Kate Kerin Interiors

Kate Kerin Interiors Creating your elegant empty nest! Kate Kerin is a Sydney-based interior designer. She lives on the lower north shore with her husband and two young-adult sons.

Based on the North Shore of Sydney, Kate Kerin Interiors is expert in assisting retirees, empty nesters, young families and singles through milestone changes such as down-sizing and right-sizing. Qualifications include a Diploma in Interior Design (Interior Design Institute), Masters in Policy (UNSW), Graduate Certificate in Applied Finance (Kaplan), Graduate of the Australian Insitute of Company Directors (GAICD), Graduate Diploma in Arts Management (UTS) and Bachelor of Arts (USyd).

27/08/2026

The walls are down, and the plan I drew months ago is finally taking shape on site.

On my current North Shore downsizer project, walls have come down and are being rebuilt in a better location. I completed the spatial design for this home some time ago, so to stand in the space now and watch the rooms open up exactly as intended is enormously satisfying. Moving a wall on a plan is one thing. Seeing it happen, and knowing the home will work so much better as a result, is another thing entirely. What looks great on paper might not translate – or might be absolutely perfect.

The joinery tells a similar story. It was designed months ago, and now that the walls are in and the real room sizes are visible, we are refining the details to suit the space as it actually is. This is where careful planning and a willingness to adjust meet. Good design is not set in stone. It responds to what the space reveals as the build progresses.

For anyone downsizing, this is the part that matters most. A smaller home has to earn every square metre, and getting the layout and the storage right from the outset is what makes it feel considered rather than compromised. The care taken early is exactly what you feel later, on the day you move in and everything settles into place.

If you would like to watch this home come together, follow along for more.
Smith & Sons Hornsby
Buildcrest Projects

22/08/2026

More or less me, the moment a client tells me what they need. Head down, one clear direction, absolutely no interest in being talked out of it.

There is a serious side to it though. When you are downsizing, the last thing you need is a designer who wanders off brief or gets distracted by the latest trend. You need someone who listens carefully, understands what matters to you and then goes after it with a bit of single minded determination.

So yes, I will happily be the ridiculous little bird if it means my clients end up with a home that is exactly right for them.

If you are nodding your head right now, you’ll love what’s coming. Follow along for more!

13/08/2026

The best time to fix a house is when the walls are already open.

My Pymble clients bought a home with an upstairs addition that had been done some years ago. It works well enough in some ways, but the windows and insulation were never going to keep the space comfortable through a Sydney summer or a cold winter morning. Building standards have moved on a great deal since then, and what was acceptable at the time simply is not what we would do now.

So they are doing it properly. Double glazing throughout, and insulation that actually performs. Because new windows and doors were already part of the scope, the additional cost of upgrading them is far smaller than it would be as a standalone job later on.

This is the part people often miss. If you are already committed to a substantial renovation or a new build, the moment to make these decisions is now, while the trades are on site and the openings are being replaced anyway. Doing it later means opening everything up a second time and paying for the same work twice.

The comfort difference is immediate, and the energy bills are lower year after year. It is one of the few decisions that pays you back for as long as you live there.

If you’re planning a renovation and want to know what is worth doing while you have the chance, get in touch. Book an in-home consultation via the link in my bio or visit kkinteriors.com.au.

Address

Willoughby, NSW
2068

Telephone

+61429334701

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