There are a few different period house styles in Clarinda Park, a special area of architectural conservation in the heart of Dún Laoghaire. Among them are the imposing two-bay, two-storey-over-basement terraced houses, which are the predominant style in this historic park, and the smaller villa-type houses with oriel bay windows. Then you’ve got your terraced houses without a basement, located on Clarinda Park West, which for many families may be just the right size for comfortable, convenient living.
Number 26 Clarinda Park West, built in the mid-19th century, extends to 202sq m (2,174sq ft) with four generous bedrooms and two large reception rooms, giving plenty of room for a growing family without the sense of rattling around a big house. It is Ber-exempt and for sale through Sherry FitzGerald, asking €1.45 million.
The owners have tastefully decorated Number 26 to draw attention to two key features: the lovely, pristine cornicing, coving and ceiling roses and the abundance of natural light that pours in to this fine end-of-terrace house. The hall door is surrounded by glazing and the hallway is painted a moody Farrow & Ball shade of dark blue, all the better to draw your eye upwards to the stunning plasterwork above. Step from there into the brightly painted drawingroom and it’s like stepping into a lightbox – the large sliding sash window runs almost from floor to ceiling and has feature stained-glass inserts, opening the room to the daylight outside. And if you need to dim the light, the window shutters all work perfectly.
Double doors lead to the diningroom, which has a sliding sash window looking out to the back; both rooms have matching feature fireplace, picture rails, ceiling coving and gorgeous centre roses. The hall and reception rooms have their original wooden floors and there’s underfloor heating at this level. The owners have kept the period features intact, but that hasn’t prevented them from putting their own contemporary touches on the interior decor and furniture and eschewing the chunky traditional period furniture for lighter, modern pieces really works, giving a greater sense of space and letting the rooms breathe.
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Stepping down towards the kitchen/breakfastroom, you pass a generous storage/cloak area under the stairs, and a guest WC with tiled floor and feature fish-patterned wallpaper (we are near the sea here). The kitchen has a tiled floor, cream Shaker-style wall and floor units and black granite countertop, plus an island with a sink and an integrated dishwasher. There’s a Neff five-ring gas hob and Neff double oven – both integrated – and space for an American fridge-freezer. Two sliding sash windows and double doors to the west-facing back garden bring in plenty of light. What’s lacking here is the family hub that many buyers are looking for, but you could extend out to the side and add in a lounge area and utility room to complete the picture.
There’s a bedroom with en suite on the first floor, moving towards the back of the house and the first floor has the two biggest bedrooms, both of which have original wooden floors, ceiling coving and centre roses, feature fireplaces, sliding sash windows with working shutters and built-in wardrobes. The principal bedroom, which runs the width of the house to the front, has a large, luxurious en suite that includes a roll-top bath with claw-and-ball feet and a step-in shower cubicle.
The fourth bedroom is on the top floor and is currently being used as a spacious study/home office with feature wallpaper.
To the front of the house is a neat railed garden with pebbles and mature hedging. There is side access through to the rear that could fit a small car, and is also handy for bringing in your bikes. The neighbours across the lane have pedestrian right of way.
Clarinda Park’s square, which includes tennis courts, is being reshaped to make it a more pleasant amenity for the residents, so now could be a good time to move in to this area close to the People’s Park and a short walk from the East Pier, the DLR Lexicon library, the National Maritime Museum and the shops of Dún Laoghaire. Both Dún Laoghaire and Sandycove Dart stations are a few minutes’ walk away, and there are numerous schools in the locality, including the Harold School, Rathdown, CBC Monkstown, St Joseph of Cluny, Holy Child, Blackrock College and Loreto Dalkey.
