TOP TO TOE

A complete reconfiguration of rooms was the starting point for interior architect Gillian Sherrard’s striking family home

Gillian Sherrard – founder of interior architecture firm Sherrard Design – and her husband Robert were on the lookout for their next big renovation project when they stumbled across an unusual Victorian house in Sandycove, south Dublin. The couple thought it had the potential to make a great family home for themselves and their two children, Jemima, 11, and Victor, 10, despite its leaking roof and cracked windows.

‘The house had thick granite walls, views of the sea and a south-facing garden,’ recalls Gillian. The main problem was the layout: the rooms were higgledy-piggledy and there was a lack of light. So she completely turned the house on its head, moving most of the bedrooms downstairs and one of the sitting rooms upstairs, along with a kitchen-diner with doors leading out to the upper section of a split-level garden. Windows were added to the south elevation and the double-height central hall was fitted with a modern, open-tread staircase to contrast with the house’s original period features.

Inspiration comes from house-swap holidays. ‘You get to stay in these beautiful European

apartments, where you can wave your tape measure about and get ideas,’ says Gillian. She has deliberately chosen a limited number of materials, such as reclaimed pitch-pine floorboards, Carrara marble countertops in the kitchen and bathroom, and industrial steel windows. ‘It’s important not to have too many elements, so one room flows into the next,’ says Gillian. Built-in storage comes in the form of floor-to-ceiling bookshelves in the hall and an appliance larder in the kitchen, keeping the kettle and toaster tucked out of view.

The vista from the front of the property is special, as the house faces a Martello tower that is the setting for the opening chapter of James Joyce’s Ulysses. It is now a museum dedicated to the Irish writer. ‘There’s an outside deck just off the kitchen where we often dine, but I usually find myself by the bay window in the upstairs sitting room, just staring out at the water,’ says Gillian.

The Sherrards’ home is less than 100 metres from the beach, so the family frequently explore its rock pools. ‘The location of the house is so unusual, because we’re in the city, yet we can be by the sea in seconds,’ says Gillian. ‘It’s fantastic for decluttering the mind. I love living here.’

KITCHEN-DINER Leading onto the garden, this new open-plan area is ideal for entertaining. Glenn bar stools, £50 each, Ikea

LANDING ‘I use this upstairs hall area to meet clients,’ says Gillian. the Neptune Henley oak round pedestal dining table is similar, £870, John Lewis

HALL The modern, double-height staircase is in striking contrast to the traditional Victorian architecture. modern rugs has a selection of faux-cowhide rugs, from £329. barcelona chair, £6,771, Knoll at Aram store

JEMIMA’S BEDROOM A touch of pink adds a feminine feel. Harlequin’s All About me in best of Friends, £35m, is an alternative curtain fabric

MASTER BEDROOM A roll-top bath is positioned in the corner to make the most of the view. the earl 1750 double-ended slipper bath, £ 400, Victorian plumbing, is comparable

GUEST BEDROOM Vertical wall panelling is a nod to the intterior’s nautical theme. Cabinet D’amour bedside table, £225, the French bedroom Company, is a match