27 Knockrahaderry, Liscannor, Co. Clare

A challenging but oh-so rewarding project – this house saw our team challenged to renovate, extend, upgrade and update a 25 year old house on a County Clare housing estate. The house was weathered outside and dated inside – but like its owners, we knew its views and location were second to none and that we could transform this tired cottage into the beautiful home is was always meant to be.

We knew extending the house would be straightforward and without red tape: under 40 sqm the standard permitted development rights applied. We spent a lot of time discussing the look and feel of the house with its owners and their architect and it was clear that the conventional ‘twee’ holiday cottage was not what they were looking for. The main brief was: create a holiday home that would give plenty of friends and family the space to retreat, and with lots of kitchen space for ample entertaining. The house’s location is beautifully wild and elemental – and they owners wanted this feel to extend into the house. The finished design means the space is flooded with natural light – while features such as floor to ceiling glass and the slightly angled extension with vaulted ceiling seem to pull the eye into the landscape.

We built a new living room in the eaves and an overflow bedroom on the mezzanine level. A new open plan kitchen and living area was built and since part of the new kitchen stands in the footprint of the original house with a continuation of the same wooden floor, the new extension feels like part of the old house. A whitewashed Liscannor stone floor with under-floor heating completes the clean and contemporary feel. From a practical point of view, heating the new space meant having to upgrade to a triphase electricity cable and to install a double boiler.

The result? The making of the perfect holiday retreat.

This project featured in the summer 2016 edition Self Build Magazine