Interiors special: a house with a big personality

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With the current trends of greys and neutrals, interiors can appear as though decorated from the same brochure, in a somewhat sterile manner, where everything seems to match. It is refreshing to visit a home where colour blasts through a property, giving a sense of fun, quirkiness and individuality.

This property on Belgrave Square in Dublin’s Rathmines has a personality, and a big one at that. It is a laidback sociable family home to a couple, their three boys and a very affable dog.

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The family purchased the property in 2000, when it was a series of 10 bedsits. “It looked awful, but the bones were good,” says conservation architect Suzanne MacDonald of MacDonald Vagge, who oversaw the project. MacDonald set about adding an extension that would link into the reception rooms to ensure the flow of the property.

A further extension was added to the Grade I protected structure in 2010, overseen by interior designer Gregory Curran. “We wanted to create a relaxed family home, not a showpiece,” says Curran. The kitchen was marginally extended, a central pillar removed and larger window installed.

“It now looks nearly double the size, as we took advantage of the orientation by changing the small windows to two full patio doors,” says Curran. Adding to the sense of space is the absence of upper kitchen cabinets, and the pantry and fridge lie flush with the wall.

Fish wallpaper

The result is a dramatic open-plan kitchen and dining room with pale oak flooring. Turquoise, orange and pink which feature in the fish wallpaper by Osborne and Little, have been accented throughout the room.

What makes the property more interesting is the mixture of fine art, vintage findings at markets and IKEA soft furnishings throughout. Pottery from ceramic artist Orla Kaminska sits alongside a pestle and mortar the couple found at a French market. The bar stools came from IKEA, and their original white colour was dyed by the owners to a more interesting and stain-forgiving orange.

The fish theme, besides creating interest on the walls, is echoed in a simple wooden mobile picked up at the Ballymaloe shop. A nod to humour is the inflated puffer fish skeleton bought in Corfu. Having the second most poisonous vertebrate on the planet hanging from your kitchen ceiling serves as a reminder that some people play Russian roulette with these creatures at mealtimes.

Pinks and fuchsias, a favourite of the owners, feature strongly throughout – from a powder-pink guest bedroom, which contrasts beautifully with the pale cream-painted flooring, to a shocking pink sofa in the kitchen, which picks up the hues of a climbing rose in the garden. Magenta is also used to emphasise the arched windows in the bathroom, which too are unique, as no other house on the square has them.

An oak study was added to link the extension with the drawing room and opens out onto the garden. Overhead hangs a giant Maskros pendant light from IKEA, adjacent to a disco ball which rotates at parties.

Natural sisal flooring in the drawing room is covered with an enormous rug sourced from Herman Wilkinson, on which floral sofas from Inreda sit. The sofas are all about comfort and a favourite snoozing spot for Fly, the family Labrador.

Art collection

Another interesting feature is the material used on the window seats in both drawing and living rooms. What better way to get kids interested in geography than have them sit on a comfortable world atlas. Maps are again echoed in the downstairs loo, where customised wallpaper of a map of Dublin hangs.

Also hanging is the family's art collection. From the sombre realism by Blaise Smith, to the bold colours of Margaret Corcoran's work and the delicate etchings of Cliona Doyle, the artwork, like the house, is a mixture of styles and mediums.

Of interest in the tiered garden are three Mulberry trees. Planted a decade ago, they are now 7ft tall and provide a supply of succulent fruits in late summer.

What this house on Belgrave Square has achieved, in a city where interiors often clone ach other, is the layering of colour through textiles and interesting objects. The result is a unique relaxed home with a great sense of humour, a little eccentricity, and a whole lot of fun.

Get The Look

Funky clock: The Conran Shop at Arnotts
Multi-coloured rug: BoConcept
Window seat: atlas fabric from Leather wing-backed chairs originally from Ashford Castle: The Store Yard Portlaoise
Mulberry tree: Cappagh Nurseries Aughrim
Customised wallpaper: printbureau.ie