“Unconventional” is how the brochure for Henley Cottage in Churchtown describes the period villa-style home dating from the 1860s. And that same brochure was written while auctioneers Beirne & Wise kept an eagle eye on the property, as it is opposite its offices at the point where Upper Churchtown Road meets the Braemor Road.
It was purchased by its owner in 2017 for €975,000, according to the Property Price Register: “When I bought it, the previous owners had done root-and-branch renovations that took four years. They did the main cottage and added on a kitchen, and there was a snooker room in the garden,” says the owner of the then 160sq m (1,722sq ft) property. It has now grown considerably to 245sq m (2,637sq ft) thanks to an extension added over the past 18 months.
What was a pergola connecting the cottage to a snooker room in the garden has since been transformed into a bright sunroom that opens into the kitchen, allowing for a better flow to the property. This was designed by architect Glen Campbell in Ballsbridge: “It was all very cosy before but it really lacked any wide space, a place where, if it was bought by downsizers, that they could still have all their grandchildren over at Christmas.”
In addition, the room that was a games/snooker room has been transformed into a fourth bedroom with en suite. Tradecraft Renovations in Howth were tasked with the build and were also engaged for both hard and soft landscaping in the private courtyards: one to the front and a second off the kitchen to the rear.
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The property now has four bedrooms: two lie upstairs in an extension added to the rear years ago, along with the new bedroom at garden level and a bedroom adjacent to the hall in the original cottage.
It has three reception rooms, an eat-in kitchen and a reception hall large enough for drinks at parties, while there is a new home office or gym in a separate unit in the front garden. The dual-aspect kitchen is now the hub of the house and has access to both front and rear gardens.
High-end joinery was installed by Lambstongue in Chapelizod, which also created the orangery at the Castlemartin estate in Kildare. Details such as cast-iron gutters, new granite sills to match the original sills in the cottage and granite capping on the garden walls show the level of detail that has gone into the renovations.
A new flat roof and insulation was added to the house, which has a Ber of B2, as was an expensive security system with CCTV and electric gates that the owner can use remotely from their phone.
The owner is based in London, and although he intended to retire at Henley Cottage, this has been postponed as his new financial start-up company now dictates he spend more time abroad. To this end he has placed his home, which is in walk-in condition, on the market through Beirne & Wise, seeking €1.85 million.
