A price tag of €7.5 million undoubtedly seems steep for a house in the Dublin suburbs, even if it is in leafy, exclusive Foxrock. But when a prospective deep-pocketed buyer sees what they could get for their big bucks – an expansive home built to the highest standards, surrounded by 1.7 acres of magnificent, beautifully landscaped gardens in an idyllic, private setting – they might indeed consider Tinnahinch on Plunkett Avenue a tempting proposition.
Tinnahinch was built by its owners in 1998, and they did not scrimp on the materials or the workmanship that went into this home. The devil is in every fine detail of this period-style pile, from the Flemish bond facade to the Portland stone sills and bespoke oak joinery, along with paint finishes by Nat Clements of Clements & Moore, who is a renowned expert in creating bespoke colours that would have been used historically in period homes.
And the owners invested heavily in creating the stunning gardens, which have been landscaped in the Robinsonian style, of the Irish 19th-century gardener William Robinson, who pioneered the move away from formal gardens to more naturalistic designs, mixing native and exotic plants, and using trees, rocks, water and pasture to create wilder, less geometric layouts.
There are winding paths through the gardens, with many places to stop and read your book or have afternoon tea, and a small river meanders through the grounds on its way down to nearby Cabinteely Park. Wooden bridges criss-cross the river, and a wonderful waterfall tumbles down to a large lily pond.
Tinnahinch has been featured in The Hidden Gardens of Ireland by Marianne Heron, in which she praises the gardens’ layout, saying it provides “constant changes of mood”. You’d expect to find a suitably grand house within these gardens, and the Georgian-style Tinnahinch hous certainly exudes elegance. It extends to 558sq m (6,006sq ft) with a B3 Ber, and is for sale through Lisney Sotheby’s International Realty.
The fine craftsmanship is evident from the entrance hallway, with its stunning, bespoke cantilevered staircase in handcrafted French oak winding its way up to the gallery landing. The double-height hallway has a huge feature window with nine panes looking out to the front, and a commanding Victorian chimney piece with grey marble surround, barley twist columns and raised slate hearth. Most of the floors, doors and architraves are crafted in sturdy French oak, and the high ceilings have detailed coving and intricate centre roses.
Downstairs are four fine reception rooms with the livingroom to the front, which opens out on to a west-facing terrace overlooking the large lily pond. There’s a lovely Georgian fireplace with marble-surround slate hearth, with a multifuel Henley stove. Behind that is a large drawingroom with a bay window overlooking the garden, and another impressive Georgian fireplace. French doors lead in to a vaulted atrium-style conservatory with feature beams and handy electric vents in the skylights. Double doors lead in to a cosy family room just off the kitchen/diningroom, with bespoke built-in cabinets on either side of the Victorian-marble surround fireplace.
The open-plan kitchen/diningroom has part-tiled floor and part oak floor, Victorian cast-iron fireplace, large gas Aga and electric Aga, a feature centre island with undermounted Belfast sink, and granite work surfaces. The diningroom has a bay window and built-in seating with storage underneath, and makes for a lovely, bright space for family meals. French doors lead out to a terrace and another set lead in to the conservatory. Also downstairs is a large utility room/secondary kitchen. There’s also a cloakroom and guest WC downstairs.
Upstairs, an archway leads in to an inner hall with a window overlooking the back garden. There are four bedrooms on this level, all of them en suite, along with a study/gym which can be easily turned into a fifth bedroom. The main bedroom has a big bay window and a Juliet balcony overlooking the magnificent back garden, and it also has a large walk-in wardrobe and en suite. With the bedrooms all having generous proportions, high ceilings and ample windows looking out on to lush greenery, no one in the house will feel they’re getting short-changed in the bedroom lottery.
There is also a generous attic suite with a large room, which could be used as a yoga room, an office or a budding musician’s rehearsal room, along with a large bedroom and en suite. Velux rooflights keep the space bright and airy and there is also under-eaves storage. More storage is afforded by a block-built redbrick double garage to the front, with pedestrian access on to Plunkett Avenue.
Foxrock is a quiet, serene neighbourhood in south Co Dublin, but Tinnahinch brings the peace and tranquillity to a new level.
