The basement livingroom of 7 Mountpleasant Avenue upper is a little bit of North Carolina transported to Dublin. The owner's mother-in-law had the exposed brick room as part of her living quarters and it is completely different to the rest of the ultra-contemporary house.

All of the furniture came over from the States and its honey rustic colour matches the floorboards. The copper plates and pans are also from the US.

For a similar rustic look, try the Shaker store in the Quaker village of Ballitore in Kildare: the catalogue of its products is on its website, kildare.ie/shakerstore, tel 059 8623372. Their Canterbury rocking chair is €230 in kit form and €380 assembled. Their four-seater drop leaf table is €850 in kit form and €1,400 finished. The wooden chest, which has a sheet of glass on it and cleverly doubles as a table.