When the Victorian grande dame at 72 Grosvenor Road was last on the market in 2005, it achieved €3.5 million at auction. The six-bed property, previously laid out in bedsits, has been completely overhauled by its owners in the intervening years. They have now decided to downsize, placing their home on the market with Sherry FitzGerald, seeking €3.95 million.
With the architect and renovation specialist Paul Brazil at the helm, the owners embarked on a renovation that has resulted in and elegant and considered, yet ultimately comfortable, family home of 385sq m (4,144sq ft). It has a D Ber.
Well set back from the road behind original wrought-iron railings and gates, there is room to park several cars on the gravelled area in front of the house.
Its redbrick facade has been repointed, and the front door still has its original stained-glass panels. It opens into a stunning entrance hallway, with twin arches, an ornate ceiling rose and panelling. The original interconnecting reception rooms lie on the right. They have wide-plank floors, 12ft-high ceilings, and shutters on the sash windows. The drawingroom has an ornate marble fireplace with slate hearth and brass surround.
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Beyond it lies a sittingroom with some superb built-in cabinetry that surrounds an identical marble fireplace, painted a serene dark blue. A pair of impressive chandeliers further reinforces the grace and elegance of these rooms.
On the far side of the hall is another reception room, laid out as a more informal livingroom. It has a particularly lovely plaster frieze at the top of the muted grey walls, a black marble fireplace, and at the end of the room nearest the door, a library unit complete with ladder.
Steps lead down to a kitchen and dining area housed in a new extension, and this is a space that immediately impresses. The eye is drawn to the dining area and a centrepiece in the form of a handcrafted oak table and bench with storage to its rear, which makes a seamless divide between the kitchen and the dining area.
It adds warmth and character to a light, bright space, featuring individual doors leading to the patio and garden. The Siematic kitchen is predictably superb, with a large granite-topped island lit by a vaulted rooflight. A door leads, via a short flight of steps, to a large utility room. There is also a guest WC at this level, with another short flight of stairs leading back to the hall.
The first-floor return houses a bathroom and a double bedroom with a box-bay window, fitted wardrobes and another window.
On the first floor are four generous bedrooms. The main bedroom is to the rear of the house and has an en suite bathroom, a separate dressingroom and a six-over-six sash window. An ornate fireplace houses ochre tiles adorned by figures – a whimsical touch that is repeated in another fireplace in a bedroom also at the back of the house. The tiles here are a teal green, perfectly offset by the white surround of the fireplace and cool grey tones of the room.
Two more bedrooms at the front of the house are beautifully decorated and between them lies a smart dressingroom, with a bank of fitted wardrobes, lit by a pair of narrow windows tapering to a fine arch. This could be repurposed into a small nursery bedroom if required. A bedroom to the front and a bedroom to the rear are both en suite.
The garden is mature and well-landscaped, private, quiet and south facing. The location of the house is superb, minutes from Rathmines village, and close to a multitude of schools.
