Imagine just losing yourself in a happy place. Like, a legitimately kind, open-minded and welcoming place. Can’t get your head around that? We get it, the world is messed up. So if you’re done with the chaos and craziness of everything, treat yourself to visit to Joanna Garcia Swisher‘s TheHappyPlace.com. It’s the escape we need today.
“That’s the goal!” exclaims the effervescent Sweet Magnolias star, who launched the lifestyle site roughly six years ago. “It’s evolved in so many ways. At first it started where I was really sharing my life of interior design and all of that.” Today, it showcases her Clover by Jo line of home goods, fashion and beauty tips and wellness hacks. She hints that her online book club, THP Reads, is set to become an even bigger entity in the near future, which should be great news for the legions of readers who share her love for beach reads, non-fiction tomes and self-help guides. “As time went on, we’ve kind of created this community of people that were very like-minded and good, happy people.”
Over the years, Garcia Swisher has also noticed that the connections made with her Happy Place visitors was a two-way street. “I started to share more and [more]…you know, life happens, and I feel like the stories that I tell, they’re in so many ways very much reflective of what I’m going through and what I’m feeling, what I’m experiencing.” In fact, she attributes the site and its users with helping her endure the grief and subsequent anxiety of losing her parents two years apart. “I realized there can be joy and grief, and so I started sharing about that.”
In the spirit of giving back, the Florida native re-ignited her “Clear the List” campaign to help clear the Amazon Wish Lists of teachers in need of supplies for the new school year. In previous years, she would pick one or two teachers, but after looking at “every DM” that comes into the website, the Ultimatum host realized she could harness the superpowers of the Happy Place’s big-hearted community and really make a difference. “This was such an exciting thing,” she beams proudly of the effort that’s already alleviated immeasurable expenses for so many worthy educators.
“We were able to clear so many and it was awesome…and you know, these lists are essentials. It’s not like bells and whistles—and by the way, they deserve bells and whistles!”
As for what she herself is looking forward to, now that the school year is afoot and autumn should be setting in soon, Garcia Swisher is prepping to drop some new Clover items and is sitting on “some incredible news” that can be discussed once the current actors and writers strikes are settled. “Until then, we’re Happy Place-ing up.”
Save us a seat, Jo!
This story originally appeared on TV Insider
