painted beadboard, or something fun that can change the course of the design.
“One thing we are fluid with is finding something and embracing it, rather than sticking to what we’ve started with and designed on paper,” he says. “We will be sporadic and change on the fly if something presents itself as a good reason.”
The Early Days
Initially, Michael and Ashley both had full-time jobs. The couple first met while working at a barge company in Houston, after both attending Texas A&M at Galveston — their mutual love for the island was an instant connection.
On nights and weekends, they were contractors, carpenters, and painters; literally doing everything themselves. Simultaneously Michael was posting photos of fun, old rundown Galveston properties. The HGTV network was looking for an affordable beach community and that is how they landed the project.
“Somehow, the production company thought that the couple flipping one house could produce a television show and do eight or more at the same time,” shared Michael. “Which still seems crazy, but with my background in sales, we convinced them we could do it, and we have.”
The Show
Reflecting on their favorite aspects of the show; “We love seeing our girls grow throughout the seasons,” the couple shared. “There's lots of projects that were fun (or not so fun) to pull off, but seeing the girls will always be our favorite.”
Many wonder if the episodes are scripted, but Michael says they usually wing it. They both know the intricacies they need to talk about but there is no script and the two figure it out as they go–along with the viewers. Michael shared that the network films a lot of material, and they spend a lot of time on projects for what amounts to about 40 minutes of televised material.
When asked what renovation fans ask about most often the Cordray’s say it is The Kettle House. “Anyone who has been to Galveston over the last 50 years remembers the rusty metal structure sitting off the side of the road as you head out west,” Michael says. “Curiosity for The Kettle House is followed closely by any of the businesses we've opened so they can walk inside, so: The Mansard House [Hotel], The Artisan [Event Center], Cordray Drug Store, and now Local Dogs, an old gas station and tire shop converted to a restaurant.”
A past favorite reveal that sticks out with Michael was his mom’s house a few seasons ago. “It was fun to give back to her,” shares Michael. “She still lives in the same house where I was brought home from the hospital in.” Michael said she would have never done that for herself, and they gave her a new space that she now loves to entertain in.
In general, reveals can be tough. “The last-minute list usually feels like weeks of work that needs to happen in a blink, and needs to look good,” they reflect. ‘We've had a great team willing to go above and beyond to make it all happen.”
One ongoing challenge in their timeline is dealing with unpredictable weather emergencies. Hurricanes can lead to delays, and rain has occasionally thrown a wrench in their plans. Thankfully, over the past eight years, the couple hasn’t faced any major weather-related setbacks. Still, there are days—forecasted or not—when the rain hits at the worst possible time. Sometimes, it's the day before a big home reveal, and they’re still outside, racing to finish the exterior paint.
“It does always seem to rain though, the day before a reveal when you need to move everything!”, Michael says laughing.
The Pink Shack episode, one of the couple’s first ones, was a house they bought for next to nothing and everyone told them they overpaid because it was in such disrepair. Some of the projects that are underdogs are their favorites–they’re underestimated but when you peel back the layers you highlight what makes them special. We love those the most shared Michael.
“Love is the most important ingredient,” says Michael. “It’s like cooking, you add love, and it works out.”
The married parents of four have always loved working together and doing the show together. “We're a team and definitely love running around and bouncing around ideas all day.”
"The history of the island kind of weaves its story through its architecture and we love the story of Galveston."