Giuliana & Bill Rancic's Remodeled Chicago Home

Bill and Giuliana Rancic’s newly remodeled Chicago brownstone is featured in Traditional Home magazine, and when I saw the pictures, I was curious about what the house looked like before. After a little digging, I found the listing photos from 2013, and you can hardly tell it’s the same place now.

The brownstone has three floors connected by beautiful staircases and generous landings like above.

Formal living room and dining room, Bulthaup kitchen with skylight. Many vintage details remain: an exquisite staircase, pocket doors, wainscoting panels, natural woodwork and moldings. High ceilings. Three wood-burning fireplaces.

4 Bedrooms, 4 Baths and 4,600 Sq Ft

The kitchen looked small and out of place in the house and was one of the major changes they made in the house.

Remodeled House

Once you walk through the front door — nothing inside the house looks remotely the same.

Living room

Bill Rancic grew up in Chicago and says, “We knew the family who lived here before, and they put a great vibe in this house that we hope to continue. We’ve always had one foot here, and now we have two. Finally, we’re home.”

Home Office

Master Bedroom

Master Bath with Open "Skylight" Open to Dressing Room

Designer Lonni Paul, who you may remember as a contestant on HGTV’s “Design Star” a few years ago, says, “In this rowhouse, which doesn’t allow light to pour in from either side, the blue functioned as a tool to create light and airiness that wouldn’t read heavy and dull when the sky turned cold and gray.”

Duke's Bedroom

The reality-TV stars have been married since 2007 and are parents to Duke, who’s three. I thought I remembered seeing the same monogrammed crib in their former home in California, and sure enough, here it is in his old nursery:

Guest Bedroom

Dining Room

This is one busy couple. Besides the reality-TV shows they’ve starred in over the years, Bill (who was the first winner of The Apprentice) is an entrepreneur, real estate developer, author, and Food Network host.

Giuliana designs a clothing line for HSN, has her own wine collection, and has written three books. And oh, yeah, they own a couple of restaurants in Chicago, too. Whew.

Renovated and Expanded Kitchen

The Kitchen Opens to a Covered deck with a Brick Fireplace

They turned it into a private outdoor entertaining space.

After 14 years in front of the camera, Giuliana signed off from her E! News hosting duties earlier this month and can now spend more time here. “This is the most meaningful of any place we’ve lived in together because it’s where we brought our baby home and became parents,” says Giuliana. “In past years, we’ve been in a hotel during the holidays. This year, we will put up our own tree.”

Giuliana & Bill Rancic's Remodeled Chicago Home

Kimye's New Home in Calabasas

I’ve been fielding lots of emails from readers about reports that Kim and Kanye spent $20 million on a new estate in the hills of Calabasas. And over the last couple days, the top search on my blog has been for photos of it. So for those of you who were asking about it, here’s the scoop…

Remember how they bought that "fixer upper" in Bel-Air last year that they’ve been remodeling?

Well, they’ve been staying with Kim’s mom Kris in the meantime.

When this estate went on the market just a few miles down the road from Kris’s place, Kim reportedly fell in love with it, so they decided to move here instead.

The 8,000 square-foot house was built in 2012, sits on 3 acres, and comes with a vineyard and two pools.

It reminds me a little of the house Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen just sold

There are his and hers master baths. Presumably, this one is hers:

The property was once owned by Lisa Marie Presley.

I imagine both the acreage and outdoor living spaces were selling points.

Kimye's New Home in Calabasas

Bobby Cannavale and Rose Byrne Snag $2.2M Brooklyn House

Boerum Hill has long been a favorite neighborhood for celebrities putting down roots in New York City: Michelle Williams and the late Heath Ledger famously settled in a house there, as did Ethan Hawke, Keri Russell, and Hope Davis, to name a few. Add to that list Rose Byrne and Bobby Cannavale: the couple recently snagged a three-bedroom townhouse at 453 Warren Street for just under $2.2 million, according to the Daily News. The couple, who recently co-starred in the movies Annie and Adult Beginners, had been living in the East Village; their new pad, which is technically a two-family house, has two separate gardens, an open kitchen, and laundry and storage space.

Bobby Cannavale and Rose Byrne Snag $2.2M Brooklyn House

Penn Jillette Nabs $3.8 Million Las Vegas Mansion

Penn Jillette Nabs $3.8 Million Las Vegas Mansion


In late April, just when property owners were touching up their landscaping strategies, illusionist and entertainer Penn Jillette, one half of the famed Penn & Teller duo, made a major change of his own. He bought a 7,808-square-foot mansion in Las Vegas for $3.8 million – and it is outstanding!


Nothing bland is to be found in this two-story residence. Not the facade of windows that have front-row seats to desert mountain views and the famed Strip. Not the two-story great room with one – sorry two – fireplaces, and certainly not the swimming pool with the waterfall feature and adjoining hot tub. Most patios and outdoor parlors are outfitted with fireplaces and plush, elegant seating. This property has those too, but the big-screen television takes it up a notch and practically creates a bonus, al fresco great room.


But on to practical matters. Inside, the kitchen beckons from the back corner of the cavernous open floor plan, and it has enough room for guests to sit while chatting up the busy chef. There is a two-tiered breakfast counter, and beyond that a cook-top island with prepping sink. That leaves loads of free countertop space behind it, especially because the ovens, refrigerator, and other heavy appliances are installed in the walls.




















The house offers five bedrooms and seven bathrooms. It sounds very nice and all on paper, but the master suite also has double bathrooms and closets, and an oversized Jacuzzi tub, plus access to a balcony, according to Zillow.


Jillette's newest acquisition is located in The Ridges, according to listing information from the Shapiro & Sher Group. While information on the house did not mention a gym, The Ridges is an uber upscale gated community with access to a top-notch, 9,000-square-foot fitness facility.


Word has it that Jillette will now list his bachelor pad of a house, which he nicknamed "The Slammer." Interesting choice of words (it is Penn, of course), and the new house is definitely a nice place to escape.