Sunny side out in Portobello villa for €725,000

Alexandra Terrace is a secret cul de sac of five homes, just off Bloomfield Avenue, a mere block from the Grand Canal.

No 5 is an end-of-terrace property set out in a villa style. The two-bedroom house has a living room to the front, where its large, east-facing window streams morning light in. Its architraving includes timber shutters, which remove the need for cluttering curtains, and the lofty ceiling height of 3.8m makes this smart, square-shaped room feel larger than it is. Here the walls are painted in an earthy grey, Silver Birch by Colourtrend, and there’s a distressed leather chesterfield with its characteristic deep-button upholstery.

A set of steps lead to a large, open-plan kitchen, living room and dining room, much of which is an extension that its owners added in 2012, when they purchased it for €210,000, according to the Property Price Register. It’s accessed via a reading nook, where one of the wingback chairs from the chesterfield suite has found a home beside the built-in bookcases, and the tiled floor reflects light back into the space.

The kitchen, set in an L shape, has vanilla gloss units with quartz countertops. A small island cum breakfast bar provides a place to perch. Light washes the inner part of this extension through a lantern-style roof light and it is warmed by underfloor heating.

There is space for a large dining table that can seat up to eight and is big enough to work at while the kids gather round for online school.

Overlooking the garden and floor-to-ceiling glass sliding doors there is space for a sizeable sofa. The real draw here is its west-facing rear garden, which has pedestrian side access on to Bloomfield Park, a real bonus when it comes to taking the bins out and in.

This walled space, at almost 7.5m wide by almost 6m long, is private and big enough to host a large group of friends for a barbecue or long lunch, when times allow. There’s further scope to weave the indoor and outdoor spaces together with the addition of some infra-red heaters on the walls and possibly an awning for days when the sun is too strong, as the property also gets plenty of southern light to the side.

The family bathroom, an internal space, is also at this level and is tiled in soft earthy shades. There are two bedrooms on the upper level, with a smart double the main accommodation. Overlooking the garden it has an internal shower en suite bathroom. The second bedroom is a single, which currently doubles as a dressing room. The house, which extends to about 83sq m (893sq ft), is seeking €725,000 through agent Felicity Fox.