This past Spring we were invited to a wedding in Austin, Texas. We were so very excited to celebrate the couple getting married. But, when I found where Austin was in relation to Waco, Texas I did a loud shout – Magnolia here we come!

Are you as obsessed with Chip and Joanna as much as I am? Do you watch the episodes over and over? I do – and every time I am in complete and total amazement that Joanna’s vision took a house from that…..to THAT! She totally has a Creative Gift.

I have watched them purchase the Silos.

And then create a huge market area. Build a bakery. Turn an old restaurant into a new thriving restaurant. Raise kids and get pregnant again (and still maintain her girlish figure!) And NOW they are opening a coffee shop and building a hotel. The Gaines Empire for sure.

I knew that I would probably not make a special trip to Waco….unless I grabbed all my girlfriends and we went on a girls trip, which didn’t seem likely cause we can’t even coordinate a lunch date. So, when the opportunity presented itself I was on board x 10!

It’s about a 2ish hour drive from Austin to Waco and we left really early. I wanted to have breakfast at Magnolia Table and I read that the lines begin early. And guess what – we were there 15 minutes after they opened….and there was a line. While we waited we wandered to the back court yard and got a coffee at the coffee bar. There is also a pergola back there with chairs and the ‘windows’ had shutters that could be closed. So very cute! The line went pretty quick and we were seated.

Magnolia Table was everything I expected it to be.

Everything I envisioned it to be. Cute. Funky. Industrial. The tile on the floors and the walls was so fun. And, the food was amazing! I don’t like avocados but I wanted to order the avocado toast only because Chip thought it was a dumb idea. The little tater tots were great – and I don’t even like potatoes. You may or may not know this – Chip wanted the restaurant to be a cell phone FREE area so he had little leather pouches installed for phones to be kept. I did wonder tho, how many people forgot their phones when they left? (There is a picture in the gallery below of the cell phone pouches).

They also had a gift shop behind Magnolia Table. It had t-towels, aprons, water carafes….tons of stuff to bring home….I did buy a few things for myself! 🙂

I took tons of pics…of everything…and then we moved on to the Silos and Magnolia Market. By the time we got there (around 9 am) parking was hard to find and the line at the Magnolia Bakery was about 20 deep. Now, for some reason I thought Magnolia Market opened at 10 so we went to the bakery 1st. Since all the cupcakes looked so yummy and I couldn’t decide on just 1 flavor, I bought 6. You would do that too, right? I loved them all but the Toasted Coconut was my fav.

Well, I was mistaken about the opening of the market and by the time we were finished at the bakery it was packed! I mean so packed we could hardly move. I am sure Joanna had it decorated so cute and the displays were probably amazing and creative – but with all the people it was really hard to see it all. I did ‘part the seas’ and get a few pics. The overall feel was great. There was a lot of merchandise to choose from. Some of the items were not on the website. Chip has his own section with hammers, tools and Yeti tumblers with Magnolia Market written on them. (I bought one for my husband for Father’s Day). Some of my favorite things were –

Diffusers in very cute boxes with sealing wax seals
Cloth carriers with leather handles for the garden
Metal signs made by Jimmy Don (we bought one for our wedding present)
Yeti tumbler
Silk flowers…they were so realistic

It was really hard to choose!

The outside area was awesome too (how to use the word awesome in 10 different sentences!). There were bean bag type chairs in black and white stripe. A flower vendor. And….the grass was fake. I think I would like some grass that I just have to hose off! it was a great area for a concert or any other outdoor event. And, because it was spring there were tulips blooming everywhere.

Chip even has his own ‘man' section.

Headed to Magnolia in Waco, Texas?

I have some tips & tricks for you –

1. Find out when Magnolia Table opens and be there on time or even early – especially on a Saturday. They are closed on Sundays.
2. Find out when the Market opens. Don’t look at the website (that’s what I did) – call and get the updated information. Be there before it opens. That way you can see it all.
3. Go to the bakery (worth the wait in line) and get your 6 favs!
4. Hang out outside – buy some flowers.
5. If the weather is nice, take some time to sit in the outdoor chairs and savor the moment.
6. Take lots of pics.

I am sure there is a bunch of other stuff to do in Waco. I just didn’t have the time. The wedding was beautiful…in case you were wondering.