Tragic Details About Former HGTV Star Karen E Laine

Karen E. Laine became a bona fide reality star when she started appearing on the HGTV program "Good Bones" alongside her daughter Mina Starsiak Hawk. When the show premiered in 2016, the women co-owned an Indianapolis company called Two Chicks and a Hammer, which focused on beautifying their city's neighborhoods one home renovation at a time. While Starsiak Hawk rooted herself in the real estate world and focused on things like resale value and functional design, Laine added a more whimsical touch to the show with DIY projects and some legal expertise. (Before she was famous, Laine was an attorney.) She also showcased what appeared to be a fun and loving mother-daughter relationship, which was part of the formula for "Good Bones'" success.

While the sky seemed to be the limit for Laine and Starsiak Hawk, their behind-the-scenes problems with one another would eventually bubble over and cast a shadow over the entire production. The series, which ran for eight seasons, masked very real family drama with zany shenanigans and real fights with superficial squabbles about paint colors. It drew to a close in 2023.

As if saying goodbye to her hit show wasn't enough, Laine has had to navigate a number of other public and personal issues in recent years. Here is a look at some other tragic details about former HGTV star Karen E. Laine.

Anyone who has ever been the victim of a break-in knows how violating it feels to learn that a stranger has been in what is supposed to be your safe and private space. But when Karen E. Laine and her husband, who she has since divorced, were burgled, things took an especially gross turn. Whoever broke into their home in 2020 did so three times, stealing items on two of the occasions. They also left a big ol' turd behind as a not-so-sweet cherry on top. Twice.

Not only that, but the criminal pooper did not defecate in a toilet, as one might hope. Despite there being a bathroom in the garage, the culprit decided to go number two in a bucket and leave it for the homeowners to find. "That's what makes it feel personal because it's not, 'Oh, I need to go to the bathroom.' It's I'm going to leave my feces behind for you to clean up," Laine explained to Fox 59. While it has never been reported whether anyone was arrested for the crime, Laine used her legal know-how to investigate in all ways possible. This included testing the gastrological garage gift for DNA, in addition to tracking credit cards and bringing the information directly to the police station.

Karen E. Laine became famous alongside Mina Starsiak Hawk, and the mother-daughter relationship was a central part of what people loved about the original "Good Bones." The Indianapolis duo always seemed like they were on different pages — with Starsiak Hawk making stylish but economically practical design choices and her mother Laine rummaging through garbage to find weird items to repurpose in kooky ways — but they also compromised well and had a loving vibe. So, fans were gobsmacked when it was revealed that Laine and Starsiak Hawk were estranged due to a still unclear rift in the relationship.

"I got a text from my mom this morning saying maybe we should talk," Starsiak Hawk shared on the "Mina AF!" podcast in October 2023. "We do not talk. We haven't in a long time. It was early this morning, and I just didn't really know what to do with it." On that same podcast episode, she shared that she and her mother had been estranged for roughly a year by that point. Starsiak Hawk also said she was steering clear of some of her siblings. 

Laine was likely devastated when her daughter aired their dirty laundry, and particularly by the harsher jabs directed at Laine's parenting and character. "It's a cumulative situation from the time I can remember, when I was three, of things that have created the situation that we're in now, and it's incredibly hard to undo, particularly with someone who's not actively in therapy or actively working on themselves," Starsiak Hawk said.

When "Good Bones" first premiered on HGTV in 2016, it was a welcome change of pace. So many of the programs on HGTV are centered in the South or on the West Coast, so the focus on renovating homes around Indianapolis offered an entirely new perspective to the channel. The series was popular enough to run for eight seasons, during which time fans fell in love with stars Mina Starsiak Hawk and Karen E. Laine. Other family members and close friends played roles in the show, but at its heart it was a series about a mother-daughter reno team.

While Laine had already retired from Two Chicks and a Hammer before Season 8 filmed, she was expected to remain on the show in the same capacity as seasons prior. Instead, fans were surprised by her reduced role and the overall lack of screen time featuring both mother and daughter. It quickly became clear that behind-the-scenes family drama was at least partially to blame for this shift. "There were definitely some challenging [moments] because my mom and I were in some of the most challenging places I felt we've been," Starsiak Hawk told People in 2023. On her podcast, Starsiak Hawk implied that the series — which originally brought Laine and her daughter closer together — ultimately began to amplify the troubled parts of their up-and-down relationship. She also suggested that the tension was a major reason why "Good Bones" was ending with Season 8.

Karen E. Laine and Mina Starsiak Hawk have a big blended family. Mina's father, Casey Starsiak, and Laine share three kids; both went on to remarry and continue to expand their respective broods. Casey's kids from his second marriage, Jessica and Tad Starsiak, grew close to Laine after their mother died. (As "Good Bones" fans know, Tad worked with Laine and Mina on the show.) Blood may be thicker than water, but in this family, the drama is thick too.

On an August 2023 episode of "Mina AF!," Mina dished that she was on the outs with multiple family members. "My mom and I aren't in a great place. My brother Tad and I aren't in a great place. My brother William and I are in a kind of like nonexistent place. It's complicated without even being complicated," she said. Evidently, things are complicated enough that Laine got booted from her grandson's birthday party guest list. 

When Mina's son Jack celebrated his birthday in August 2023, his grandma was not present. On another episode of "Mina AF!," Mina suggested that Laine should've still reached out to Jack regardless. "My mom didn't call or text or give her a card or drop a present at the door," she said. "It's just crazy that my mom and I are in such a way that she wouldn't even wish my kids happy birthday for whatever reason. I just can't think of a good reason."

Toxic family dynamics may have led to the end of "Good Bones" in 2023, but the series was not off the air for very long before a spinoff was crafted. In 2024, Mina Starsiak Hawk and Karen E. Laine returned for "Good Bones: New Beginnings," a limited series that was presumably testing the waters for a more permanent return. The new series completely changed the model, moving away from the mother-daughter collaborations people loved. Not only did the show feature Mina and Laine working on entirely separate projects, but it contained no interaction between the women whatsoever. In fact, they did not even film in the same city, as Laine's project was in her new home state of North Carolina.

While Laine took on renovating a Wilmington bungalow, Mina set her sights on redoing an old Indiana lake house. There was also an increased presence for other characters, such as Mina's husband Steve Hawk. Alas, some fans absolutely hated Hawk's increased role and the three-episode series — which divided the endeavors into separate episodes — in general. "Was looking forward to this show dropping, but no. This was so dreadful to watch," wrote a Redditor (via The Sun). "Basically the chemistry of the series is gone. I'm not sure what the hell the first episode was. We couldn't finish it." What was supposed to be a comeback may have actually been a swan song.

On the "Good Bones" spinoff, Karen E. Laine made a comment that raised some questions about her relationship with Mina Starsiak Hawk's kids. In one of the episodes that premiered in August 2024, Laine left a few little ones out when talking about her grandkids.

"The plan, when I bought this house, was to retire to Wilmington, and then my children had different plans, because the one who lives in San Francisco moved back to Indianapolis," Laine said on the show. "So now there's four grandkids in Indianapolis and my daughter Kelsy got pregnant ... I'm in a position where I can really invest time into being the kind of grandparent I want to be." Seems harmless, right? Except Laine actually has eight grandkids, not four, and all of them live in Indianapolis. This didn't go over well with longtime viewers, and a number of them took to Starsiak Hawk's Instagram page to share their feelings. "After hearing Karen say she has 4 grandchildren, lost all respect for her," one wrote. Yikes.

Starsiak Hawk took to Instagram Stories to try to shed some light on her mom's remark, but her post didn't totally clear things up. "I don't want to get in the weeds, but I do not keep them from her, and she does not refuse to see them," Starsiak Hawk said (via Heavy). "Other than that, it's just complicated family stuff." Talk about an understatement.