Violet Hill was built in the 1860s at a time when Bray was having its heyday after the arrival of the rail link in 1854. The coastal Co Wicklow town, with its new bathing areas, was the place to be seen, fabricated in the image of Brighton. The upper classes migrated there in their droves and built Victorian villas and terraces along the seafront.
The Darley-Millar family, keen to get in on the action, commissioned architect William Fogerty to design a property just outside the town. The sprawling, neo-Gothic Victorian mansion was constructed to take in the views of the Sugar Loaf.
Over the years, the impressive home caught the attention of celebrities, most likely due to its proximity to Ardmore Studios. There are stories of legendary parties at Violet Hill when Scottish actor and Bond star Sean Connery lived there for a time during the 1970s. When the house’s contents went up for auction in 2013, items included Connery’s watch and croquet mallet.
In 1977 the mansion was subdivided into four residential units – Violet Hill House, Mandalay, Amber and Gallery. A former stables and coach house on the land has also been converted in the intervening years, bringing the number of dwellings on the site to nine.
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Amber, the ground-floor three-bedroom unit within the main house, is now on the market with a guide price of €795,000, selling through Sherry FitzGerald. With a floor area of 160sq m (1,722sq ft), it is larger than many modern-day houses.
It was bought by the current owners in 2014, who recall seeing a “pond” of water in what is now the livingroom, and mushrooms growing on the walls in the bedrooms, after it had not been lived in for a number of years. It had also been given the 1980s treatment, which meant many of the original features were ripped out and replaced with pine doors and yellow-tinted glass.
Determined to bring the Victorian appeal back to the building, the couple has spent years working on the property to create a warm and characterful home for themselves and their two sons.
The property was completely retrofitted with insulation in the floors, walls and ceiling. An air-to-water heat system was also installed, allowing the temperature to remain constant throughout the home all year round, without costing the earth. The windows were upgraded to double glazing, retaining the original frames.
The interiors have been so carefully designed by the owners that it would be easy to believe that all the features in the property are the original. Furnishings and fittings were painstakingly chosen, with much time devoted to salvage yards and antique shops.
As you enter the hall, you are greeted by one of the only features that wasn’t discarded by previous owners, which is the original fireplace. The hallway brings to mind an old country house with the cloakroom hooks, tiled floor, panelled walls and a Victorian radiator.
To the right is the main bedroom, which also has an original fireplace. The en suite bathroom has a roll-top free-standing bath, as well as an impressive reproduction Edwardian-style glazed shower cabinet.
What would have been the original hall in the main house is now one long kitchen in Amber. The layout was designed to create an ergonomic room that would enhance accessibility and efficiency. There is enough storage in the dark units built by Black and White Craftsmen to keep the marble worktops free from clutter. The fridge is integrated in undercounter drawers rather than breaking the clean line in the room, leaving the walls clear to display art.
At the other end of the room is the dining area, which also has custom-built cabinetry for crockery and glasses, as well as a separate dishwasher and sink.
The livingroom, which would have been the kitchen of the main house, still has the enormous fire at its centre. The fireplace was non-existent, so after much searching to find something big enough, the owners fitted an antique marble piece and created a tiled inset. Another new addition to the livingroom is the cast-iron spiral staircase from Wilson’s Yard, which takes you up to the gallery library.
There are two bedrooms off the kitchen. One has an en suite bathroom and patio doors out to the garden. There is also a utility room that has retained one of the original stained-glass windows.
When the main house was divided, so too was the surrounding seven acres. Amber sits on a third of an acre, which is split up into three separate gardens.
The site off the Kilcroney side of Herbert Road is mature, with several protected trees. It is accessed by a private laneway, and is like a small, self-contained community, with all age groups looking out for one another.
It is not going to be easy for the owners to say goodbye to this little piece of private paradise, but taking it from rundown to remarkable has given them a hunger for another project, which they hope won’t be too far away.
