Edel Morganshows how it's done
TIME TO STAY IN FOR THE MOVIES
ONCE YOU'VE got a big enough room for it, a home cinema needn't cost movie-star prices. The one at Dunromen, Townlough, co Tipperary was about €7,500 in total, although the owners did a lot of the work themselves.
The room is actually a 32sq m attic making it big enough so there's enough distance between the projector and the screen.
Bulfin Pub Interiors (www.bulfinpubinteriors.ie) custom made a walnut cabinet to hold the a library of DVDs and a projector. A good projector will cost €1,200 and you will also need good speakers or surround sound, try home cinema specialists www.smarttech.ie.
The cream leather reclining moveable seats were bought at Homebase for €250 each. The blackout blinds on the Velux windows came from Limerick blinds, www.limerickblinds.ie. Instead of a screen, the wall is painted white but beware: a very smoothly plastered wall is essential to avoid unwanted special effects. The owners say the best thing about a home cinema is not having to find a parking space!
THE OLD WORLD KITCHEN LOOK
The kitchen at Lisnamoe proves that you don't have to spend a fortune to get a bespoke look.
The fitted units cost the grand sum of £36 over 30 years ago when the owner's late husband made them from old packing cases from India and blue formica doors.
Precision planning went into designing it with some cupboards made deep enough for saucepans and a slot created beside the Aga to keep biscuits dry. A Sheila Maid clothes airer (www.ecowashinglines.co.uk) was installed over the Aga, and the owner, who doesn't have a dishwasher, recently had a dish rack specially designed by a local carpenter for her "wash, rinse and rack" routine.
The racing-green coloured Aga (try Campbell & Cooke (01 4136466 or Fired Earth Interiors (01 6636166) has been in the kitchen since the 1970s and makes the room cosy.New Agas start at €10,500. The walls are in a specially mixed dark slatey blue which makes a lovely backdrop to the Royal Minton and Blue Rockingham wall plates and the painting of Mount Kenya .
A VERY FAMILY-ORIENTED SPACE
The owners of 11 Woodside Grove and their three children spend most of their time in their open plan living/kitchen/ diningroom when they're at home. A very family-oriented space, it's light, bright and airy with floor-to-ceiling views of the garden through the Rationel windows.
Although open-plan, the room has three defined living areas. The kitchen presses in the cream Geba fitted kitchen from Arena (01 6715648) are below waist level. It costs around €27,000.
An eyecatching exception is the long rectangular glazed press behind the centrepiece of the kitchen - the dramatic ceiling mounted cooker hood. A shelf under the press has little glass cube containers for teabags and sugar on each side.Over that is a spice rack.
The matt cream units have a grey granite countertop and the curved island has pull-out pannier drawers on one side and a Neff oven on the other - one of three in the kitchen.
The trio of lights from Habitat (www.habitat.ie) over the cherrywood dining table help mark the area out. For Scovby tables and chairs try www.vobeinteriors.ie or www.woganinteriors.ie. The Danish range is known for its sturdy, extendable tables that glide into place.
In the chill-out zone the modular cream fabric sofa has practical machine washable covers. For a similar one custom-made, try Sofas & Sofas (01 873 4214). Prices depend on the size of the sofa and the fabric used but a four-seater modular sofa with washable covers (covered with fabric costing €20 per yard ) will cost around €1,695.
The orange silk-and-stripy ribbon cushions from Barkers of Wexford (053 9123159) lift the room and give a vital ping of colour.
An ingenious invention is the plexiglass cover which allows part of the footstool to be used as a table. A similar one from Dona Living is available from Minima for €500 (01 6627894).
A STUDY OF A PERFECT STUDY
ALL THAT'S missing from the study of the showhouse at Butterfield in Rathfarnham is a leather chesterfield sofa and a pipe. Interior Designer Mary Ryder flew in the face of received wisdom that small rooms should be kept light and bright. Instead she created a sombre intimate space designed for some serious book work.
The walls are papered in Textura Tiburon Shagreen which immediately sets a lofty tone at €90 per metre . The reproduction St Andrews desk ( €1,390 ) and the wicker-backed Lyon Chair (€390) continue the slightly masculine theme. Both are oakwood with a dark stain. All the above are available from Mary Ryder Designs (01 2301245).
The chrome antique desk lamp. from House of Fraser €80 and sepia-toned yacht print give the room a classic retro look. The desk accessories including antique pen holder, pencil box, magnifying glass, ink bottle and tray are all from Mimosa (01 2602443).
