On one of Ireland’s rare warm, sunny days, the coastal suburb of Dún Laoghaire is abuzz with tourists, locals and teenagers still in their school uniforms milling about with iced coffees, bubble teas and ice creams.
It is no wonder the town is popular with prospective buyers as it offers so much to its residents: from sea views and sailing to an array of shops, cafes and restaurants. It also has the Pavilion Theatre, the DLR Lexicon Library and the IMC Cinema for entertainment, as well as access to the Dart with 20-minute-long services to Pearse Station in Dublin city centre.
The owners of number 4 Cumberland Street, located at the Lower George’s Street end of the town, were keen to live in the area and were able to execute their ambitious design vision when they bought this 1905 property – formerly a shop with living quarters above it – in 2017 and transformed it into a stunning, architecturally interesting home full of quirks and delightful surprises.
With planning complications and Covid delays, it was not until 2021 that the family of three moved into their home, although looking at what they created with Peter Carroll of A2 Architects, it looks as though it was worth the wait.
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There’s an immediate calm when you step from the street into the kitchen, with a view to the light-filled dining area and the livingroom above and beyond it on a mezzanine to the rear.
The kitchen makes use of natural elements to give a stylish, contemporary feel, with a wall of exposed redbrick, polished concrete floors and birch-ply units. One of the owners, a yacht captain, got the idea for the wooden window unit, which incorporates wooden panels for privacy and multiple storage drawers forming a bench, from working on boats, where every inch of space needs to be used. This focus on storage is also evident in the birch-ply wall units and floor-to-ceiling cabinets.
Against the opposite wall, the nook formed by the floating staircase neatly fits a desk, and there are cabinets as well as open shelves here to display some of the owners’ art, Lego creations and books. Although one of the owners took credit for some of the storage ideas, he was keen to stress it was his wife, who works as a consultant psychiatrist, who had the keen eye when it came to their art and furniture, which imbue the space with fun and personality.
Stepping further into the home, the double-height dining area is flooded with natural light from a glazed roof high overhead. Off the diningroom is an inner hall with a sleek wetroom and the home’s smaller bedroom. Currently set up with a bunk bed over a desk, it makes a really cool kids’ bedroom looking out through floor-to-ceiling glazing to the inner courtyard that is home to an active koi pond. If you didn’t need a second bedroom, this would make a fantastic office or reading room.
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There is also a spacious garage to the rear with a laundry area, which can be used for storage or to park one car. The owners have planted fruit trees in the laneway beyond.
Upstairs, the impressive main bedroom sits to the front of the house with its original wooden floorboards and a feature wall of exposed brick with an archway above the bed. It also has a modern en suite shower room.
Down the hall and a few steps below is the bright livingroom with a wood-burning stove. This space opens out to the spacious rooftop terrace where there is plenty of space for a table and chairs, and as many potted plants as you like. Unfortunately, as there is a high building to the rear, you can’t see the sea from here, although a quick stroll around the corner would remedy that.
This creatively designed home extends to 125sq m (1,346sq ft) and has ground-floor underfloor heating and an A3 Ber rating. It is with a heavy heart that the owners have decided to sell the home they poured so much love and energy into, but with the youngest among them needing more space as they get older, 4 Cumberland Street is now for sale with DNG, seeking €850,000.
