The entrance hall of 54 Strand Road is unusual in the sense that it appears smaller than one would expect of a period house along the waterfront in Sandymount. The reason for this is that the house – along with its neighbour – was originally one large double-fronted property which was split in two many years ago. The layout means that next door retained the sweeping staircase, while number 54 retained a balcony on the upper floor.
Home to Karen Nolan, an international consultant in education, unusually this is the second time she has owned this property. "I originally bought it when I was 29, but became a bit anxious that I had taken on too much so I rang a friend in Rome – who was looking for a property in Dublin – and she bought it. A decade later, I was looking for a property and fed up with being outbid at every auction – so I called the same friend in Rome to see if she would consider selling. As luck would have it, the very day I rang, she had decided to buy in Rome and had put this house on the market."
Nolan completely gutted the property, opening the garden level into two large rooms – an informal living room and kitchen – both of which open to the front and rear gardens.
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At hall level new bi-folding doors now link the hall to the drawing room, which really opens up the space. “I love to entertain and this created a greater sense of flow, we had our wedding reception here, with 120 guests and a mariachi band. The whole house just lends itself to entertaining large numbers.”
The interconnecting rooms at hall level look out onto the seafront and the beautiful rear garden was created by Durston Landscaping. High ceilings, large windows and aspect flood the rooms with light, though new owners may want to install sash windows for aesthetic reasons.
There are three bedrooms on the upper floor – two of which have uninterrupted sea views. The smaller room, now used as an office opens out onto the original balcony.
To the rear is the main bedroom with lots of storage and a double en-suite.
The property extending to 195sq m (2,099sq ft) has off-street parking for two cars.
Nolan is trading down and has placed her home – in turnkey condition – on the market through DNG with an asking price of €1.4million.
