Home helpers
Forget work, here’s eight ways
AI can help around the house
Maximalism vs minimalism
Prefab future
Chat cheats
Forget work, here’s eight ways AI can help around the house
We were promised flying cars and robot butlers. Yet we’re still stuck in traffic jams and spend our evenings folding washing. While AI can’t pour a glass of rosé when you get home, what it can do is take some of that crushing mental load of modern life. Think of it like a robot butler that provides helpful suggestions, rather than actually lending a hand.
Here’s some tasks you can happily and easily offload to an algorithm.
1. Santa’s little helper
If you have ever found yourself wandering a shopping centre at 9pm in December alongside other Christmas extended-trading-hour desperados, this hack is for you.
Use AI to suggest carefully curated gift ideas for even the trickiest of recipients. Just tell it who you’re buying for — age, interests, that weird owl obsession — and it will come up with some present ideas.
Of course, AI won’t always hit the nail on the head, but it’s usually in the right direction and, if nothing else, can inspire your own ideas. Don’t forget to include a budget and do this early as many suggestions will be from online outlets.
There are many niche AI-powered gift suggestion platforms -
The Gift Hacker, GiftAI, PickWell.ai and GiftGenie - and some large companies such as Target in the US are launching their own. But using ChatGPT can often do the trick.
2. Interior design sidekick
Look at moi and pay attention! If your living room gives off more of a Kath Day-Knight than a Three Birds vibe, AI can help modernise it without losing a month of your life down a Pinterest scroll-hole.
Just upload a photo and ask for suggestions - new colour schemes, better furniture layout, how to make your TV less of a focal point. Let the AI know what kind of style you’re after: maximalist, mid-century modern, Japandi, Hamptons. It can even suggest where to source furniture. It can be particularly useful at choosing between fixtures, fittings and tiles when decision fatigue sets in. Asking the algorithm to explain its choices provides an extra layer of helpful clarity.
While one online user suggested using ChatGPT for this task can be like teaching an animal to drive, it does a pretty good job and can give some inspirational before and afters. Paid specialised apps that are popular with renovators and stylists include Decoratly, AI room planner, Room AI, RoomGPT, Spacely AI, Decorilla, REimagineHome, and PaintIt.ai.
3. Your very own travel agent
Planning a getaway or a road trip? AI can deliver surprisingly detailed itineraries tailored to your specific interests - chocolate-box villages, quirky history or natural wonders.
The free version of ChatGPT is very adept at mapping out clear, thoughtful routes and is very open to changing it to include waypoints. It also suggests spots for lunch and overnight stays, clearly detailing how much driving each day will involve and offers step-by-step instructions to help you program the itinerary into a Maps application to save the journey.
But a word of caution. AI has been known, infrequently, to very confidently invent places, facts, opening hours and travel timesan insoluble phenomenon known as hallucination. So, use AI as a starting point and double-check key facts.
4. Plan a scavenger hunt day out
Here’s a fun one: ask AI to create a scavenger hunt around your neighbourhood or city. Include how long you’ve got, who the target audience is and what sort of places you want to explore.
You’ll get a custom itinerary with local spots to visit, things to find, and sights to see. It’s a free day out that will get everyone off their screens - yes, we didn’t miss the irony here either!
5. Kitchen crisis first-responder
“What’s for dinner?” must be the most dreaded question at the end of a busy day. Before you reach for the cereal box, let AI take a swing at it.
If it’s inspiration you’re after, type in a few items you see in the fridge and/or pantry and let it suggest some meal ideas, complete with recipes. If you’re looking for a longer-term solution, ask for a sevenday dinner plan and shopping list.
Hone your prompts by including your family’s preferences or special needs. For example: “We love Thai and Italian, but draw the line at coriander”. Or: “Include enough nutritional content to prevent my children developing scurvy”.
6. Bedtime storyteller
Ever been in that bind where your brain has clocked off for the night, but your kids want an extra-special bedtime story? AI can help you stagger to the finish line by whipping up personalised stories on the spot, featuring any subject and style of fiction you like. You even get to name all the characters and suggest a personal setting and plot arc without the hard work of crafting a full narrative.
It’s not going to replace classic tales, but it’s a fun fall back when you’re running on fumes.
7. Garden guru
Whether your garden is a sprawling backyard or a few planter boxes on the patio, AI can help you maximise the space or suggest seasonal planting rotations.
For bigger projects, like designing an outdoor entertaining area that doesn’t look like an abandoned campsite there are some specialist apps such as iScape, Gardena’s My Garden Planner and Neighborbrite.
8. Games on the go
Trying to entertain kids on a long journey, or simply want to host a trivia night? AI can come up with more than enough questions to keep you all guessing while the journey flies by.
It can come up with trivia questions tailored to your group, such as “90s pop culture for millennials” or “name that weird Aussie animal”.
Once you have a list of questions, you can go the extra mile and convert the text to an audio file (via platforms such as Natural Reader and ElevenLabs AI Reader).That way, you can harness AI to act as quizmaster, freeing you up to take part in the fun too.
The Wrap: Used wisely, with a healthy dose of double-checking and your own good judgment, AI is fast becoming one of the most useful household tools, although it may not unseat the robot vacuum just yet.
AI TIPS
While there are thousands of AI-powered apps out therefrom chatbots to design tools - the vast majority are built on just a few powerful large language models (LLMs).
The main players are:
OpenAI’s GPT-5
Used in ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, Duolingo
Anthropic’s Claude
Used in Notion AI, Slack’s AI, and others
Google’s Gemini
Integrated into Gmail, Docs, and Android
Meta’s LLaMA and Mistral AI’s Mixtral
Even if two apps use the same base LLM their results can feel totally different depending on how they’re designed and customised. To get the best out of AI:
Be specific: The more detail you give, the better the results. Ask it to explain its reasoning. It can be very enlightening and highlight possible flaws.
Double-check everything: Especially travel times and venues. Trust, but verify.
Don’t over-rely: Use it to spark ideas, not replace thought.
Cool, crisp and classic: Your go-to summer prawn cocktail
Whether served in a crystal glass, on a bed of greens, or deconstructed on a modern platter, the prawn cocktail remains the perfect summer entertainer.
Serves 6
Ingredients
24 large raw prawns, shells on cooking salt
1 head iceberg or cos lettuce, chopped (reserve a few small central leaves to garnish)
2 tbsp finely chopped dill
2 tbsp finely chopped chives smoked paprika, to serve
Marie Rose sauce
1 cup Japanese-style mayonnaise
½ cup tomato sauce
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
½ tsp Tabasco, or to taste
½ tsp brandy (optional)
juice and zest from ½ a lemon, plus lemon wedges to serve
Method:
Measure about 3-4 litres of water into a large saucepan and add 80g of salt per litre of water. Bring to a rolling boil over high heat, then add half the prawns. Cover with a lid and boil vigorously for about 2 minutes (a little longer for very large prawns). Remove the prawns from the pot and immediately transfer to a bowl of icy water. Return the water in the pot to the boil and repeat for the remaining prawns. Cool, then peel the prawns, removing the intestine but leaving the tails on.
For the Marie Rose sauce, combine the ingredients in a small bowl and mix well.
Arrange the chopped lettuce in the base of six attractive serving glasses, stand a few small leaves upright for presentation, and place 4 prawns on top. Spoon on a good dollop of Marie Rose sauce and scatter with the dill, chives and smoked paprika. Serve with a lemon wedge.
Prefab future
Can modular homes solve the housing crisis?
Imagine having your dream home built in a factory over about 10 weeks, then delivered to site and installed in a day - cabinetry, tiling, flooring, plumbing and electrics all in place.
Of course, it can still take several weeks to connect services and install the finishing touches, such as stairs and decking. But the impressive speed and delivery of prefabricated and modular homes - along with leaps in design, sustainability and build quality - has attracted the attention of legislators.
The Federal Government hopes ramping up this underutilised and often misunderstood sector of housing construction can play a significant part in helping the country navigate a path out of the current housing crisis. And a major lender recently backing the industry with a first-of-its-kind new loan, tailored specifically for prefab housing builds, shows support is there.
Conventional building times blow out
Industry experts believe prefabricated homes can be built in around half the time it takes to build a conventional home, which is just as well, given that conventional homes are taking longer than ever to get out of the ground.
A sobering Productivity Commission report released earlier this year found the construction industry was completing half as many homes per hour worked compared to 1995, despite advances in technology and construction methods. Even allowing for increasing house sizes, productivity in the sector had still declined by 12 per cent in the past 30 years, compared to gains of around 50 per cent in the broader economy.
The Master Builders Association also noted the concerning trend, saying the average time it took to build a house had blown out from nine months in 2010 to around 12.7 months (with the biggest blow outs in WA and ACT, where build times had nearly doubled to average 18 months and 14 months respectively).
Figures were even more grim in the apartment sector, with build times blowing out from an average of 19 months to 33 months since 2010.
Pre-judging prefab?
Given these delays, why haven’t Aussies embraced the prefab house?
It’s around twice as fast as a conventional build, efficient, sustainable and in an era of soaring electricity prices can be built to exacting 7-star energy ratings. Yet, only about 5 per cent of homes in Australia are modular or prefabricated. That compares to more than 80 per cent in Sweden, home of the flat pack. In Germany, it’s around 26 per cent and in Japan 15 per cent.
Part of the reason for the low uptake Down Under is an image problem, with many home buyers growing up in the era of dodgy demountable classrooms: freezing in winter; like an oven in summer.
As a result, prefab housing can be seen as a low-end, temporary solution. But modern modular homes aim to turn that on its head, with energy-efficient homes wrapped up in cutting-edge design.
The other barriers for modular housing are around finance, or lack of, and the building approval process, which varies widely around the country.
The Government has stepped in to try to remove, or at least lower, some of these barriers, with an aim to triple the proportion of pre-fab builds in Australia from around 5 per cent of the sector to 15 per cent. Meanwhile, the industry’s peak body prefabAUS has an even more ambitious target, aiming for 30 per cent by 2033.
Hitting the fast-track
In this year’s Federal Budget the Government announced it was spending millions to supercharge the prefab and modular industry with $49.3 million to State and territory governments to support local modular construction, and $4.7 million to develop a national certification code that will allow approvals to be standardised and fast-tracked across the country.
Both the Government and prefabAUS have been lobbying the finance industry to step up support for prefab builds. It’s traditionally been a tricky area, because nothing appears on the vacant block of land until the final stage of construction. It’s all built off-site in a factory.
Traditionally, the basis of a building loan is that finance is unlocked in stages as a house is built, because the asset - the block of land - increases in value as construction progresses. Prefab housing, however, is constructed entirely off-site, so the block of land, which the loan is usually secured against, doesn’t increase in value until the final transportation and assembly stage.
For those who want to go the prefab route, it can often mean they need to stump up almost the entire cost of the build themselves - until Commonwealth Bank came to the party.
A new finance option
In April this year Commonwealth Bank announced a new loan tailored to the prefab market, and became the first major bank to join the peak body prefabAUS. Commonwealth Bank customers looking to go down the prefab route can now access a loan that covers up to 80 per cent of their total build price, accessing progress payments before the building is placed on site.
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And in a mark of ongoing support for the sector, Commonwealth Bank contributed towards the cost of developing a new standard home loan contract designed specifically for the prefab construction market, making the contract open-source and available for others in the industry to use.
As a result, it’s expected other lenders may soon offer similar prefab construction loans. To find out more contact your broker for the very latest products.
Modular myths
They are cheap and cheerful: Modular homes are not the cheap option. Pricing is comparable to conventional builds, and in some cases can be more expensive, but savings come from faster timelines (about half the time of a traditional build) and high energy-efficiency ratings. Building in a controlled environment also significantly reduces the risk of cost blow-outs.
They all look the same: From layouts to finishes, prefabricated homes are fully customisable.
They’re not built to last/are low quality: Built in a controlled environment, manufacturers argue prefab homes are built to exacting standards in a controlled, rigorous environment. They are permanently fixed to a homesite, just like traditionally-built houses and, although estimates vary, manufacturers claim lifespans upwards of 50-60 years.
They are hard to finance: Not really a myth as this has been an issue, however it is changing. Traditional home loans are structured to release funds in stages as the building takes shape on the land. However modular homes are built off-site, with no value added to the land until the house is moved on to the site in the final stage of the build. Commonwealth Bank became the first big bank to offer a tailored prefab home loan in April this year, making the basic loan structure documents open source to encourage other funders to come on board to support the industry.
They don’t look stylish: The proof is in the pudding.
They can only sit on flat blocks: Modular homes can be positioned on sloping blocks, although site preparation is not usually included in the cost.
Your holy grail AI life hack
Have you mastered the art of letting AI do the heavy lifting?
We want to hear your ultimate AI life hack, big or small, practical or hilarious. Our winner will win $1000.
How: in 350 words or fewer, send your answer to: havencompetitions@afgonline.com.au placing ‘AI Hack’ in the subject line.
Include: your name, address, email, phone number and the name of your mortgage broker.
Dates: opens on November 24, 2025 and closes on January 31, 2026.
Winner: will be decided on February 1, 2026 and notified by telephone after this time.
Terms and conditions: visit http://bit.ly/HavenWin
HAVEN WIN
Richard Osman’s record-smashing Thursday Murder Club series, clever, warm, and utterly addictive.
HAVEN LIKES
In Haven Spring, we asked for holiday horror stories. We read through every chaotic, hilarious moment. But one stood out - Clint’s South American debacle, a worthy winner.
My partner and I set off for South America for my best mate’s wedding in Cochabamba, Bolivia. He’d fallen for a Bolivian woman; I was honoured to be his best man. We planned four weeks of adventure. What could go wrong? Everything.
Our internal flights, booked with airline Lloyd Aéreo Boliviano, were cancelled before we left Australia, after the airline went bankrupt. Thousands lost. We rebooked. Then, our Sydney flight was delayed six hours, plus another two in Auckland, causing us to miss our Cochabamba connection. An airport hotel stay, then a chaotic experience involving a mysterious manager, a security bypass, and a trip across the tarmac somehow got us onto a plane. We landed in Bolivia, relieved, until I saw my clothes circling the carousel. My bag had burst open. Despite that, the wedding week was brilliant. Then came Machu Picchu. A snowstorm grounded us in La Paz. A wedding guest took us in. Her mother, sick with food poisoning, still helped us get rebooked. Next day in Cusco, industrial action blocked the train. My partner cried. Then, hope! A last-minute chance to plead at the station. The army with machine guns didn’t help our nerves. We were denied. Back in Cusco, we wandered into a full-blown protest with tear gas and riot police. We ran. Our multi-leg flight home also delayed. Eight hours in Lima, got blind drunk in a bar playing euchre and listening to the same J.Lo CD on loop. In La Paz, drug enforcement detained and searched us, made us find our bags on the tarmac (we couldn’t), then waved us back on... without tickets.
Arriving in Buenos Aires, one bag was missing, and the hotel had no hot water. I stormed out for dinner, only to get lost for an hour.
We finished strong at Iguazu Falls and even got a surprise business-class upgrade.
Then, just before our flight home, a major Brazilian plane crash grounded everything. The first night, bumped. Second night bumped again - until I demanded seats. A holiday fail, but an unforgettable adventure.
HAVEN DESIGN
Minimalism be gone
Why less is no longer more when it comes to décor
For years, many Australian homes have been stripped back to the same simple design theme - pale timber floors, white-on-white walls, neutral sofas and a ubiquitous potted fiddle-leaf fig in a basket planter.
But step inside trending houses in 2025 and you’ll see something entirely different: riotous colour, bold wallpaper, lush velvet, stripes with florals, mixed metals, pot plants galore and a design rule book firmly in the bin.
It’s like we’ve all been secretly longing to burst out of our uncomfortable Scandi suits and let it all hang out. Minimalism was about aspiration -homes that looked like no one actually lived there. The new spirit of maximalism is about honesty. It says: This is who I am, this is what I love, and I’m proud of it.
The emphasis is on rooms that vibrantly reflect the personality and interests of the people who live there; rooms that make you want to slow down, settle in and linger longer, without worrying you’ll stain something.
It’s surprising how far the style pendulum has swung from the greige tones that dominated interiors, exteriors and everything in between during the 2010s. Unsurprisingly, both interior designers and psychologists trace the rise of maximalism back to the pandemic, when most people spent a little too long staring at the neutral walls of their homes.
Style that makes you smile
We’ve all experienced how the spaces we inhabit can shape our mood and mindset, which is why this trend towards emotionally uplifting, bold and vibrant interiors has been dubbed dopamine décor.
It celebrates the outrageous rug, hot pink front door or explosion of plants that puts a smile on your face the moment you get home.
There is some method in the madness of maximalism. Neuroscience research has found that when people look at something aesthetically pleasing - art, design, a perfectly over-the-top room - the brain’s reward centre releases a heady cocktail of feel-good brain chemicals including dopamine (associated with pleasure and motivation), serotonin (which boosts mood regulation), oxytocin (which promotes social bonding) and endorphins (for overall wellbeing). Still more studies show that being in vibrant and stimulating surroundings can heighten all the senses so, for example, food eaten in beautiful surroundings would theoretically taste better.
Saving money and the planet
The best thing about maximalism? It’s not about budget - it’s about flair. This is a style that thrives on thrifting, scavenging, and mixing the unexpected.
Some of the key elements of a maximalist design include:
Bold colours: From walls to furniture, colours create energy and drama.
Layered patterns: More is more design often results in schemes that shouldn’t work but do. Think geometrics, florals and stripes together.
Rich textures: Create a tactile sense of cosiness and interest, with velvets, silk, brocade and textured wallpaper, along with Persian rugs or plush throws.
Eclectic statement furnishings: The key is to mix vintage finds with modern pieces. Ornate fixtures and fittings are a must. Pineapple chandelier? I’ll take three.
A sense of fun: Maximalism is about not taking design, or yourself, too seriously.
Getting personal: There should be a real sense of self in the design, whether that be a photo gallery, collection of travel souvenirs, or a family heirloom taking centre stage.
Curated not cluttered
The biggest mistake a budding maximalist can make is tipping over the line from boho to hobo, with too much clutter.
The key to striking a successful maximalism balance is curation. Make sure all your design choices are intentional and try to build around one hero piece - whether that’s an artwork, light-fitting or armchair. Striking the right balance can involve some trial and error, but have fun with it.
The good news for Aussies is that our open plan homes lend themselves to maximalist experimentation. Open kitchens can take statement cabinetry; living rooms can host wild artwork without feeling closed in.
So be bold. Remember, it’s about finding joy in creating a house that feels like a home.
Maximalism on a minimal budget
The beauty of maximalism is that it doesn’t come with a designer price tag. It’s about imagination, not money. Here’s how to hit the ‘more is more’ vibe without your bank balance getting less and less.
Thrift: Op shops, Facebook Marketplace and Gumtree are a maximalist’s best friend. Look here for quirky pieces, classic Persian rugs, or quality vintage lounge suites and chairs. One-of-a-kind pieces are the key to unlocking the eclectic look. Getting a well-built old sofa reupholstered in bold modern fabrics is often comparable in price to buying new, but delivers so much more bang for buck in terms of statement style.
Paint is power: Dramatic paint can be one of the quickest and cheapest ways to transform the mood of your home. Fancy a fuchsia front door or a burgundy boudoir? Don’t be afraid to splash a pot of bright paint on furniture either. Golds or bright primary colours can transform a drab set of drawers.
Layer upon layer upon layer: Maximalism loves layers. Put rugs on rugs, cushions on cushions and leopard print on florals. Different textures and patterns create interest. But remember, it’s curated chaos not garage sale gone wrong. A good rule of thumb is: if it makes you smile, go with it. If you feel overwhelmed, it’s too much.
Keep it in the family: Older relatives can be a gold mine of maximalist treasures. They may faint when they discover you’ve painted Uncle Eric’s vintage dining table canary yellow, but at least it’s loved. Retrieving quirky pieces from family also hits three key ingredients of maximalism: it’s nostalgic, doesn’t cost much and comes with a story.
Plants Glorious Plants: Nothing says lush like greenery, and plants will really pop against dramatic wall colour. Think tropical jungle, with generous foliage — monsteras, ferns and trailing vines.
At the end of the day, setting out to decorate your home in maximalist style is more of a treasure hunt than a shopping spree, but that’s half the fun.