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property magazine
Make a splash: this 1920s Sandycove home is just minutes from the Forty Foot
Hillbrook is on the market for €2,950,000.
WITH THE CRACKING weather we’ve been having lately, I’d hazard a guess that life beside the seaside is more tempting than ever to house hunters. There’s no shortage of seaside towns and villages on our little island but if Dublin is a non-negotiable then, no doubt, somewhere along the Dart line would be the top pick.
In Sandycove, there are rituals that never lose their appeal, such as an early dip at the Forty Foot, a walk along the seafront and a coffee afterwards. At Hillbrook on Burdett Avenue, this could become your morning routine.
Built around 1923, this period home sits just a couple of minutes’ walk from the coast and offers 283 m² of space over four levels. Behind its traditional façade, the house has been refurbished while retaining the architectural details that give homes of this era their particular charm.
Sash windows, timber shutters, elaborate cornicing, ceiling roses and original marble fireplaces feature throughout, alongside contemporary bathrooms and a bespoke kitchen. The result is a modern home that still nods to its past.
One of the loveliest rooms is the dining room, where parquet flooring, timber panelling and a marble fireplace create an appropriately elegant setting for entertaining. The drawing room, meanwhile, has an open fire and the proportions expected of a large period house.
The Rhatigan & Hick kitchen takes a more modern approach. Designed around a large island, it has bespoke cabinetry and a Britannia range cooker, with doors leading directly to the garden.
The main house has five generously-sized bedrooms, two with en suite shower rooms. Four are on the upper floors, where some enjoy glimpses towards Dublin Bay, while another is located below kitchen level. A separate main bathroom and utility room complete the accommodation.
What makes Hillbrook particularly interesting, however, is what lies at garden level. Here, a self-contained two-bed apartment has its own kitchen, living and dining space and shower room.
For buyers with older children, an au pair or relatives who would benefit from independent accommodation, it is a very useful add-on.
Outside, the east-facing garden is designed as an urban retreat, with a raised timber deck, gravelled seating space and planted beds. There is also pedestrian access onto the back laneway. This small detail can make a considerable difference with a terraced home.
Of course, the great luxury here is the location. Burdett Avenue places you within strolling distance of Sandycove Beach and the Forty Foot, while Glasthule and Dalkey provide cafés, restaurants, and independent shops a-plenty.
Dart stations are nearby too, making the city readily accessible without sacrificing the pleasures of coastal life.
For a house approaching its second century, Hillbrook feels well equipped for the many different ways a family might want to live today.
Its appeal lies in its ability to be several things at once. It has the grandeur and proportions of a period Dublin home, but none of the sense of a renovation project waiting to happen. Its separate apartment gives it an unusual degree of flexibility, yet there is scope to return it to one larger and even more luxurious family home.
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