We always wanted it to be a house where the kids had their own space, but also we're connected," stylist and photographer Caitlin Hayden says.
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"Nothing's too precious in here. It's nice and neat, but at the same time the kids can still play."
She and husband Jon and their three children live just minutes from the beach in their four-bedroom, three-bathroom home in Redhead.
She believes the house is between 70 to 80 years old, and has been renovated at some point.
They moved in more than four years ago. Before that, it was a rental property for about 20 years.
The Haydens bid for the house against developers who wanted to knock it down.
Caitlin loves old houses and thought this one had good bones.
She's always been fascinated with interior design. As a kid, she loved changing around her bedroom.
The couple have owned and renovated houses before, but Caitlin was excited to make this one her forever home, doing all the finishes in the style that she likes.
"The vision has developed. We did paint it and re-carpet it when we first moved in so it was livable," Caitlin says.
"We've changed the floor plan a few times to see what works.
"Jon's always got an opinion on what he likes and doesn't like, but he trusts my decision."
Much of the house remains unrenovated, but they are gradually making progress.
They have ocean views from their back deck and their next project will be a courtyard in the front, which also has beach views.
They've put a lot of work into it, but Caitlin says it's not a display home, it's a beach house where the kids regularly get sand everywhere.
It's not a display home, it's a beach house where the kids regularly get sand everywhere.
Caitlin's stylish touches speak for themselves, and her home's interiors occasionally serve as a backdrop for local businesses' photoshoots and videos.
She loves to collect and curate, mixing new, vintage, eclectic and repurposed pieces.
The dining table is new, the chairs she found on Facebook Marketplace.
She bought vintage mirrors from local Instagrammer @the.stonewolf, and she loves Redhead homewares store Villa Lane where she found the Rattan chairs in the living room and the seagrass wall hangings.
She tries not to overdo the style, particularly as it is an older house with skirting boards; it can't seem too crisp and clean.
The bright white kitchen with the high ceilings took two months to renovate.
Originally a dark and dingy room in the front of the house, the kitchen is now part of a split-level design at the back of the house. The kitchen is above and the laundry and garage below.
The kitchen features an amazing piece of cabinetry that Caitlin spotted on Gumtree. A cabinet maker installed it and it now has a stone bench top. The kitchen floor is brushbox, old thin flats that are hard to replicate.
The pair love the high pine ceilings, which they had painted white, a challenging job. Caitlin jokes that the painters no longer take their calls, but she got what she wanted.
The rest of the upstairs has black polished floors. Downstairs, the concrete tile flooring in the laundry is from Jatana Interiors in Byron Bay.
"It was supposed to be a little cosmetic makeover downstairs, but when we started diving into it we thought we may as well do it properly," she says.
For Caitlin, it's not just a home, it's her business, whether she's styling or photographing.
She aims to have a home studio down the track, but she says she's relished the opportunity to really explore what she does and doesn't like in this evolving creative coastal space.
To learn more about Caitlin's stylistic journey, follow her on Instagram at @beachroadinteriors
If you would like to have your home featured: jkellar@newcastleherald.com.au
