It’s not uncommon for renters to look around their rental home and muse about the various renovations they’d undertake if the home was truly theirs.

It comes with the familiarity of living in a house for an extended period of time, but very rarely do those musings become reality.

Diem and Rich are the rare case. They moved into their Adelaide rental late 2019, before the opportunity came to purchase the home a few years later.

Come early 2026, they’d completed the renovation they dreamed up as renters: transforming the kitchen, mudroom, study, laundry and upstairs bedroom with help from SpaceCraft Joinery for just under $100k.

‘The space was mainly dominated by white and lacked personality,’ says Beth Wagner, designer at SpaceCraft Joinery.

Jumping on the opportunity to inject more of the couple’s bubbly personalities into their now home, SpaceCraft drew on a combination of Shaker, Scandi and Japanese influences.

‘Selecting a colour palette that worked cohesively throughout the spaces without making the rooms feel dark or heavy was important,’ says Beth.

In the kitchen they selected a soft sage for the overhead joinery, alongside warm timber tones for the base cabinetry. Character and personality come through via the eye-catching terrazzo splash back and charming checkerboard floor, while deep red handles provide the perfect accent, ‘As Diem describes it, a true “chef’s kiss”,’ says Beth.

While creating a home that reflected Diem and Rich’s personalities was important, functionality inside the compact footprint was equally paramount.

The kitchen, which previously featured a wrap-around bench, now houses a standalone island that runs the length of the room to improve flow and encourage interaction between the kitchen, living and study areas.

A multifunctional wall now connects the spaces as a ‘one-stop shop’, in response to Diem and Rich’s request for ‘a place for everything.’

It runs from the entry, where it stores school bags, shoes and everyday essentials. As it transitions into the living room, it becomes a place for the television and open shelving to accommodate Diem’s extensive book collection. There’s room for an appliance station to prevent clutter in the and continues on to transition into tall pantry storage in the kitchen zone, before finally becoming a study area and integrated feeding nook for Felix the dog.

‘Every member of the household was considered when designing this wall,’ explains Beth.

By integrating clever, custom joinery, SpaceCraft was able to retain much of the home’s original layout, whilst elevating and personalising the space in a way that wasn’t previously possible.