Dorman Architects

John designed and oversaw the building of an extension to my Victorian terraced house. The design was innovative and I am delighted with the results. John was professional but fun to work with, listened to our queries but guided us in the right direction. The build was completed in time and within budget and I have no hesitation in recommending Dorman Architects.

Working with Dorman Architects, was a great experience. Being new to the world of renovation and building, Dorman Architects were on hand to guide us through every step of the process, They provided excellent advice and guidance, making the many tough decisions, that little bit easier. By collaborating with Dorman Architects, we successfully retained the integrity of our 1930's house, combined with a practical modern home. They were very strong on creating an energy efficient home. This has proved very beneficial, in keeping the heating costs down. I would highly recommend Dorman Architects, they were very professional and a pleasure to deal with.

I hired Dorman Architects to design and oversee the extension and renovation of my 1930s council house.I chose the firm because of their environmental knowledge and ethos. From the outset, John asked what I wanted and needed and listened to the answers. The design was far beyond my expectations with a light filled living space which made full use of its orientation. He was easy to deal with, returned all calls and emails and ironed out any problems as they arose. He also introduced aspects into the design which I would never have thought of but on which any visitors to the house have commenedt favourably. From the design to the cosiness of the house, I love the job that John and his team did and would highly recommend them

We hired Dorman Architects to design our 'dream home' in 2004 in the Irish countryside. John was fantastic. He worked hard to understand how we live before coming up with a number of unique designs each of which we could have selected. What we ended up with was a home which was filled with light from almost every point which seems to be a Dorman speciality. It had a beautiful layout and worked perfectly in terms of what we needed. John was patient and friendly throughout as well as completely professional. We would highly recommend Dorman Architects.

John Dorman and his team at Dorman architects provided an excellent service to us (both during and after the build), when contracted to build a house, maximising sea views, on a site in Co. Mayo. Ireland in 2006. From the outset, John and his colleagues listen intently to our raw ambition for the site. We benefited greatly from their experience. Where necessary, John was firm with the final product, the sole goal.....retrospectively, he always got it right. Seven years on, we often comment that the team at Dorman Architects did a superb job. If we were building again (which is highly unlikely unless we win the lotto and a big one at that) we would not hesitate to contract Dorman Architects. The relationship with your architect is an unusual one, requiring mutual respect. John works really well, within that context.

I well remember discussing the brief for our Ballyconneely weekend home with John Dorman back in 1998. We spent a full day talking together, teasing out our hopes and aspirations for this little corner of Connemara. He carefully probed and nudged his new clients until he felt he understood our requirements and then set about capturing these on paper. We felt great excitement when he presented his thoughts to us a few weeks later. He had understood us perfectly and then added his interpretation. Innovation, flair, the artist's eye were all immediately obvious. We decided to go with the plan lock, stock and barrel. A local builder, Patsy D'Arcy, was selected and, under John's careful supervision, dealt admirably with the project. All through the building stage, John's attention to detail was almost obsessive, but it drove the team to reach a very high standard at completion. Several features - the under-floor heating, the high arched ceiling, the sliding panels , all were innovations to our building team that were completed successfully under John's watchful eye. We first slept in our new home on 22nd December 1999 and knew immediately that everything was just right. How can the same building feel open and airy with easy transition from inside to outside during long summer evenings and then change into a cosy and snug cocoon during winter storms? - by clever architecture. We manage to have ample space to meet all our needs and yet not have a large house. The main open plan space gives a seating area to read, listen to our music collection or watch television, as well as a beautiful dining area complete with a window literally picture-framing Ballyconneely Bay, and a kitchen to the rear - all of this in a single but cleverly space. There are two separate sleeping areas at opposite ends of the building, one for ourselves and the other for guests so that everyone has total privacy. And even with that, again by clever design, there are two discrete suites at the visitor end. Lots of doors you might think? Well, yes and no. Sliding doors are the clever secret. Push them away when you want your open spaces and pull them across when you want to close down. Now a weekend house or holiday home should be easy to keep. With its clean lines, and travertine floors it really is simple to keep clean - a floor brush and mop, and a quick hoover once a week is all that is needed. As for creature comforts, arriving on the coldest Friday night, the building, while never cold, will heat to full comfort in 1-2 hours and then retains heat very impressively. Even a full-blooded Atlantic storm can be enjoyed from the safety and cosiness of this space. We have the benefit of a south-facing aspect and so all our living and sleeping space benefits from the light and heat that this provides. We are also able to enjoy some northern light creeping in high over over living space. All the services have been pushed to the back, or the north side of the house as is our larder. There you will find ample storage, and all our utility appliances. So sitting here on a glorious February Sunday in 2013, we still find this building completely fit for purpose. The book shelves are filling, the music collection gets bigger, Sky Sport has crept in but this house still answers our needs as we imagined them in 1998. We both have to say John was such a great architect to work with - he listened so carefully which was a huge part of the success of the project. He interpreted our needs with great flair and creativity while creating a building that was both timeless and sensitive to its environment. He then oversaw the project with huge attention to detail and managed to gain the respect of the many crafts people who were involved in its execution - a rare accomplishment. Little wonder that the John Dorman project in Ballyconneely was a winner in the RIAI Irish Architecture Awards 2001 and has been featured in the print media as well as on TV. If we were ever to have need of an architect again for any project big or small, I would certainly look no further than John and could not recommend him highly enough.

A thoroughly professional, well managed and innovative piece of architectural work that was completed on time and within budget. Proper consultation continued throughout the project with appropriate adjustments as necessary

Dorman Architects redesigned our house and transformed it from a dull uninteresting 1950's style to a beautiful contempary ,functional,family home that is full of light at all times of the day which never dissappoints. Dorman Architects were most professional and engaged with us from the start. They kept to the brief from the outset,had lots of ideas and design solutions and were very thorough in the detail and had a great attitude when things got rocky! Dorman Architects worked very well with the builders and onsite meetings and visits were detailed and productive. We had no big issues with deadlines as Dorman Architect, the builder and communication all round got the job done. Budgets were discussed and debated energetically! We are delighted with the house and it continually surprises us in its light aspect, functionallity and design. Well recommended. A.D

John designed an extended kitchen and additional sitting room for our home. The rooms are very well designed, stylish, and pleasing to spend time in. Our site is north west facing, so light is important to us, and John is really creative at bringing the maximum light into the rooms, with very clever use of windows. We are also delighted with his insulation spec, the new rooms are very warm, and our heating bills have fallen significantly. John is very easy to work with, attentive to detail, and very thorough. He also managed our project through to completion, and was always very professional. We would warmly recommend John to you for your build project

Dorman Architects designed our kitchen in a new build. They were a pleasure to work with - sympathetic to the client and the budget. They created the perfect balance of function and design - the kitchen works really well and looks great!

I had seen John Dorman's award-winning (RIAI Irish Architecture Award 2001) house design on a tv programme and immediately loved his ideas and style. Our north-western site has spectacular views and his concept of the windows framing the view was just what I wanted. We met John and knew we were talking the same language. He asked us to fill in an initial questionaire which got us to think hard about what we liked and disliked about our own house and also to think about what was important to us in working with an architect. John's approach is to be sensitive to the environment and the local built heritage and while we initially laughed at his emphasis on the site's solar orientation (it is Donegal after all!) we are so grateful to be enjoying light-filled rooms and passive heat ever since. I can still remember our excitement at seeing the first pencil drawings that John sketched with us in his office off Merrion Square. Apart from minor additions, if the budget had allowed, we would not change anything in our home. John is a thorough professional; his communication skills are exemplary and his straightforward manner, gentle humour and focused creativity made the entire project a pleasure from start to finish.

I would highly recommend John Dorman of Dorman Architects. John designed and project managed the extension of my house at 24 St James Ave Dublin 3. We found John to be highly professional and efficient his work is beyond reproach. John is a green architect with a visionary and philosophical approach that enables the client to envision different possibilities of your home with in its wider environment, his advice allowed us to open our minds to the different possibilities in our renovation around natural lighting, interior design and energy saving. Patrick Gates St James Avenue Dublin 3