Turning Japanese in Dun Laoghaire cul-de-sac: two for €1.25m

Architect-owned four-bed family home with two-bed adjoining house

In 2003, when 12 Corrig Park in Dun Laoghaire last came on the market, it was similar to its bungalow neighbours, all built in the 1940s on land belonging to the long-demolished Corrig Castle.

It was larger though, taking up a double site, which encouraged its architect buyer to try something a bit more ambitious than a standard renovation. Now on the market again, it is a very different proposition – a clearly transformed building that has been divided into two separate properties.

The larger, number 12, is a four-bedroom house with 190sq m (2,045sq ft), lived in by the family, and 12A is a 73sq m (781sq ft) two-bedroom adjoining house, which has been rented out in recent years.

It’s a very personal renovation designed to suit the tastes of its owners – who are now downsizing. There is a distinct Japanese feeling in the living space, not to mention the Mount Fuji-styled barbecue in the west-facing rear garden, and throughout there are signs of considered choices, including the purple-painted front doors and plum-coloured exterior walls.

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New entrance

The new entrance to the larger house was created by demolishing the garage, which gave it a double-height mostly glazed entrance hall, with a short flight of stairs leading up to two bathrooms, one Japanese-style, three double-bedrooms, a small home office and the utility room. Despite appearances from the road, a cul-de sac, this is a two-storey house.

The windows to the front are upstairs bedroom windows and the open living area is down a level facing the rear, where the wall of floor-to-ceiling glazing – windows and doors – and stone floor give it a modern airy feel. The kitchen, dining and main living area flow into each other and there is small separate room used as a cosy snug by the owners, but the absence of a window possibly limits its uses for new owners.

Also at this level is a lovely bedroom, with a large, south-facing window looking out to the garden. It has its own adjoining wet room and for a reason not entirely clear its own staircase leading to the first floor level. Other features include a plumbed bar area and a wall of custom-designed display shelves and there is good storage throughout. An usual feature is the cellar – used as a storage area and as a work room.

The adjoining two-bedroom house, number 12A, has the feeling of a modern mews, with two bedrooms and guest toilet at hall level and an open-plan kitchen and living room downstairs, with the same wall of glass looking out onto a private garden.

There is off-street parking to the front for three or four cars. 12 and 12A Corrig Park is for sale through Lisney for €1.25 million