TRAVERSE CITY — Long before national television audiences knew him as the affable carpenter on Trading Spaces, Carter Oosterhouse was learning the trade in Traverse City.
Born and raised in northern Michigan, Oosterhouse has frequently credited his upbringing in Traverse City — and a family culture centered on wellness and hands-on work — as foundational to his career. He began learning carpentry around age 10, often described as apprenticing with a neighbor. What started as an early introduction to tools and craftsmanship became steady construction work through his school years.
Oosterhouse attended Grand Traverse Area Catholic Schools before enrolling at Central Michigan University, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in nutrition and communication. The combination of practical building skills and formal training in communication would later shape his role as a lifestyle and home-improvement television host.
His national breakthrough came in 2003 when he joined season four of TLC’s hit home renovation series Trading Spaces as a carpenter. The early-2000s show became a cultural phenomenon, and Oosterhouse quickly emerged as one of its recognizable personalities.
The appearance launched a broader television career. He went on to host and appear in multiple home and lifestyle programs, including HGTV series such as Carter Can, Red Hot & Green, and Million Dollar Rooms, among other projects across cable networks. Over time, he transitioned from on-screen carpenter to host and design personality.
Despite his national profile, Oosterhouse has maintained strong ties to the Traverse City region.
He and his brother, Todd Oosterhouse, are credited as founders of Bonobo Winery, located in the Old Mission Peninsula wine country near Traverse City. The winery identifies the brothers as longtime Traverse City natives.
According to widely cited biographical information, the Oosterhouse brothers founded Bonobo Winery in 2010. A national wine publication reports that the winery opened in 2014 — a timeline that suggests the business was established several years before the public launch of its tasting room and operations.
Bonobo Winery has since become part of the growing Old Mission Peninsula wine community, which has earned national attention for its cool-climate varietals and scenic vineyard views overlooking Grand Traverse Bay.
Oosterhouse’s public profile also includes his marriage to actress Amy Smart.
Smart is known for a number of prominent film roles in the late 1990s and early 2000s, including Varsity Blues (1999), Road Trip (2000), Rat Race (2001), The Butterfly Effect (2004), and Just Friends (2005). She also starred in the action films Crank (2006) and Crank: High Voltage (2009). On television, she appeared in the DC Comics–based series Stargirl, portraying Barbara Whitmore.
Together, the couple’s careers span home renovation television, film, and northern Michigan wine production.
For Oosterhouse, however, the trajectory from local carpenter to national television personality traces back to a childhood spent working with his hands in Traverse City — a connection that continues through his business investments in the region’s wine industry.
While his work has taken him to television studios and film premieres, his professional story remains closely tied to the community where it began.
