Misplaced staircases, maze-like hallways, wasted spaces, a shower in a closet, random balconies, mismatched cabinets.
They’re aptly called “Frankenhouses.” And Massachusetts couple Mike and Denese Butler are back to fix more of ‘em in season 2 of HGTV’s “Fix My Frankenhouse.”
Prime example: in one upcoming episode, “we had to hide a poop-shoot,” Mike Butler, 40, says with a laugh in our recent phone interview. “We had to hide the sanitary pipe for an upstairs bathroom that went right through the kitchen, which is not ideal at all.”
Season 2 premieres April 2 at 9 p.m on HGTV. New episodes air Wednesdays at 9 p.m. You can also stream Season 1 on HBO’s MAX, and new episodes post the next day on MAX starting April 3.
Season 1 of the Massachusetts-set home-renovation show saw the couple — who live live south of Boston with their three sons — tackle what HGTV billed as “the oddest homes we’ve ever seen” in Wareham, Dedham, Rehoboth, Millbury, Weymouth, and Hanover.
“Imagine a house that’s a disjointed, confusing maze,” Denese, 38, sums up in the show’s intro. “We take on projects that others will not touch, [ultimately] showing our clients the house of their dreams was there all along.” Frankenhouses usually get that way over time, they said, with patchwork additions.
Mike, a Lexington native, is a general contractor who focused on architecture and computer aided drafting at Lexington’s Minuteman High School. Denese, a Mattapan native, is a designer who graduated from the University of Bridgeport with a fashion degree.
Together, they run The Perfect Vignette, a full-service interior design and build firm they founded in 2017. The HGTV show came together when a production company noticed the firm on Instagram.
Season 2 sees the Butlers combine their powers to tackle Frankenhouses in Quincy, Upton, Abington, Holbrook, Cohasset, Norwell and West Roxbury. Both of their pops, master carpenters John Butler and Peter Doyle, pop up on the show.
We called the Butlers— who also appeared on HGTV’s “100 Day Hotel Challenge” in ’24 — to ask what we can expect.
So what did you learn from Season 1 that you’re taking into Season 2?
Denese: What didn’t we learn from season one? The biggest lesson for me is planning, from start to finish, because we’re moving so quickly on these renovations.
Mike: So I quit my job and went all in on the business, so that was a big transition for us. We also took on some bigger projects this go-around, some older homes, so there’s a lot of hurdles. You’re going to see a very different show, I believe. You’re going to see different style homes than Season 1, you’re going to see bolder moves, bigger scopes, a lot more variety from us, style-wise.
Denese: You’re going to see who we are, and understand our story— where we came from, and how we got to where we are: two people in Massachusetts doing these renovations.
Mike: Season 2, you’re going to see more of our personality. You’re going to learn more about us, why we do it. You’re going to see a lot of crazy transformations– especially Upton. That’ll be a big wow.
You said the season opens with a Norwell home from the 1970s. What are its “Franken-issues”?
Mike: It had really bad flow, an outdated kitchen. It had a big flood; they basically did a Band-Aid job to move back in. Aesthetically, it wasn’t anything they loved.
What’s the most difficult project you tackle this season?
Mike: I’d say Abington. [There was a lot] to figure out. It was an older home. We have to get clever and come up with fun ideas for storage, but also be creative and functional.
Denese: For me, the biggest challenge was Norwell. It’s a very big house, and there were a lot of design elements that went into the home. [For these homes in general], it’s figuring out how to navigate the craziness. It’s like a Rubik’s cube.
You said there were some older homes this season. What’s the oldest?
Denese: I think Upton. The original was built in the late 1700s. And that house has an addition built in the 2000s. It was wild. [laughs]
What are some Franken-issues in older homes?
Mike: Back in the day, ceilings were really low, so we had to get creative and figure out how to solve that, between the old house and the new addition blending together.
Denese: The door openings were a lot narrower than what the typical standard opening is today. So if you can imagine getting furniture in and out —we had to do it through a window. Things like that.
What do you two get out of doing the show?
Mike: It’s our way of giving back to people. We have these gifts that we’re entrusted with, and it’s our way of blessing people and fixing houses that don’t work for them. So we’re basically changing people’s lives. That’s what I get out of it.
Denese: I second that.
You told me you live in a Frankenhouse. Have you had time to work on it?
Mike: [laughs] Right now we’re renovating our primary suite.
Denese: We’re adding a bathroom. I mean, as you can imagine, as the only woman living in a house with a man and three children, I want my own space. I want my own bathroom. [laughs] But we’ve just been really busy.
