A Total Transformation

Kate and Dario explain how they revamped a run-down, three-bedroom Dublin semi into a fabulous family home in affordable stages.

- BARBARA EGAN

We loved this house from the start, we both grew up just around the corner, and Dario in particular had friends on this road and played up and down the gardens in every house as a child,' says Kate describing her family home. 'It was part of both our childhoods and when it came up at a good price after the collapse of the housing bubble, we just had to have a look, back in 2011.'

The house had come on the market as an executor sale, it was very dated and the garden was extremely overgrown. It was a quarter-acre site, a very large area by today's urban standards and Kate and Dario could see huge potential. They really wanted a 'project' house to make their own and the sky was the limit on this, extending was never going to be a problem and they would still have loads of space for kids and adults both to enjoy the garden.

'We went to view it in November,' says Kate. It was really The trees were practically coming into the house so the interior was very dark. The whole house had just two overgrown. radiators, the windows were old, single-glazed, and draughty. The kitchen was an original 1960s one and had one storage unit and two small wall cabinets. It had been rented out for years and was filthy and freezing cold. We loved it!' They bought in December and then moved in with Dario's parents for the duration of the initial build.