A mahogany banister curves over three floors of stairs in this Regency-style five-bed at number 3 Victoria Lane, so long it defies most engineering and architectural principles. Repeatedly woodworking firms told developer Gerry Walsh it could not be made, but he persisted, finding a firm in Kildare, M & C Joinery, who stepped up to execute the task.
Walsh knew exactly what he wanted when he bought up a series of vacant lots, gardens and sheds behind Victoria Road and built a terrace of three houses as well as his own modern home. The result is a quiet corner of style and tranquillity. Number 3 Victoria Lane is being brought to market by Knight Frank seeking €2.1 million.
It’s a period-style house with an area of 326sq m (3,500sq ft) but with none of the drawbacks of an older property. There are precast concrete floors and thick concrete walls guaranteeing silence between floors and rooms. It’s A3 rated with an air-to-water heat pump system and underfloor heating.
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The three houses were inspired by the famous Royal Crescent in Bath, and every detail from bin stores to cast-iron downpipes is high quality. There is parking for two cars on the gravelled drive and once in the front door the eye is drawn to the elliptical skylight above that floods the hall with light and echoes the gentle curve of the staircase.
Crema marfil tiles run through the hallway which has a closet and a stylish guest loo. On the right is a small sittingroom featuring wallpaper from Thibaut in New York. A parquet floor here and in the drawingroom was salvaged from a deconsecrated church in Limerick.
Beyond the drawingroom double doors open into a living area and kitchen, with doors opening into the small, maintenance-free garden, planted with pleached pear trees. The patio is paved in Kilkenny limestone flags, each one individually selected for its natural pattern.
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The kitchen is sleek and streamlined, with a generous island, handless doors, stone countertops and two sinks. The kitchen is from Italian firm Snaidero, and where in most houses the utility is a spot for hiding things here the utility is another full Snaidero kitchen in the basement.
The advantage of this is not only keeping all the laundry in the basement, it gives the occupant of the basement level bedroom access to a complete kitchen along with a fantastic en suite. Also on this level is a home gym, home cinema and a storage room that would store everything from any amount of sports gear to the Christmas decorations.
Upstairs are four bedrooms, two of which are en suite, and there’s a family bathroom. The bedrooms have extensive banks of well-crafted wardrobes, one of which opens up to reveal a large en suite with bath, along with laundry chute down to the basement-level utility room.
