The Untold Truth Of HGTV's Windy City Rehab

While working behind the scenes on House Crashers, Alison Victoria had an epiphany about the hosts of the DIY Network's various Crashers shows. "I was like, 'Wait, they're all dudes. There should be a woman in this space,'" she told House Beautiful. "Now that I had a contact, I was like, 'I'm going to pitch myself as the first female crasher and do kitchens,' and that was it."

Producers loved her pitch, hiring her to star in Kitchen Crashers, which ran for nine successful seasons and even led to her joining another series, the Travel Channel's Hotel Impossible, before HGTV's Windy City Rehab.

From the outside, Victoria's leap from behind-the-scenes designer to on-air host may seem like it was effortless, but first she had to overcome her fear of giving up the security of a steady paycheck in order to pursue a risky opportunity. "You have to be scared," she told A Drink With. "If you're not scared, then what is it worth? I was so scared to quit my job. I was 22, making a lot of money but I was [not happy]."