Although it is now a bright, four-bedroom home showcasing minimalist design, the owners bought Mountain View when it was a traditional two-bed cottage in the Co Kildare countryside. They then set out on what one of the owners describes as “a 20-year journey” of transforming the property into what it is today.
Having met at university in Scotland, the owners went travelling in Australia and New Zealand before coming to Kildare, where one of them is from, “without any references or any money”, the owner recalls. They managed to buy a barge to live on while they saved for bricks and mortar, and bought the cottage when the punt was still the currency, more than 20 years ago.
They moved into what was then a small, draughty cottage and had their first child there. They later bought the neighbouring cottage after its elderly owner had died, and that now forms part of the 217sq m (2,336sq ft) four-bedroom home that stands on the original site today. They added two extensions over the years: first, adding a livingroom and bedrooms and secondly, in 2018, adding the beautiful double-height kitchen/living/diningroom overlooking the Wicklow Mountains to the rear of the house.
They previously had a galley kitchen with recessed windows, typical of traditional cottages, through which you could glimpse the arresting surrounding views. The quest for minimalism and airiness came from years of family life with three children in close quarters, the owners says, adding that there’s almost “an obsessive amount of storage” in the home as they didn’t have places to put things for so long.
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The utility/boot room has been a particular luxury in that regard. Here, each family member was assigned a cupboard where they could tuck away their jackets and shoes.
Now downsizing because their children have grown up and moved out, the owners are hoping to move closer to the sea and Dublin city. They are placing Mountain View on the market with Jordan Estate Agents, seeking €795,000.
Originally it came with little more than a path of outdoor space around its perimeter. In a bid to have a garden in preparation to start their family, the owner wrote a letter to the farmer who owned the surrounding land, asking him if they could buy some of it from him. When the older man came to discuss it, it was the affection of the couple’s dog, as well as the owner’s mother’s homemade fruitcake, that helped persuade him, she says. The house now sits on 5½ acres with expansive lawns and patios where you can sit and take in the gorgeous views. There is also a garden room which works well as a home office or chill-out space.
The L-shaped kitchen/living/diningroom is flooded with light due to the huge picture window, complete with a window seat, and rooflights in the high vaulted ceiling. It is floored with large, dark stone tiles. The home is highly energy efficient with a B Ber, and features underfloor heating in the open-plan kitchen.
The kitchen features white and wooden units and a central island/breakfast bar, where the stools are positioned to look outside. A coffee/toast-making station on one side of the kitchen was a great way for the teenagers of the house to help themselves while she was cooking or preparing lunches in the kitchen, the owner says.
A generous dining space with a pendant light hanging from the high ceiling, as well as a comfortable living space with a corner of windows creating a backdrop of natural greenery, complete the space. The separate utility/boot room and a loo are positioned just off the kitchen.
A bright sittingroom, with a limed oak floor and inset stove, is a cosy, calm space to settle in to read a book or watch TV.
A hallway leads to the four double bedrooms. The main bedroom enjoys the added luxury of a walk-in wardrobe and an en suite, while the modern main bathroom serves the remaining bedrooms.
Mountain View in Harristown is a short hop from Two Mile House and Brannockstown, while Kilcullen is a 10-minute drive away and you can reach both Naas and Newbridge within 20 minutes.
“For whoever buys it, I hope it will be as awesome a space for them and their family as it has been for us,” the owner says.
