Houzz Tour: A Dublin Home Creatively Extended to Suit Family Life
Two small extensions have made a whole world of difference to this home, improving its flow, boosting light and adding storage
The young family who own this detached house, which has views across the Dublin mountains, were frustrated by its impractical layout and lack of storage. Access to its loft was via a dangerously steep staircase, and the two bedrooms were too small to be comfortable. “It was clear the family would soon outgrow this property,” says Alan Connolly, who, together with architectural partner Deirdre Keeley, redesigned the house.
Two small extensions, which added just 12 sq m of space, made a dramatic difference, allowing every floor to be rationalised and converting a cramped layout into a light, bright and functional family home.
Two small extensions, which added just 12 sq m of space, made a dramatic difference, allowing every floor to be rationalised and converting a cramped layout into a light, bright and functional family home.
The house had been constructed as a side garden development within an established housing estate, which dated from the early 1990s. “This was reflected internally,” says Connolly. “There were unusual angles and geometries throughout, created thanks to the wedge-shaped plot.”
Originally, the house consisted of a living room, bathroom and playroom at ground level, with a single-storey kitchen and dining area to the rear. There was a family bathroom, nursery and two bedrooms on the first floor, with a converted attic space at the top of the house.
“The owners’ brief for this project was to rationalise the internal layout and create a functional family bathroom that, most importantly, had enough room for a bath,” says Connolly.
The new family space reuses the original basin, while the bath and screen were sourced locally.
Bath and screen, Chadwicks. Metro tiles, TileStyle.
The new family space reuses the original basin, while the bath and screen were sourced locally.
Bath and screen, Chadwicks. Metro tiles, TileStyle.
Another key requirement of the brief was to improve storage areas in the existing bedrooms and throughout the house. Then there was the stairs up to loft to tackle.
“The final challenge was to rationalise access to the converted attic room,” says Connolly. “It had an open-tread staircase with a pitch of almost 60 degrees, which was unsafe for unsupervised use by young children.”
In addition, the location of the bottom step to the attic staircase was problematic, restricting access to the second bedroom.
“The final challenge was to rationalise access to the converted attic room,” says Connolly. “It had an open-tread staircase with a pitch of almost 60 degrees, which was unsafe for unsupervised use by young children.”
In addition, the location of the bottom step to the attic staircase was problematic, restricting access to the second bedroom.
To meet the brief, two small extensions were added to the property, including this pop-out section to the front and side at first-floor level. “The existing family bathroom here and adjacent nursery to the front were wholly unsuitable, as the bathroom was too small to accommodate a bath, and the nursery was too small to allow for future use as a bedroom,” says Connolly.
First, these two rooms were amalgamated to form a third bedroom. Then, to create a new family bathroom, this pop-out box was built. “This also helps to rationalise the form of the building,” adds Connolly, “squaring off some unusual geometries, while also doubling as a covered porch area for the front door below.”
It’s clad in Siberian larch tongue-and-groove boards and treated with the Sioo wood protection system.
First, these two rooms were amalgamated to form a third bedroom. Then, to create a new family bathroom, this pop-out box was built. “This also helps to rationalise the form of the building,” adds Connolly, “squaring off some unusual geometries, while also doubling as a covered porch area for the front door below.”
It’s clad in Siberian larch tongue-and-groove boards and treated with the Sioo wood protection system.
On the first floor, Keeley and Connolly had to address the problem of the steep attic staircase. “On closer examination of the plan, it was clear that it would be very difficult to reconfigure the attic stair without reorganising the first floor layout,” says Connolly.
The landing on the first floor was completely redesigned. The wall between the rear bedrooms and staircase was pushed back to allow for the formation of a corridor at first-floor level.
This new configuration allowed for a winding staircase to be installed between first and attic level, with a much lower pitch on the stair. “This makes it much safer to use,” says Connolly.
Davos laminate flooring, Kronoswiss.
Davos laminate flooring, Kronoswiss.
Storage was in short supply, so Keeley and Connolly worked hard to build in as much as possible. There’s a hatch, accessed from the ground floor, to a storage area beneath the winding steps, which is ideal for stashing away bulky items such as suitcases.
“A ledge along the staircase between the first and attic level was another under-utilised space,” says Connolly. “We added some shelving here for books.”
“A ledge along the staircase between the first and attic level was another under-utilised space,” says Connolly. “We added some shelving here for books.”
The attic room is now easy and safe to access and is used as spill-over space and an occasional guest bedroom.
A second extension was designed to extend over the single-storey kitchen and dining area at the back of the house. The existing roof pitch was extended down and the ceilings in the two rear bedrooms were pitched internally to give a greater illusion of height and space throughout.
As the roof was extended, the window configuration also had to change in the bedrooms. “A combination of Velux windows forms a cranked window system, with a wrapping window arrangement over the bed area in both rooms,” says Connolly. “Now the owners can enjoy extensive views to the Dublin Mountains beyond.”
Extending the existing bedroom area made space for built-in storage, which was a key requirement of the build. Daylight levels were also improved throughout with minimal impact to the existing layout and to neighbouring properties.
The original staircase, seen here on the ground floor, was constructed from stained wood.
To enhance the beach house feel the owners were after and increase the sense of space, the existing staircase on the ground floor was also replaced. “Glass balustrades were installed throughout,” says Connolly. “The staircase was stained to blend with the pale oak flooring on the first floor [seen earlier].”
The kitchen layout didn’t change greatly during the works. “The space is part-octagonal in shape,” says Connolly. “The main brief for the kitchen area was to generally refresh it, to install a full-height fridge-freezer, rationalise the storage and fit a new oak worktop to finish.”
Kitchen cabinets, Thomas Kitchen Kraft.
Discover how to achieve a stress-free kitchen renovation
Kitchen cabinets, Thomas Kitchen Kraft.
Discover how to achieve a stress-free kitchen renovation
Once the kitchen had been reconfigured, the owners needed a new home for their cookery books. “The idea for the shelf was to move the cookbooks out of the general kitchen area to allow for more storage throughout, while also creating an effective display area for them,” says Connolly.
The bookshelf runs along the back of the room and becomes a wine rack over the boiler enclosure, fridge-freezer and pull-out cupboard.
Browse 14 invaluable style tips from our blogger series so far
Browse 14 invaluable style tips from our blogger series so far
The oak laminate flooring throughout the ground floor was installed by the owners.
The living room opens onto the kitchen and dining space at the back of the house. The fireplace is original to the house, but previously had a natural timber finish. “To tie in with the new aesthetic throughout, it was painted grey,” says Connolly.
By adding two relatively small extensions, totalling 12 sq m, this small property has been radically improved and its layout rationalised, creating a more efficient home that’s enjoyable to live in.
Plans illustrate the new extensions and improvements to the house.
What do you think of this radically improved Dublin home? Share your thoughts in the Comments below.
What do you think of this radically improved Dublin home? Share your thoughts in the Comments below.
Who lives here A young professional couple with two children under 10
Location Dublin
Property A detached house built in around 2002
Size 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms
Designer Alan Connolly and Deirdre Keeley of Dathanna Architecture
Refreshing the kitchen was just one element of this renovation, which included adding two small extensions, designing a new staircase and installing lots of clever storage.