Hidden secrets: The heartwarming tradition Aussie home renovators are embracing

When Victorian couple Maddi and Josh King began renovating their Horsham home in the Wimmera region, they had no idea of the touching surprise that had been waiting for them - hidden for almost two decades.

While unscrewing a large built-in TV unit this week, it was a bit of plaster that caught Josh’s eye.

“It was sitting right on top of the floorboards,” Josh told nine.com.au.

Lying alongside a 2007 edition of The Wimmera Mail Times newspaper was a small offcut of plaster with a hand-written message: “This was renovated by Ben and Josie Stephens May 2007 + Ernie helped too - the dog.”

For Maddi and Josh, who bought the house back in 2020, the discovery sparked immediate curiosity. 

Maddi shared a picture of their find on a local Horsham Facebook group in the hopes of tracking down the previous homeowners. 

It didn’t take long for the post to take off, and reach Ben Stephens himself, who quickly replied to the couple.

“Ben actually sent Maddi a message, saying that they got married here, had a child here, and seeing the post instantly made their night - just the memories that came back to them,” Josh said.

The sweet moment struck a chord with the Kings, who also tied the knot while living in the house and are currently raising their three young daughters under the same roof.

The pair were already thinking about leaving a hidden message of their own during their current renovation, but this solidified their decision.

“We decided that we’re going to put a family photo in our wall and write a little message,” Maddi said.

“We will leave phone numbers and emails and all that behind, so if anyone does find it, we can be contactable,” Josh added.

A snapshot in time

Much to their delight, the Kings’ viral Facebook post revealed just how common it is for home renovators to leave snapshots of their life hidden in the walls.

Aussie homeowners eager to share the details of what they had left behind, or discovered during a home renovation, were quick to comment on the post.

In some homes, the treasures left behind are not formal notes, but casual items from daily life preserved.

When Leonie Booth brought in professionals to remove asbestos from her 1970s house in Taree, NSW, the builder pulled a surprising object out of a wall cavity: an intact, 50-year-old soft drink can with the brand name “Gay”.

A quick online search confirmed the drink was a local NSW favourite back in the 1960s and 70s, perfectly lining up with the era her home was built.

“I just thought it was cool,” Leonie told nine.com.au.

“I sent a photo to mine and my husband’s parents - my dad recognised it straight away.”

The quirky discovery proved contagious.

When Leonie’s family later updated their bathroom, they made sure their kids drew pictures and wrote personal messages inside the new framework before sealing it up.

Taking time capsules to the next level

For Kristie Corr, who lives in Doreen, Victoria, tucking bits of history inside wall framing is a multi-generational family tradition.

Back in 1983, her parents planted a PVC pipe time capsule inside the concrete slab of their Montmorency home while expanding a small bungalow into a spacious four-bedroom property. 

Over the next four decades, the family kept adding to the build, leaving behind letters from 1994 and a plastered-over bedroom wall covered in graffiti and birthday messages written by Kristie’s brother and his friends.

In 2018, when new owners took over the Montmorency property and started their own renovations, they uncovered the hidden history.

“The people who bought my mum and dad’s old house found all the things that we had hidden and made contact with us,” Kristie said.

“They gave us part of the wall where we had written all of our names.”

That full-circle moment inspired Kristie and her husband to go all out when building their Doreen home in 2017. 

Inside their slab, they etched their names, birth dates, and marriage date into the wet concrete.

Tucked inside the walls is a Weet-Bix tin time capsule loaded with supermarket catalogues, price lists, fidget spinners, and favourite family recipes. 

They even placed a magazine story featuring their youngest daughter inside a wall, alongside a feature wall made of 10,743 postage stamps from Kristie’s childhood collection, complete with a note written by her kids on the plaster declaring “COVID suxs”.

“One day someone will find it all,” Kristie said.