We were devastated when we heard about the tragic death of Gold Coast mum of three Kelly Wilkinson, whose life was cut short in a horrific act of domestic violence. Like many of us, when we hear horrendous news stories, we wanted to help.
Kelly’s sister Danielle Carroll and her husband Rhys took Kelly’s three kids in, along with five of their own. So Metricon teamed up with philanthropist businesswoman Tamika Smith, founder of social and affordable housing construction company My Bella Casa, and a network of local suppliers and sub-contractors on the Gold Coast to build them a dream home.
Checking in last Christmas, they were so excited to see the place taking shape. Now that it’s almost finished, we chatted to Danielle about what it takes to design a family home that caters for eight children under 12.

Making space for everyone
One of the key things to get right when building a new home for a big family is ensuring there’s plenty of room for everyone to thrive. It’s gorgeous coming together to eat dinner, but with so many mouths to feed, sometimes you’re going to want a moment’s peace.
“Right from the start, Metricon’s design team were brilliant working with Rhys and I to get the floorplan right for us,” Danielle says. “The ground floor is basically divided in two. One half is a huge open-plan living zone for all the family to come together, share a meal, chill out on the sofa and in the outdoor area.”
The other half is for mum and dad to claim as their own. “One of the best bits of advice we got from Metricon was to have our ensuite bedroom with a walk-in wardrobe on the ground floor so that we can enjoy a sanctuary away from all the mayhem,” Danielle says. “There’s also a separate study downstairs, that the kids can use for homework, or just go to for some quiet time.”
There are six big bedrooms upstairs for the children, all with walk-in wardrobes, and they share two spacious bathrooms to help with the morning rush. “The kids also have their own leisure room upstairs, so they can split off and have their own space” Danielle says. “And the bedrooms are big enough for homework desks too.”
Top tip: A dedicated linen cupboard on every floor with bedrooms is ideal for making changing sheets a dream.
*Completed home photography from Metricon display network

Keeping an eye on the kids (and their stuff)
While it’s a great idea to carve out space for yourself and the kids, it’s also important to consider safety when designing the layout of a large family home. “One of the things the kids are most excited about the new home Metricon is building for us is the swimming pool,” Danielle says. “It was really reassuring that the design team figured out good sightlines from the living area to the pool so we can keep an eye on them while cooking dinner.”
It also pays to ensure that the edges of furniture and benchtops are smoother and less likely to hurt someone if they bump into them. While we’re on the subject of keeping tabs on the kids, the same goes for all their toys, books, sports kit and more. Factoring plenty of storage into your family home design will help you keep it all under control.
“There’s heaps of storage space in almost every room, and that’s going to be a lifesaver when it comes to maintaining a sense of calm and order with eight kids and all their chaos,” Danielle says. “With a big family, there’s no such thing as too much storage. A double garage is also great so we can keep all of Rhys’ tools out of the way and store all the bikes.”
Top tip: You can hide storage out of sight by investing in furniture like beds, ottomans, coffee tables and the like with built-in drawers or shelves.
*Completed home photography from Metricon display network

Cooking up a dream kitchen
With many mouths to feed, there’s no doubt that the kitchen will be one of the highest-traffic areas in your family home. Often, they’ll eat breakfast here or even do homework after school. As the heart of your home, it pays to get the design right when working out your floorplan, including an abundance of cabinetry and drawers.
“Little kids eat a lot, and they’ll eat even more when they’re teenagers, so the design team at Metricon took that into account when drawing up the kitchen plan,” Danielle says. “There’s a big walk-in butler’s pantry we can stack full of snacks. It has a sink, so we can do meal prep, and we can keep appliances here too, freeing up worktop space in the kitchen.”
The home design locates the kitchen as the living area hub, connecting the family lounge and the dining area, and looking onto the outdoor room and pool. “The island bench adds more flexibility and a place for kids to congregate,” Danielle adds.
Top tip: With lots of young kids running around the kitchen, cabinet handles can be a liability. Opt for pop-open cabinetry instead.
*Completed home photography from Metricon display network

Down and dirty
We all know that kids are mucky pups, so it’s a great idea to include a mud room and a good-sized laundry when planning your dream home.
“With eight kids to keep an eye on, every time you get home from the park is a recipe for disaster,” Danielle says. “That’s why we love that we can head straight into the home through the laundry, popping any filthy clothes straight into the wash, or via the garage.
There’s plenty of storage in here too, so we can pack away washing up powder, the ironing board and a vacuum.”
It’s wise to make sure the mud room leads off the laundry. “This spot is perfect for the kids to dump school bags, which we need to check for half-eaten lunches, to kick off their shoes and boots and hang up jackets before any dirt gets tramped through the house.”
A mudroom/laundry area is also a great place to stash pet stuff, including leashes, brushes and litter trays.
Top tip: Having a bench for kids to sit on in the mud room while they pull everything off is a great idea, and you incorporate a shoe rack under the bench.
*Completed home photography from Metricon display network

Getting the finishing touches right
It’s not just the floorplan you have to think about when designing a home for a big family. Making the right choices on fixtures and finishes is essential unless you want to be constantly worrying about cleaning, upkeep and repairs.
“One of the most eye-opening bits of the Studio M process was having a conversation about all the finishes for the home and how getting that right can make a huge difference,” Danielle says. “Obviously, white linen sofas aren’t necessarily the best idea with little ones. Fabric is best avoided as much as possible to be honest, but they gave us lots more to think about, like how wood finishes can hide mucky fingerprints and are easily wiped clean.”
Floor tiles that aren’t slippery are ideal, both because they’re hardwearing in high-traffic areas and are easy to clean in mucky ones like the laundry and mud room. “The Studio M design team also recommended benchtops that can take a beating, don’t stain easily and can be wiped down with no drama,” Danielle says. “They also recommended thinking about surface materials that won’t easily scratch or chip and adding textures and patterns that can hide a multitude of sins even with lighter colours.”
Top tip: If you want to inject some style, consider using easily maintained leather seats. Failing that, opt for washable slipcovers if you do want to go with lighter colours and wash and wear Dulux paint for all walls.

“We are so excited to see how the decisions we made during our consultations with the Metricon team in Studio M are now coming together as the home takes shape.
“The palette, finishes and mixture of fixtures and fittings is coming together beautifully, but best still with the expert advice we received, we know that the home will be easy to live in and keep looking fresh and stylish for years to come,” added Danielle.
The generosity of the following suppliers has helped ensure that this stunning new home will not only be stylish and on trend but functional and practical for this very special family:
“We personally would like to thank all of the team at Metricon, Tamika Smith of My Bella Casa and all the trades and suppliers who have been apart of this project.”
“We knew from the initial planning stages that we were in the right hands. The quality and attention to detail, coupled with the level of passion needed to create such a beautiful home has far exceeded our expectations. We cannot thank all involved enough.” Rhys and Danielle Carroll
Thank you to our generous suppliers:
Austral Bricks, A&L Windows, ATT, Boral Concrete, Beacon Lighting Commercial, Bluescope Steel, Buildsafe, Carpet Call, Claytons Kitchens, Civic Showerscreens, CSR Plasterboard, Caesarstone, Chromagen, Clipsal by Schnieder Electrics, Deep Blue Air Conditioning, Dynamic Doors, Dulux, EE- Fit, Fisher & Paykel, Fujitsu, FLEXI-FOAM POD, Gainsborough Hardware, Glen Dimplex, GWA (Caroma), Hudsons Building Supplies, James Hardie, Laminex, Lovelight Blinds, National Tiles, Network Steel, Plungie, PGH Bricks (CSR), S&A Stairs, STA Engineering, Stoddart Building Group, Stratus, Termicide, Termidry, Willis Bros, Coleman, Annand, Bishop, Lobley, Alldrott, TFH, Steve Cooper, Reece Plumbing Supplies, Capitol Concrete, National Masonary, Goop Guys, Diesel Digit, Jeldwen Group, RACQ Solar, Brendan Rafter, Ross Brunner, Residential Scaffold, Super Stubbie, Temple & Webster, BIG W, Builders Academy, Steve (Shuffles), Boyds Bay, McCullough Robertson Lawyers, Sam O'Connor - Shadow Minister for Environment, Crest Accountants, Griffith University.