When the owners of 39 Warren Street purchased their home in 2018 – for €530,000, according to the Property Price Register – the downstairs was a series of four rooms and a hallway; “Now we have just one long space,” say the owners. “We spent six months living in it, getting advice from a friend who was an architect and watching lots of property programmes with architects like George Clarke and Dermot Bannon. We knew we wanted to create a warm space so we had to bring everything up to a standard. It all looked fine and was totally liveable, but when we started to strip it back we realised we had to do a full refurbishment with rewiring, replumbing and we also added new double-glazed windows and patio doors.
They also took out a fireplace and replaced it with a stove – which they say was a tough decision – but wanted to be able to close off the chimney and achieve the Ber of B3, which was their initial aim. They did, however, retain what they call “a little gem of a fireplace” upstairs for posterity.
Another deliberation was whether or not to retain a small enclosed room in the centre of what is now their living space. As it could have created a dark patch, they decided against it and this is really what makes this home special. It now allows a superb flow throughout – enhanced by the use of wide-plank flooring – and rooms are bathed in natural light. Areas have a natural delineation due to the fireplace being at an angle, so spaces are well defined despite not having doors.
An Ikea kitchen was installed where units meet the ceiling for maximum storage and high-end solid quartz countertops were added, which gives a nice finish to the space.
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There’s a lovely air about the place, enhanced by the colour scheme of taupe against a white background. “We both work in the city and really wanted that sense of calm”, which was the reason they put the washing machines in a shed on the patio, so as not to have any noise in the house.
The principal bedroom spans the width of the house and has high ceilings and lots of storage. The second bedroom – also a double with good storage – overlooks the back garden and has access to the attic.
Though not overly large, a rear patio garden gets the afternoon sun: “We never had that claustrophobic feeling during lockdown that we didn’t have enough space as we are so close to the [Grand] Canal and the Iveagh Gardens.”
With a growing family the owners are upsizing and will miss the “friendly village atmosphere” and say they are quite devastated to leave Portobello. Indeed the area is one of the most popular in Dublin due to its proximity to the city centre and the plethora of cafes and eateries in the vicinity.
In turnkey condition, the 75sq m (807sq ft) property is now on the market through Sherry FitzGerald, seeking €675,000.
