“We had looked at so many houses, but they were all so dark,” say the owners of 7 Aughrim Villas, a southwesterly facing house which they purchased and extended 22 years ago.
They had a good idea in terms of design for an extension to the rear, giving award-winning ODOS architects “a six-page brief” on their requirements: “We knew exactly what we wanted but couldn’t draw it, so we worked with them and they realised our dream.”
Here at number 7, it really proves the point of using a good architect – even if you have a fair idea of what you want. The owners subsequently acquired the garden of number 8, which now gives a landscaped double garden to the rear.
The new extension offers an office space that appears to float over the back garden and, having its own staircase, feels removed from the main living areas in the house. There is a lovely balance between the use of glass and Iroko, which is echoed in the equally well-designed back garden.
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A marriage between classic and contemporary design, the period parts of this home – dating from 1885 – are all in great order, retaining details such as old fireplaces, pine flooring and internal stripped pine doors. A new roof was installed in 2007 and sash windows were refurbished by Ventrolla. Upstairs, what was a third bedroom is now a generous bathroom with a free-standing bath.
The external facade has a shared entrance under a single gable, which, according to the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage: “was a popular design feature designed to make houses seem more generously proportioned when viewed from a distance”.
With the double-height extension, the property now extends to a generous 142sq m (1,528sq ft) and its recent repointing in 2021, by conservation company Dublin Restoration, along with the restoration of its front wall and granite steps, means the facade of this Victorian house looks as good as the day it was completed more than a century ago.
Inside the front hallway is a formal livingroom with an open fireplace that leads to a diningroom, off which lies a bright kitchen. The extension bathes the entire area in light and is where the residents of number 7 can be found on Friday evenings stretched out on a pair of Le Corbusier chaises longues catching up on the week’s events.
Here two sets of sliding doors open out to the rear garden which has “a place to plonk in the sun no matter the time of day, as it shines from 11am to 8pm”.
Just like with the house, the owners, who say they come from “good gardening stock”, had a clear idea on what their back garden could offer, while deliberately designing it so it was “super easy to maintain”.
Engaging landscaper Elma Fenton, the garden which they describe as “simultaneously peaceful and a great place to entertain” is now laid out with raised beds, concrete flagstones and a water feature. While new owners won’t be pressing olive oil any time soon – as the tree in the garden produces about 25 fruit a year – the couple have crops of lettuces, beets, gooseberries, rhubarb and onions in addition to a good selection of herbs.
Number 7 Aughrim Villas, which benefits from an excellent location in the heart of Stoneybatter, has off-street parking via Aughrim Lane, and a Ber of D1. It is on the market through Lisney Sotheby’s International Realty seeking €795,000.
