What a difference some windows make. When the owners of Larchmont, on Blackrock’s quiet and leafy Grove Avenue, first saw the house in 2001, they didn’t fall immediately in love.
Sure, it had a large site – it stands on approximately a third of an acre, with a stream babbling by – and it was a well- built, modern, detached house, but it hadn’t quite got that fall-in-love appeal – yet.
“It had been on the market for a while,” says the owner, “and we knew it had potential, though we didn’t decide to buy immediately.” But with a growing family, the house had everything they needed.
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So making the smart decision to move to this location (public transport and all the schools you could wish for within walking distance, plus great access to shops, restaurants and bars), they set about remodelling and turning a nice house into a lovely one.
Working with architect Suzanne McDonald of MacDonald Vagge architects, they extended, opened up the hallway, moved the stairs to create a double-height entrance, and even changed the orientation of the windows from blocky horizontal ones to elegant vertical sashes that add a period touch.
Now moving because their four children are grown up, the house, which has six bedrooms over three floors, and a games room at the top, is on the market with Knight Frank for €2.05 million.
Once upon a time, a previous owner had run a guesthouse from the premises, with the result that each of the bedrooms has its own en suite. The master is lovely and bright thanks to dual-aspect windows. It also has a dressingroom and a boutique-hotel-quality en suite of its own.
Cosy living
The ground floor comprises the livingroom, a smaller study, plus family room, boot room and utility, and the kitchen/ diningroom manages to be both huge and cosy. There’s a window seat in the corner, where the family dog likes to curl up and keep an eye on everyone.
There’s also a laundry room on the first floor, and tons of storage. Four of the six bedrooms are on the first floor, with two more, plus that great games room, up top.
This layout also lends itself to the option of au pair accommodation upstairs, or a good space to stash noisy teenagers.
“The games room is built over what had been a flat roof,” says the owner, “so it’s all sound-proofed.”
There are lawns and decking out the back and with this much space, the house is very much suited to a growing family.
The Dart is a 10-15 minute walk down the road – “depending on who’s walking”, says the owner – and the route is well served by buses.
