Shailer Park resident Kara-Mia Devine knew she’d found a “hidden gem” when she first walked into her 6 Roselea Street home.
A self-described advocate for “finding the potential in existing homes”, Ms Devine and her family bought the property in 2020 and got straight to work.
“I still remember when we first went in and saw the raked ceilings – I thought it was beautiful,” she said.
“Because it hadn’t been modernised, it was really dark.
“But I think my husband and I saw potential and we paid tribute to it.”
Ms Devine, a renovation enthusiast, said the goal was turn the house into their dream home.
“It’s a long list of upgrades – we put in a lot of love and a lot of time,” she said.
“We did the two bathrooms, all new flooring including tiles and carpet downstairs, we updated all the fittings and fixtures, a new pool fence and tiles on the patio, full landscaping out the front, a new driveway, and lots and lots of paint.
“And we were lucky enough to find some spotted gum hardwood flooring upstairs underneath the carpet.”
After a long but ultimately rewarding renovation process, Ms Devine said she learned a few lessons.
“Do the renovations in stages and small parts – one part at a time and finish things before you move on,” she said.
“Because you think you’ll come back to it, but it’s hard.
“We lived through everything – at one point when our son was two, he was “helping” us chisel up tiles because he was so used to seeing us do it.”
Ms Devine said they aimed to modernise the five-bedroom, three-bathroom home while keeping it’s essence.
“They just don’t build them like that anymore, with the double brick and hardwood,” she said.
“I really love materials – the brick, the real hardwood – that gets me excited.”
Ms Devine said she also loved the outdoor area in the backyard.
“We’ve loved hosting social gatherings there with friends and families.
“Everyone loves it because there’s so much space and area for the kids.
“It has been a great family home and that’s what we love about it. It has ticked all our boxes.”
She said her family had never intended to sell the property, but they needed to move closer to work.
“We’re really sad to go,” she said.
“And the neighbours are amazing – that’s another thing we’re really sad about – we’ve become really good friends.”
The effort put into the home has been “big and slow”, Ms Devine said.
“It was all done to make it a home that suited our family.
“And it absolutely delivered in that respect.”
