Drumcondra redbrick refurbished by expert owners

Karen McHugh and Aidan McNiece have put heart, soul, expertise and imagination into turning their early 1900s redbrick into a bright and warmly original home. The traditional ground-floor family rooms have become an open kitchen/dining/living space linking with a two-storey extension. The walls are white, the floor is Kempas wood, a cast-iron fireplace is in shining gunmetal and the rear window overlooks a raised and railed deck under which a dramatic excavation has created the sort of inventive spare room/den no home should be without.

McHugh originally fell for and bought 22 Millmount Avenue, in Drumcondra, Dublin 9, “as a single woman”. That was in 1996, when she paid £110,000 for a “two-up, two-down 900sq ft house with bathroom downstairs”.

These days it’s a family home to McHugh, McNiece and their three boys. McHugh says “it really came into its own when the children came along – nearby Griffith Park became an extension of the house”. The decision to move has been difficult, she says, but the boys are growing and the family feels the need for a bigger garden.

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Pooled skills

The rebuild and renovation happened in 2003. McHugh, a civil engineer, and McNiece, who is in construction, pooled their skills and talents to design and renovate the house themselves. (All this while running their Restaurant 104 on Drumcondra Road.)

“We wanted it to be as open as possible, and to have as much light as possible,” McHugh says. The house has both. Painted white throughout, the bright 111sq m (1,200sq ft) home has three bedrooms, an attic conversion of 16sq m (173sq ft), an open-living ground floor, utility, WC, bathroom and that useful den to the rear.

Windows throughout are Swedex sash, with PerfectFit thermal blinds. Planning permission exists to link the house and den via a glass room. Agent Sherry FitzGerald is asking €575,000.

The kitchen is by Habitat, with beech units, a double Belfast sink, Italian ceramic-tiled floor, an island and French windows to the patio/decking.

The main, first-floor bedroom (once two bedrooms) runs the length of the house and has a front window, high ceiling and fitted wardrobes. A second bedroom faces the front and a third is to the rear.

The bathroom fittings are old-style by Savoy and include a chain-pull cistern and long free-standing bath. McNiece’s 6ft 5in height has been accommodated with an especially tall shower. The attic, currently a bedroom, is a peaceful place with a wide window, pine floor, exposed brick chimney breast and lots of eaves storage.

Railway sleeper steps lead to the raised decking/patio where there is a herb garden and, behind an interesting rear slate wall, a row of venerable chestnut trees.