Featured in Feb/March Issue

30 Pages of Readers’ Homes, Mellow Yellows. The Power of Flowers, Standard Lamps, Storage, New Build Reconfigured, Complete Renovation, Dance of the Cherry Tree

Kitchen Trends – A Kitchen and A Home

This beautifully designed kitchen has all the elements of the kitchen trends for 2019. It was carefully thought out with the emphases on insuring it was very practical and family friendly. For this couple the kitchen had to be efficient, warm and cozy, as it is home to five very busy teenagers. The focal point in this kitchen is the banquette style seating area. Banquette seating refers to the built-in benches often found in restaurant seating. While booths and banquettes have always been a cozy way to dine, they have become very popular in homes everywhere.

New Build Reconfigured

As we arrived at this exquisite home, we were greeted by the delightful yapping and excitement of one of the house’s main occupants – Schubert: clearly a much-loved Maltese and prince of his realm. He was all dolled up sporting an up style and ready for the photo shoot. Schubert was accompanied by his new pal Missy – a recently-adopted darling little Papillion, so called because her ears, when pricked up, transform her face to make it look just like a butterfly. It is very obvious that these two pooches are the centre of this young couple’s world and were very much taken into consideration when they began the construction of their home.

Complete Renovation in the Heart of Galway City

31 Nuns Island was bought by its present owner at auction in July 2016 . The house was near derelict and would require extensive renovations to make it habitable and (delete) but this did not deter the owner having seen the potential of the house with its enviable location at end of Nuns Island Street overlooking the canal and O’Briens Bridge.

In this Issue

Get all the inspiration you need in the April/May Issue of Upstairs Downstairs. We at Upstairs Downstairs endeavor to bring you diverse house features as much as possible. We have an eclectic mix of houses and ideas just to get you into decorating mode. We also have some wonderful shopping pages with products to suit every interior. If carpets are your thing you can check out our tips for buying carpets so no big mistakes are made. So get to your local newsagents and pick up a copy of the new issue

Soft Industrial At its Best

As an aficionado of this soft industrial look I was delighted when I got the chance to visit this home which was actually ‘For Sale’ through Sherry Fitzgerald Galway but has since been sold. I am not surprised, as this beautiful home is smack bang in the middle of Galway City centre. Although it is built in amongst many houses it actually has that feeling of spaciousness and calm. This architecturally designed home was bought as a site with the plans ready to go. As the house plan suited the owner he decided to build the house according to the plan. One because he loved the house and two because if he made any changes he would’ve had to re apply to the planning office for permission for the changes. He also was anxious to get building this dream home.

Home Renovation In Oranmore

Although the size and location of this home was perfect for the owners and their four children, it just seemed to be lacking in that little something and not very conducive to family life. Four large bedrooms and an attic space needed very little changing, it was the layout of the ground floor that caused most of the problem. For one thing Karen, the owner would have to turn the lights on in the kitchen area first thing in the morning until bedtime. This family craved light and sunshine. She commissioned Eoin Gleeson of Gleeson & Associates, Design Consultants to give them more space and especially more light in an open plan space at the rear of the house.

Home Revamp In Ballina

One of the challenges when relocating a home is mixing the older pieces of furniture with new pieces needed and often too tempting to ignore. This conversation initiated a project recently completed by Ronan and the team at Trevor Morrow’s in Ballina, who supplied the paint, flooring, kitchen, wardrobes and window dressings along with many pieces of furniture for this stunning new home.

Spanish Point House – History By The Sea

Spanish Point House is an early-Victorian residence, originally called ‘Sea View House’, built to capture the dramatic views over this spectacular coastline. Formerly ‘McAuley House’, this 19th Century period house has much history attached and has been lovingly refurbished by its current owners Pat & Aoife O Malley

The original house known as ‘Sea View House’ was built by Francis Gould Morony formerly of Miltown House in 1830 replacing an older building. Francis willed ‘Sea View’ to his wife’s niece, Miss Stoney who married Captain Robert Ellis. In 1870 the house was inherited by the Ellis family who added the two wings to the building. Thomas Gould Ellis was their son and heir.

Soft Industrial At its Best 

As an aficionado of this soft industrial look I was delighted when I got the chance to visit this home which was actually ‘For Sale’ through Sherry Fitzgerald Galway but has since been sold. I am not surprised, as this beautiful home is smack bang in the middle of Galway City centre. Although it is built in amongst many houses it actually has that feeling of spaciousness and calm. This architecturally designed home was bought as a site with the plans ready to go. As the house plan suited the owner he decided to build the house according to the plan. One because he loved the house and two because if he made any changes he would’ve had to re apply to the planning office for permission for the changes. He also was anxious to get building this dream home.

Home Renovation In Oranmore 

Although the size and location of this home was perfect for the owners and their four children, it just seemed to be lacking in that little something and not very conducive to family life. Four large bedrooms and an attic space needed very little changing, it was the layout of the ground floor that caused most of the problem. For one thing Karen, the owner would have to turn the lights on in the kitchen area first thing in the morning until bedtime. This family craved light and sunshine. She commissioned Eoin Gleeson of Gleeson & Associates, Design Consultants to give them more space and especially more light in an open plan space at the rear of the house.

In this Issue

Get all the inspiration you need in the April/May Issue of Upstairs Downstairs. We at Upstairs Downstairs endeavor to bring you diverse house features as much as possible. We have an eclectic mix of houses and ideas just to get you into decorating mode. We also have some wonderful shopping pages with products to suit every interior. If carpets are your thing you can check out our tips for buying carpets so no big mistakes are made. So get to your local newsagents and pick up a copy of the new issue

Home Revamp In Ballina

One of the challenges when relocating a home is mixing the older pieces of furniture with new pieces needed and often too tempting to ignore. This conversation initiated a project recently completed by Ronan and the team at Trevor Morrow’s in Ballina, who supplied the paint, flooring, kitchen, wardrobes and window dressings along with many pieces of furniture for this stunning new home.

Spanish Point House – History By The Sea

Spanish Point House is an early-Victorian residence, originally called ‘Sea View House’, built to capture the dramatic views over this spectacular coastline. Formerly ‘McAuley House’, this 19th Century period house has much history attached and has been lovingly refurbished by its current owners Pat & Aoife O Malley

The original house known as ‘Sea View House’ was built by Francis Gould Morony formerly of Miltown House in 1830 replacing an older building. Francis willed ‘Sea View’ to his wife’s niece, Miss Stoney who married Captain Robert Ellis. In 1870 the house was inherited by the Ellis family who added the two wings to the building. Thomas Gould Ellis was their son and heir.

Soft Industrial At its Best

As an aficionado of this soft industrial look I was delighted when I got the chance to visit this home which was actually ‘For Sale’ through Sherry Fitzgerald Galway but has since been sold. I am not surprised, as this beautiful home is smack bang in the middle of Galway City centre. Although it is built in amongst many houses it actually has that feeling of spaciousness and calm. This architecturally designed home was bought as a site with the plans ready to go. As the house plan suited the owner he decided to build the house according to the plan. One because he loved the house and two because if he made any changes he would’ve had to re apply to the planning office for permission for the changes. He also was anxious to get building this dream home.

Home Renovation In Oranmore

Home Renovation

Although the size and location of this home was perfect for the owners and their four children, it just seemed to be lacking in that little something and not very conducive to family life. Four large bedrooms and an attic space needed very little changing, it was the layout of the ground floor that caused most of the problem. For one thing Karen, the owner would have to turn the lights on in the kitchen area first thing in the morning until bedtime. This family craved light and sunshine. She commissioned Eoin Gleeson of Gleeson & Associates, Design Consultants to give them more space and especially more light in an open plan space at the rear of the house.

How Passive is a Passive Home

Passive Home

The term ‘passive home’ is becoming increasingly popular as people look to find a more energy efficient way of building and extending their homes.   Those wishing to build a home or extension to a passive standard need to consider that there are a number of factors which contribute to a home being certified as 100% passive.   So what does a ‘Passive’ house actually mean?  For this article we spoke to Innovative Home Solutions to give us an idea of how to build a passive home. Here are some of the finer details they imparted to us. We also have some fabulous images of some of their  passive housing projects

House for Sale

House For Sale – Kiltulla

We have two reasons for bringing you this beautiful home in Kiltulla Co. Galway, firstly its for sale under the auctioneering skills of Michelle Burke Auctioneers, and secondly, although the sellers have actually moved house Michelle commissioned Des and Claire from Home Gallery Interiors to stage the house and give it that homely atmosphere. This they did splendidly. With all the accessories from Home Gallery Interiors, they have given the prospective buyers an idea of how their new home could look.

Flooring –  Covering All Angles

Pergo-Cashmere-Oak

Flooring –  Covering All Angles

Here we bring you all the latest hard floor trends. Its a veritable maze working through all the different types of flooring. Do you go with hard wood, solid wood, semi solids, laminates or tiles. There are hundreds of products from which to chose. Here are just a few suggestions that may help you on your hunt for the perfect floor.

Parisian Pine in Basket

Room By Room – Betty’s Kitchen

High Gloss Units

For this Kitchen renovation the owner, Betty,  went to Pat Regan Kitchens for advice, design and the building of her new space. These high gloss units in cream are topped with a speckled granite worktop from Comer Marble & Granite in Corofin,

The April/May issue will be in the shops this coming Saturday 15th. Here is our cover, so keep an eye open for it.

This beautiful cottage in the Claddagh, Galway was an old standard design house with a centered front door and two small rooms on either side. For the renovation of this home, the  owner removed the front door which is now situated at the side of the house leaving more living space inside. The door opens into the kitchen thus giving more space for bedrooms to the front of the house. She also extended the space to the front allowing for a bigger main bedroom inside. The colour scheme  on the exterior is continued inside  -a fresh sea blue and sand combination. The picket fence fulfills the owner’s dream of living in a country cottage with a picket fence.

The front door now at the side of the house

The ladder leads to a mezzanine above the kitchen which houses a large L shaped couch that can be converted into a bed as an extra room for guests. A great way to add an extra room to any home. The pink couch brings an extra dimension of colour to the kitchen/entrance area.

Tone on tone shade of the large couch is contrasted with the blue of the wall and the scattered cushions.

The Seaside Colour Scheme