When the owners of number 20 Tyrconnell Road bought 15 years ago, they had the sort of help that makes things much easier when renovating an old house: practical family help.
Mark Abbott’s dad, Robert, was a joiner – on hand for such tasks as hanging the new interior doors, meticulous copies of the long gone originals – while Len Rothwell’s dad, Leslie, was a builder so was a source of endless advice as the job of removing the many bedsits, room dividers and an old extension began.
With 193sq m (2,077sq ft) spread over three floors, the work to bring the mid-terrace redbrick Victorian back to a single family home didn’t increase the footprint greatly.
The interior layout is now close to its original, with two interconnecting reception rooms, and the rear was reworked and extended so that the back reception, and the hall, open into a bright living/dining/kitchen area with the rear wall made mostly of bespoke alu-clad black-framed windows and doors leading out to the garden.
Of the windows, Rothwell says that in a renovation like theirs, choosing the right ones was important. So to the front, where there’s a deep bay window in the living room and two windows above, the decision was triple-glazed alu-clad sash versions.
The pair were all about the detail – hunting in architectural salvage yards to replace original features such as fireplaces and door knobs that went missing during he house’s rental years, and sourcing suitable floor tiles and radiators.
For the kitchen – it has a woodburning stove and several roof lights – they say they were going for a retro look so chose painted timber cabinets, a Rangemaster oven, metro tiles and polished stone flooring from Fired Earth.
There are four bedrooms, all doubles; three are en suite while the fourth in the return is adjacent to the family bathroom. A small room at the top of the house with a rooflight is used as a walk-in wardrobe, new owners might use it as a child’s bedroom or home office. The BER is C2.
Keen gardeners, the pair filled the back garden with colourful planting, raised beds and lawn as well as a small greenhouse. At the end of the garden is a large garage, recently reroofed; it could fit three cars, though is now home to just one and bicycles, as the house is as short cycle to the city centre. There is a lane behind the garage.
Beside Inchicore village, Tyrconnell Road is busy – it’s a continuation of the N7 Naas Road into the city – though this terrace is elevated and set back, with a front garden.
Having finished the restoration of their comfortable, stylish home, the owners are looking for a new challenge and are selling number 20 through Knight Frank, asking €895,000.
