Craig Conover‘s formative years have all been documented on Bravo’s Southern Charm, including every girlfriend, every breakup, and every makeup. That’s why fans lost their minds when he reunited with his ex-girlfriend Naomie Olindo—who appeared as a cast member on Seasons 3-6 and Season 8 of
The newly single Bravoleb told Decider that the video—in which they acted out their iconic, “What’s wrong with my sewing,” fight—was all Olindo’s idea. Despite initially feeling “nervous,” Conover decided to take the plunge when he reunited with his ex at a mutual friend’s wedding last month.
“What great closure for everyone who’s been invested in our lives,” he added while speaking to Decider about his partnership and upcoming BravoCon activation with State Farm. “I thought it was a pretty great idea of hers.”
With Olindo currently dating model Brooks Nader’s ex-husband, Billy Haire, the chances of her and Conover rekindling any past flame are slim. The Sewing Down South founder, for his part, has been dipping his toes back into the dating pool in light of his highly publicized breakup with
“With a town as small as Charleston, it’s really hard to find space, or at least enough space, to not develop feelings for people you hang out with,” he said, sharing that he’s still open to exploring showmances with his co-stars. “I think you really get to know someone well when you’re filming with them. You just do. It’s a unique experience and I prefer it.”
When Decider caught up with Conover via Zoom, he also spoke about his friendships with Shep Rose and Austen Kroll, Southern Charm’s “fun and flirty” eleventh season, and whether he wants to be the next Andy Cohen with his new production company, Plaid Horse Productions. Check out the full interview below.
DECIDER: Are you excited for BravoCon this week?!
CRAIG CONOVER: I am. I love it. I’ve messaged my cast and told them to try to get out there Wednesday just so they can get prepared. Some are super excited, some are nervous. I love it and I know we skipped last year, but I’m ready to be back. I do all of my meet and greets at the store across the country anyway, but this is a giant one. This is the first time I’m using a stylist, so I don’t know what I’m wearing. This is a little nerve-wracking, but I’ve got some backup options. I’m excited. I bring my parents out and I bring a whole team, and we’ve got a massive booth for the bazaar this year, so that’s gonna be great.
You will be bringing your male Martha Stewart persona to life in the Bravohood this weekend. Can you speak a bit about your collab with State Farm and what can fans expect from your activation?
Jake and I – a.k.a Kevin, as I got to know him – had so much fun shooting a commercial earlier this year that we’ve decided to run it back. I just got to see the finished roadmap of what fans will get to experience at BravoCon, which is Patricia’s infamous dining room table and Madison’s porch and my sewing studio and the backyard, which is awesome too. To be able to follow my journey – I started filming when I was 24, I’m 37 now – and the roller coaster ride of the sewing and where it came from … to now be able to embroider something with me at BravoCon or sew something on your own. We’ve got these quick little souvenirs you can make and take that home. For me, I just think there’s no better way to celebrate how far we’ve come and how much we love the fans. Jake and I are excited to see each other again, and we’re going to be doing lots of little activations. I get to have Madison and Patricia there too, so I think it’s a really fun thing to highlight at BravoCon. The Bravohood is always something fun. But this just feels special this year.
I want to talk about the Southern Charm Season 11 premiere, which I just watched the other day. I noticed that you never mentioned your ex by name. Was that intentional? Was that a direct response to what she said at the
Summer House reunion? Can you speak to that a bit?
Oh, no. Yeah, I can see how that would come off. Life’s funny, and that’s why watching our lives on these shows is so interesting because we actually are just doing this for the first time, right? Everything you see me going through, I’m just trying to figure out for the first time ever. I get to speak around the country and I get to speak about small businesses and home shows and stuff. You never know, out of respect, whether to say your ex’s name now that she’s not on the show. So you’re like, “I don’t want to say your name if you’re not comfortable with it.” But then when you say, “My ex,” you’re almost, not dehumanizing them, but taking the personalization out of it. You’re like, “I have no problem saying your name.” But we had just started filming again for the first time in a year. It was the first time we were filming since the breakup. And what you’re watching is me just trying to navigate life in this new chapter that I definitely didn’t plan on being in, but you just put your best step forward. Hopefully, the premiere was good. I hope you liked it.
You guys are capturing this new chapter in my life. No, I’ve got no ill will. I just didn’t know … You just get thrown back into it. When cameras picked up this year was kind of when I was starting to come to terms with everything. You’re just going to watch me go through figuring life out, which is what so many people, I realize, are going through. A lot of times you don’t talk about it, and then when you do, you’re like, “Oh, so like there’s plenty of other people going through similar journeys.”
You and Shep are both single for the first time in a long time, and you’re going to BravoCon later this week. Have you guys been finding yourselves falling back into old habits? Do you view him as having actually evolved after he promised to change his relationship with alcohol after that messy BravoCon experience a few years back?
I think he’s going to make it through Sunday this year. I got hopes that we’re going to have a great time. He’s excited for it. He self-admittedly does not volunteer himself to go to Vegas in regular life. He knows his boundaries, but he’s ready. Shep and I are actually in probably the best place that we’ve ever been. It was such a nice thing to have our friendship get to a level where we both accepted each other for who we are, which is complete opposites. We just are. We’ll never understand each other [and] both of us have finally accepted that that’s okay. I think the love that we have for each other … We’re the only two that started this journey 12 years ago. I know it’s the 11th season, but we started 12 years ago. Well, Whitney, too. But, you know, Whitney’s Whitney.
Shep and I … I really think you’ll get to see our friendship flourish this year. Now we are in different stages in life, but I think we want the same things. Eventually, both of us want families and to experience the world together. We both were fortunate in different ways. It was just nice to have him around. I wouldn’t characterize it as falling back into bad habits. It really is just me trying to figure it out. I would rather stay home and watch movies with someone all day long. But now if you don’t have that, you have to go out and meet people. Jumping back into that world is interesting and not as easy as some people would think. There’s plenty to see on that front. But Shep’s just Shep. He’s pretty much the exact same person that we met 12 years ago.
Well I’m happy to see that you guys are on the same page, as much as you can be. I have to say, I was upset that you and Austen are still kind of going at it, at least as we see in the trailer. I know you’re very entangled in your businesses and stuff like that. How has your turbulent friendship kind of had an impact on your professional relationship with him?
You never know when Austen’s going to have an issue with something I do. It’s very unpredictable. I’m just as surprised as everyone a lot of times. But, fortunately, we have such a great team of people around us. My partner, Jerry [Casselano], is a great glue between Austen and I, and our other partners in our businesses, that fortunately, when it comes to business, he doesn’t get frustrated with that stuff. Our synergy there has never been affected because our businesses are all the things that we share in common. Our bars are all the things that we enjoy traveling together with. The restaurant we opened, the music, the menus are all the things that we enjoy. When it comes to the minutia of how we live our lives or our day to day, or the quality time that we spend together, that’s where we seem to be missing. Once again, you’ll just see us try to figure out what our friendship is. Austen had some issues last year with me not being around enough. This year, you’ll see the opposite concern. It’s hard to keep track of. But I love him to death and hopefully we have a great BravoCon together.
JT Thomas was back in the news this week after having gone on Instagram and proclaiming he’s sold all of his worldly possessions and moved to Bali. Do you see a world where you two could ever mend fences?
Oh, I don’t know. I didn’t know he moved to Bali. That’s cool. Again, we’re all just trying to figure our life out, and if that’s what works for him then I wish him the best. I’m going to root for him, and if he decides to move back to the States, I don’t see why not. But we don’t really cross paths that much. We just don’t cross paths. I’ll have to catch up on that story. I haven’t seen that.
In the trailer, it seems like you and Salley are showing some interest in each other. I’m sure we’re going to see it all unfold this season, but how do you feel about showmances/Bravo romances at this point in your life?
When I was like 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, I bartended and waited tables and I had the best friendships and relationships with the people I worked with. You can only bartend with someone so long before you start to catch feelings. With a town as small as Charleston, it’s really hard to find space, or at least enough space, to not develop feelings for people you hang out with. Also, as you get later in life, you don’t meet as many people as you did when you were younger. When really big personalities come around and cool people, you’re going to have to navigate that, because sometimes someone’s going to like one person, and that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s always going to be the same on both sides. You’ve only seen me really meet people on television. Paige and I filmed a whole show in Vermont together. Our relationship came from spending, like, three weeks together in the same house. I think you really get to know someone well when you’re filming with them. You just do. It’s a unique experience and I prefer it. It hasn’t worked out for me yet, so I don’t know if it’s the best thing to do, but it is my life and so I would say that I have a positive feeling about it. I’m not saying it’s the healthiest thing in the world, but I think it’s fun to meet people on television and then see where that goes.
You also need somebody who understands your life and what you do for a living. Somebody who’s an introvert and wants to hide is probably not the one for you.
I think the shared experience, that’s what brings me closer to people. Yes, what you get to see on television is real, but they still have to capture it. That small fourth-wall part of your life is a shared experience you have with the people filming with you. I think it brings you together. Now, whether or not that keeps you together, we’ll have to wait and see this season.
The internet was SHOOK when you and your ex-girlfriend Naomie reunited for an iconic TikTok. How did you two reconnect? What are your thoughts on her new boyfriend?
I’ve only ever heard great things about her new guy. I don’t know him. I haven’t met him. But I was at dinner with a friend in LA and we went out in Venice Beach and the couple knew him – they were friends with [his ex-wife] Brooks [Nader], I don’t know – but they were just like, “We miss him! He’s a great guy.” And I was like, “Well, that’s good to hear.”
She and I had messaged months ago because I was going to France with my brother and sister-in-law. I was just getting recommendations with the old list that we used to do, or something came up, and she was like, “We really should recreate the, ‘What’s wrong with my sewing thing,’ one day. But you do my part and I do yours.” And I was like, “You know what? That’s really funny.” So, we were at one of my best friend’s weddings, and she was there too. It was a Charleston wedding. She was like, “Alright, we’re going to do this.” I got nervous, and I was like, “I don’t know if I’m ready.” I was like, “Okay, whatever, we’ll just do it.” What great closure for everyone who’s been invested in our lives and stuff. I thought it was a pretty great idea of hers. We have a very, I guess, normal relationship now. Charleston really is small, like I can keep saying, but we have all the same friends, and so it’s nice to be able to coexist in a friend way.
I was excited to see you launch your own production company, Plaid Horse Productions. Do you want to be the next Andy Cohen?
Oh, I mean, who doesn’t? He’s just an incredible role model and someone to look towards. There’s a couple people that I look up to where they stayed in front of the camera while also running a production company. I think that’s the goal. I don’t want to disappear at all. I love sharing my life with people. I just have 12 years of experience now. I think that there’s a value add that I can bring to the table. We’re actively casting three shows right now, and it’s been really cool to be able to participate in that side of things. I’m really excited for it. I think it was the next logical step. We’ve got two great partners in it, and I’ve already gotten to do a lot of neat things because I am fascinated with the industry. I love my sound teams and my camera teams and the producers outside of filming. But just to be a part of the other world, the other side of things, has been really great. So hopefully, something comes together. But yes, if I could be anything like Andy, that would mean I was succeeding.
I could see you hosting reunions!
I would love to host one day. It’s really one foot in front of the other, and I try to implore people or Bravolebrities just to say yes to opportunities. I have something that’s coming up next week that came from something that I said yes to that was not paid for. You go up there and you just gotta keep moving and participating. I love the TV world, and I would love to be a part of as many facets of that. I just I filmed my first movie two years ago, and it just premiered at the Austin Film Fest, and I walked the red carpet with my co-stars and watched the movie for the first time with the other actors, and had to watch myself on the big screen for the first time, and felt really proud of that. I worked with some really big names. I don’t know, I like to do a little bit of a lot of different things.
Yeah. If you find something you’re proud of, just keep doing it. That’s why sharing my sewing room with everyone involved in the Bravohood at BravoCon is going to be awesome. Maybe people will walk away and buy their own kits for it. State Farm orchestrating it for us is just really great. I’ve been with State Farm for 20 years. I just think sometimes things come full circle in a really great way. So hopefully, I don’t know. Can I watch the premiere? I don’t know, I haven’t watched in a little while.
It’s very good. I was talking to Ms. Patricia [Altschul] last week, and she was like, “It has an old-school Southern Charm feel.” And I think she was right.
It’s fun and flirty. Sometimes people go their own ways. We were all together on Halloween at By The Way, me and Austen’s bar. The drama did not stop when the cameras went down. This is a very organic thing. It’s going to be funny to see everyone at BravoCon. That’s what’s kind of old-school about it. We can’t quit the drama for some reason this year. It’s fun. This is the first time that you’ll see me really exploring new relationships and stuff. You’ll get to see some new sides of me that you’ve never seen before. You get to see Austen going through changes in his life and Shep trying to figure out what’s next for him. I’m glad we were able to capture the months that we did.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Southern Charm Season 11 premieres Wednesday, Nov. 19 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Bravo. New episodes are available to stream the next day on Peacock.
“Southern Charm” star Shep Rose has finally found The One.
After living in a swanky bachelor pad in downtown Charleston, SC, and a casual beach bungalow in nearby Isle of Palms, the hit Bravo show’s resident pleasure seeker is committed to settling down in a converted schoolhouse in Sullivan’s Island that cast members call his perfect match.
The 46-year-old entrepreneur bought the four-bedroom, four-bathroom, 3,000-square-foot 1920s domain in June, just as reality TV cameras started rolling for Season 11, which is due to premiere on Nov. 19.
Speaking to Realtor.com® ahead of the latest season debut, Rose opens up about how his new home serves as a reflection of his own personal growth and maturation—admitting that he is ready to let go of his party-hard ways and focus on embracing a much more “grown-up” lifestyle inside his upgraded dwelling.
“That’s part of the move, honestly,” says Rose. “I adore my old house on Isle of Palms. I had so much fun there, but it is almost like it’s time to upgrade.
“It’s time to get a little bit nicer stuff because when you do that, when you invest in a home, investing in nice furniture, all this stuff, it incentivizes you to be a grown-up and to treat things better and be more mindful,” he adds.
Speaking directly to longtime fans of the show who will be very familiar with Rose’s penchant for falling asleep on his couch, the reality TV star says that this habit has been left in the past along with his former bachelor pads.
“I definitely sleep in my bed now, you’ll be happy to know,” he jokes.
Yet, Rose hasn’t completely closed the door on his past. The reality TV personality still owns the Isle of Palms abode he’s dubbed the “Shep Shack” and has turned the spot into a short-term rental property for fans, tourists, and himself since that’s where he’ll reside while the Sullivan’s Island dwelling gets remodeled.
“It’s sort of good news, bad news,” says Rose. “The bad news part—other than having to break everything down and get it out of here—[is] I’m going to be staying at my Isle of Palms house, basically taking rental income out of my own pocket.”
For the time being, Rose will live solo because planned construction and South Carolina’s coastal climate would both be too challenging for his constant companion, his dog, Little Craig.
“He’s with my mom and dad because a couple things,” explains Rose. “It’s so hot here in the summer that he really struggles. He can’t go outside for very long [with] his breathing, so I send him up with my mom and dad to the mountains of North Carolina, which is just heavenly for him. I just spent a month with him up there in the mountains in Linville.
“Since I’m about to start construction here, he’s going to be sort of a dog without a home as well,” he adds. “But I’ll get a doggie door installed and all these fun things for him.”
As Rose looks forward to his future at the revamped former schoolhouse, he remains rooted by the surrounding region. In this installment of Celebrity Sanctuary, the proud Charlestonian opens up about how the area is more than just a place to rest his head between appearances, filming, and travel: No matter if he’s in his laid-back rental or stepped-up estate, The Holy City and its waters hold the key to Rose’s heart.
I’m very excited, I’m sitting in my new home right now. I love it. I couldn’t be happier. I mean, I loved my old house on Isle of Palms, don’t get me wrong. I’m a beach bum. It’s in my blood. I grew up on an island, Hilton Head Island.
I was living downtown [in Charleston] for several years, and I remember thinking to myself, “Gosh, I hadn’t had my toes in the sand in months. I know I can see the ocean when I drive over the bridge, but I’m not [close].”
I felt disconnected from my youth or my past a little bit, I suppose, so I made the decision to move out here years ago—eight, nine years ago—Isle of Palms. And I’m so glad that I did. It’s a smaller community. You know everybody, and it’s like everybody looks out for each other and it’s like my childhood.
Honestly, I looked at several houses. I made a bid on another house that was a little more modern and got, like, over-the-top bid at the last second. I’m so glad that happened.
You know how things always work out? My mom said when I sent her the pictures and videos of walking through [this] house, she’s like, “That’s you. That’s where you should be.” It’s very laid-back, sort of old-school beachy, not pretentious. I love it.
I brought Whitney [Sudler-Smith] here, and he was like, “You got to get this house.” He’s like, “This is you.” So I’ve heard that a bunch of times.
Craig [Conover] was like, “This is what you want. This is exactly what you wanted. You wanted to live on the beach and you wanted to have, you know, a nice home.” I was like, “Well, I kind of was doing that.” He’s like, “Yeah, but this is better.” And he’s right. It is better.
It’s way quieter I’ll say, which is lovely. Like, the Isle of Palms house was on the main road there, so there’s cars zooming by, and now, it’s just, it’s very sanctuary-esque.
I bought it in June, and we were filming at the time. I was very pleased to sort of show this off. Our show is not exactly a real estate show. However, it turns out, when I’m talking to producers and some of the people at Bravo, they’re like, “No, no, no. We love real estate! Real estate is such a commonality for everybody, and so people like to see it.”
So I was like, “Great. I’m happy to share as much or as little as you want.”
The new house is on Sullivan’s Island, which is … connected to Isle of Palms by a little bridge, so I have a ton of friends here. In real estate terms, one would say Sullivan’s is probably on the whole 20% more expensive typically [than Isle of Palms].
Don’t ask me why, it’s just, like, you know, a ZIP code thing or maybe schools, or it’s a little closer to downtown by 5 minutes. I don’t know, I love it.
It’s a historic house. It was the old schoolhouse on Sullivan’s Island in the 1920s and ’30s, so someone picked it up in the ’80s and moved it across the street from beach access, thank goodness because I love the beach.
It’s got these old hardwood floors that are amazing, and it’s been worked on a little bit. But the bones, you can’t do much. The historical architectural board limits you, which is fine with me.
It has four [bedrooms] and [bathrooms]: two on the bottom, two up top. It’s 3,000 square feet, and it’s everything I need. Maybe even more than I probably need, but I’m so pleased and I’m really excited about the renovations.
I got my friend Rodrigo [Reyes], who’s on the show with me—he’s an interior decorator, I suppose you call it—and I thought it was fun to bring him in. We moved a ton of furniture in here, and it was a lot of fun—a lot of it on camera.
This season, you’re going to get a kick out of it. I go up to my family’s farm where there’s a storage unit, and me and my dad and Rodrigo go through a bunch of furniture and pictures and art and all these things—mounted fish—and things that my dad and I love to do together, which is fishing and hunting, basically.
There’s going to be a bit of an outdoor [theme]. It’s going to reflect my lifestyle, which is just action adventure at all points if it’s possible.
I’ve hired my friend Mary Welch Fox. She has been on HGTV and several other programs as an interior designer, because at a certain point, I was like, “Rod, I need someone who works with the builders who’s done this several times.” He’s like, “I understand,” so he’s working alongside and they’re good friends. Mary Welch has been great.
We were here yesterday going over what they wanted to do. She presented a vision board to me, and she’s like, “Do you want it to be masculine and moody?” And I was like, “No, I don’t.” I’m good on masculine as it is, so I was like, “No, I want it to be a tasteful update of a few things, but I still want it to be an old beach house.”
Like, I want people to take their flip-flops off and leave them at the front door. It’s just my personality, just like, no frills. That’s what I want. I’m sure she, being an interior designer, wants to get these fancy finishes and this and that, which, I’m open to. So hopefully [I can] work with some brands to get some deals for some publicity and things like that, which obviously makes me a spoiled brat, but whatever.
It’s very exciting. I can’t wait till it’s finished, but it’s going to be a while. I’m about to start renovations in less than a month, so I’m going to have to get someone to come in, take everything out, put it in storage, and I’m going to be essentially a vagabond. I like being a vagabond. It’s kind of my modus operandi anyway.
That’s part of the sanctuary thing, you know. I go all around the world and country and meet this person, that person, have all these interesting interactions and events and whatnot, and gosh, I’ve found solace in the last few years in being home for extended periods of time.
If you had talked to me five, 10 years ago, I would’ve been like, “I can’t.” I get restless after two weeks, but I kind of like the routine.
I just was at the gym with Austen [Kroll] just now and another one of our friends. I’m going to go to a lunch with a guy who’s in from out of town. I like it. It’s familiar, and I kind of need that because of my lifestyle, because of my, I don’t know what you want to call it, like, career or whatever, you know, appearances, this and that.
I love sitting, lying on my couch, and watching a ball game, maybe have a friend over, maybe just walk down the street to a friend’s house. It’s quiet, and I’m a restless soul anyway, so I love it.
Thinking about Charleston, I mean, there’s a few select places where you can live and go on a beautiful vacation to Bora Bora or whatever and you come home and you’re like, “Gosh, I’m excited to be home. I am genuinely happy to be back.” Not just because you get in your own bed and stuff, because Charleston—the sights, the sounds, the smells—it’s home. That’s my sanctuary.
The Low Country of South Carolina, whether it be Hilton Head where I grew up [or] Charleston, this is where I belong. That’s how I feel. How lovely all the people are, and the water, and the nature, and just, all of it.