In 2011, architects Donaghy and Dimond won the RIAI award for best house extension for their project at number 1 Curzon Road in Dublin 8. The split-level Portobello house was stripped of its previous extensions and replaced with a long, sleek kitchen that was influenced by the traditional lean-to.
It may be drawing from the traditional, but the design is both innovative and contemporary. The timber kitchen with overhead beams opens out to a cobbled courtyard with the zinc roof linking the main house with a new studio at the back. Both buildings have been arranged around the outdoor area, with the original bricks from the back wall used to pave the ground.
There is no sign of the modern twist at the back when you enter the Victorian house through the front door. The high ceilings in the hall carry through to the livingroom at the front of the house. The eye is immediately drawn to the coving, with the large sash window flooding the room with morning sun. The window seat was the preferred perch during Covid lockdowns as the owner enjoyed watching people go by and waving to the neighbours.
There are steps down to the kitchen, which is a real contrast to the original part of the house. The layout is clean and sharp, with open timber shelving above the units. The materials used in the space, such as Valentia stone worktops and terrazzo floors, are outstanding.
The door to the courtyard slides open with the cobbled yard leading to the studio. This self-contained space has been used mostly as a home office but is currently set up as a guest suite, with a double bed fitting comfortably, and the en suite bathroom designed as a wet room with an electric shower and the terrazzo floor following through every part of the new build.
The bathroom in the main house is at the bottom of the stairs on the ground floor with a mini utility beside it for the washing machine.
Upstairs are two double bedrooms that overlook the back garden. They feel cosier than the rooms downstairs, with the larger of the two having an original cast-iron fireplace.
The courtyard is southwest-facing, so the sun appears in the early afternoon and remains for the rest of the day, with the Japanese maple catching the light. The front has a small, railed city garden with mature climbing roses.
Number 1 is on the market with an asking price of €695,000, selling through DNG. It has a D2 energy rating and uses gas-fired central heating, with underfloor heating in the extension and studio, and double-glazed windows throughout.
The location and the sense of community is something the owners are going to miss as they move farther into the suburbs with their young family. They say there is a lovely mix of older residents, families with kids and single professionals living in the area, adding that it is “the friendliest place ever”.
Nearby cafes such as Alma and Bibi’s make it easy for friends and neighbours to get together. For families with young children, the Lighthouse Montessori is across the road on Pleasants Street, while Harcourt Terrace Educate Together is a 10-minute walk from the award-winning house on Curzon Street.
