Kristen Tiananga met her husband, Adam, at the local hardware store when they were both attending the University of Newcastle.
From here, they found love and a shared passion for renovating houses. The primary school teacher also studies interior design, and the two have been renovating for the past 10 years.
A recent project that they are proud of, and are still working on, is their coastal abode in Belmont. Over the past five years they have slowly transformed their four-bedroom, three-bathroom home.
"It's such a passion of mine. I'm just having some fun with it and getting some study behind it," Kristen says of interior design.
They bought the house from a family who had lived there for 40 years.
"We met them and met their kids," she says.
"They spoke to us about how they lived and why they designed their house that way.
"It's all original, and then for the last five years we've done most of the interior, put in new windows, new flooring, taken out walls, put in a new kitchen, obviously all new decorated pieces.
"Completely original, they're the kind of houses we like to renovate," she says.
From the island decor on the inside to the pool, cabana and hammock outside, the coastal theme is strong.
Adam is from the Cook Islands, and his heritage has a big influence on how Kristen styles. She says she's lucky that they work well together and like similar things.
Adam's a project manager for a construction company, so he does the building at home and Kristen looks after design.
They're currently working on a big extension involving an entertainment deck above and a room underneath that will be used for multigenerational living or an AirBnB studio.
Their pool came from Compass Pools and she's really happy with it. The water's colour reminds them of the Cook Islands.
"Being down in the pool is definitely where you'll find us on weekends. It has brought us so much joy and family time," she says.
The pool is definitely where you'll find us on weekends. It has brought us so much joy and family time.
She likes a white palette with different distressed timbers and lots of floaty white sheer fabrics.
"The two cane chairs were from a curbside pickup, I like to get really unique pieces then I can mix them with every day department store pieces," she says
"It's definitely a unique feeling. Lots of white walls, lots of greenery, lots of indoor plants to bring those coastal feels."
The previous owners loved their garden but, by the time the Tianangas moved in, it was a little over grown, so the couple got to work.
"My husband and I both like being out in the garden, it's also something that makes us unwind," Kristen says.
"The cactus are going well out back. The secret is good soil and lots of sunshine."
The house and garden is an extended family affair.
"We're very lucky that we do have a beautiful extended family on both sides who will help us out and look after our kids," Kristen says.
She doesn't think she could ever sell, and her husband says it's their forever home.
Kristen engaged Mark Tisdell, of MUD Landscape Design, to design the backyard.
"My brief to him was I wanted our house to feel like holidays at home, to feel like we don't need to go away, we're in our own private resort at home," she says.
He drew up plans. Her brother designed the cabana and built it with her husband. The beams and posts were sourced from a railway bridge in Coffs Harbour.
The decking boards are recycled weathered timber from the Garden Island naval base in Sydney.
"We wanted that weathered textured look, so we've done nothing to them," she says.
Now that it's finished, the cabana and pool are her favourite places to pass the time when she's not dreaming up a new project.
Kristen has been sharing her family's renovation journey on Instagram. To keep up with her latest styling decisions follow the_coastal_abode.
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