KILLINEY: €2.95M:THE ARCHITECTURE of New England is known for fine proportions, superb construction and gracious touches. These qualities can also be found in Serenity, a newly-built five-bedroom detached house on Violet Hill, off Church Road in Killiney, Co Dublin.
The 358sq m (3,850sq ft) house has been modelled in east coast US-style and is for sale through Douglas Newman Good for €2.95 million. It has been brought to the market by journalist turned author turned property developer Liz Allen and her husband Andrew Hanlon, a TV3 executive.
The couple bought the site four years ago and, after some debate, got permission from An Bord Pleanála to build two large detached houses on the grounds of the original house, which they demolished. The second house has not yet been offered for sale.
Violet Hill is a private laneway that leads to Killiney Golf Course and is lined with detached houses behind mature trees. With its pitched roof, timber clad exterior walls, shingle porch and white picket fence, the American style sits well in its leafy surroundings, despite its non-indigenous nature.
It was designed by Lawrence and Long Architects and built by SKM Construction. Liz Allen played a major role in the project management and concept of the house. “I wanted it to be a working family home and not a showhouse or a cold modernist box.”
Much time and expense has been spent on achieving a high level of finish. Details such as the oak doors, staircase and wall panelling are particularly impressive. There were 14 moulds made for the ceiling panelling before the final selection; 123 samples created for the oak floors; 11 samples of the staircase balustrade carved – never mind several full scale staircases made before one was eventually fitted. Even something as simple as a sheet of glass for a shower took three attempts to perfect. There was, however, not a cross word ever uttered on the site, says Allen, such was the dedication of all concerned.
The entrance hallway is not just space for passing through but almost a full scale room in itself. There are typically American features, such as flip-up storage seats and wainscot paneling below a staircase that opens to a vaulted ceiling with roof lights.
“This house was designed around light,” says Allen. “We wanted to get as much in as possible.” The windows chosen to achieve this are Austrian.
At the front of the house are two reception rooms, linked by double doors. One opens into a dining area that runs to the rear of the house. The kitchen is a large (but not cavernous) family area with vaulted ceiling. There is a separate bar room (modelled on something Allen saw in France) and a utility room. A wall of 14 windows look (and open) to a terrace, patio and the garden, bordered on two sides by a bank of trees.
Upstairs there are five bedrooms. One is a single and three have en suite bathrooms. Each has a different aspect and special feature – one has a pitched ceiling and circular window, another opens to a balcony, another has a lovely view of the garden, and so on. The family bathroom is very bright with more excellent joinery and a timber panelled ceiling.
The feel of the interior is muted (many Farrow Ball paints were used) and the layout is logical and adaptable, making it a home that can be intimate or facilitate large scale entertaining.
Serenity, Violet Hill, Killiney, Co Dublin
Spacious New England-style house in mature setting
Agent: Douglas Newman Good
