The incredible rise of Stacey Solomon: How she went from humble X Factor contestant to millionaire TV star (and even Reese Witherspoon wants to work with her!)

She first rose to fame in 2009 as a 19-year-old contestant on The X Factor.

And Stacey Solomon has come a long way since her days battling for pop stardom on the ITV talent show.

In the years that followed, the 34-year-old media personality reinvented herself as a TV host and DIY guru with legions of devoted fans.

The Dagenham resident has landed one of her biggest gigs yet as she will star in the new series Renovation Rescue, produced by Hollywood A-lister Reese Witherspoon.

As her career reaches new heights, MailOnline looks back at Stacey’s incredible rise.

Before Stacey auditioned for The X Factor, she lived a normal life in Dagenham, London.

The second of three children, her parents David and Fiona divorced when she was nine and her father remarried and had her younger half-brother Josh.

Stacey grew up Jewish and previously spoke about her faith to Heart Radio: ‘My family practiced our faith in a relaxed way.

‘My mother Fiona was raised as a Christian; her father was a pastor. But she fell in love with my father David and converted to Judaism to be with him.

“Growing up, the influence that Judaism had on me was an overwhelming understanding of loving the people around you, caring for others as if they were part of your family, and striving to be the best person you can are.

‘For most of my life my experiences have been positive. I went to a Christian primary school where I felt included and was no different from my peers.’

During her teenage years she worked as a barmaid and at a chip shop in Hornchurch called Oh My Cod.

Stacey discovered she was pregnant with her eldest son Zachary, 16, while she was at university with her then-boyfriend Dean Cox.

Stacey first found fame in 2009 as a 19-year-old contestant on The X Factor in 2009

Soon after, she built a TV career and won I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! in 2010

More TV work followed before she became a regular panelist on ITV’s Loose Women in 2016

In the coming years she would welcome Leighton with ex-fiancé Aaron Barnham, 11, and Rex, four, Rose, two, and one-year-old Belle with her husband Joe Swash.

After finishing third on The X Factor, Stacey decided to focus on TV instead of music and won I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! in 2010.

Over the next few years she became a familiar face on the small screen with appearances in Celebrity Juice, A League Of Their Own and Through The Keyhole.

She secured one of her biggest gigs to date when she became a panellist on Loose Women in 2016.

The star also started building her social media following and quickly became known for her cleaning and DIY hacks.

Stacey’s large fan base led her to release her book Tap to Tidy: Organizing, Crafting & Creating Happiness in a Messy World in 2021 and to host the BBC show Sort Your Life Out.

Stacey has also entered the business world. In September, she shared the exciting news that she has become co-owner of independent hair care brand REHAB in her very first investment.

She took to Instagram to share the news with her followers, describing the business move as a “big moment” in her life.

Stacey is mum to Rex, four, Rose, two, and one-year-old Belle with husband Joe Swash, as well as Zachary, 16, and Leighton, 11, from previous relationships

The singer has also published books and hosts a home improvement show on Channel 4

She married her EastEnders star husband Joe Swash, 41, last June and they live in a £1.2million Essex home, affectionately called Pickle Cottage.

It was the first time Stacey had invested her own money in a business during her career, with Stacey saying it had always been a dream of hers to do so.

She has also released collections with In The Style and signed a huge collaboration with jewelry and accessories company Abbott Lyon.

Building on her success, Hollywood has now called up Stacey to host new DIY series Renovation Rescue, helping people abandoned by builders with their unfinished homes in ruins.

The show is the first UK commission from Reese Witherspoon’s company Hello Sunshine, with the film star serving as executive producer.

“Oh my God, what an amazing feeling to be asked,” Stacey told Weekend Magazine.

“I really thought, ‘How does she even know me?’ To this day I still don’t know how they found me. They just said they wanted me.

“Maybe some of her researchers and her team had seen the show. Well, I guess they should have known something about me.’

Stacey added, “I haven’t really met (Reese) yet. She wrote a message to let us know how excited she is and we hope to FaceTime her on the day of the show’s release.”

Hollywood has now tapped Stacey to present the new DIY series Renovation Rescue, produced by Reese Witherspoon (pictured)

Speaking about the new show, Stacey said: ‘I honestly thought, ‘How does she even know me?’ To this day I still don’t know how they found me. They just said they wanted me.”

Stacey’s hard work has paid off. She now has £4.3m in cash and assets for the year to the end of June 2023 – up from £2.9m in 2022.

The annual accounts of her firm Key Map Entertainments Ltd filed this month show – according to the Mirror – that she added an investment of £800,000 to the package, taking the value to £2.2 million.

Stacey runs a business to make money from her TV work, advertising campaigns and media appearances.

Records at Companies House show its Key Map Entertainments Limited was valued at £1,373,245. In 2019 the company was worth £888,763.

She’s now set to make even more money after starting a cosmetics company called Belle & Rose, named after two of her five children.

Renovation Rescue will air on Channel 4 in early April.