Providence, defined as the protective care of nature as a spiritual power, was something that Rosemary Kavanagh kept close to her heart when she was designing her six-bedroom, Georgian- inspired home in 1999. Kavanagh, who followed feng shui principles in the design and construction, had to plan a house that could accommodate eight people: her five teenage/young adult children, mother-in-law and husband. She worked alongside architect Shelly Barrett in designing the 330 sq m building and then employed labour to build it.
When I arrive at the house, which sits in a quiet enclave of large one-off homes in Rathmichael, in Co Dublin, the sun is setting on a glorious day. Kavanagh, in a casual gilet, emerges through large electronic gates to greet me. As we walk into the garden, where there is parking for several cars, and on through the Italianate courtyard, with its creeper-clad walls, it is only then that the house reveals itself.
Building Providence was an organic project. “We had so many meetings because we were so constricted with design,” says Kavanagh. “We weren’t allowed to build two storeys; it was in planning a long time. Then when it came to building it, I was the ‘clerk of works’.”
While her husband, Michael Fitzpatrick, an engineer, took a step back in the project, he did have a few stipulations. “He was interested in the height of the ceilings, the size of the doors and the windows. Being an engineer he also gave me an engineer to work with. It was such fun — I would not do it again, but it was great fun,” says Kavanagh.
The house took more than a year to complete, and the family moved in as soon as it was habitable, but only just: the floors were still concrete, and there were three doors in the entire building, the front and back and the door to Fitzpatrick’s mother’s bedroom.
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Seventeen years later, Providence cuts a very different picture: it has elegant decor and is filled with books and many memories. For Kavanagh, one of her must-haves was an entrance hall with wow factor. The result is a striking elliptical space, with large curved doors leading off. “I loved the idea of a round room and this is as close as I got. I’m really happy with it as I think an entrance hall makes the place,” she says.
From the hall we walk through to a square living room, which is bathed in evening light thanks to an outsize picture window that overlooks the rear garden. To the right are the bedrooms and to the left the living spaces.
A desire for proportion dictated the house’s design, so when Kavanagh was adding a conservator/orangery, seven years ago, she needed two to keep the house symmetrical. “We did a deal with the conservatory people where we would do some ground work and they would put in the two orangeries. It wasn’t quite two for one, but they were very accommodating,” she says.
There is a bank of reception rooms: a second and third living room and a study. The house, was built in a wide U shape, and the kitchen sits at one end with a shower room, utility room, larder and a storage room, which was once used as a gym, off it. “We’re early risers so we put the shower beside the kitchen so we could get up in the morning, have a shower and then pop into the kitchen for a cup of tea,” says Kavanagh.
In the sleeping quarters, there were seven bedrooms originally, but when Kavanagh was adding the second orangery she turned one of the bedrooms into a library. A couple of the bedrooms are small, so new owners might want to extend the house to the side for more space, or knock two of the single rooms into one long space.
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Kavanagh chose not to have en suite bathrooms. “If you have eight people in the house and everyone has en suites, it’s not practical,” she says. The family got by with two bathrooms and a shower room.
There’s nothing ostentatious about the house. “We’re fairly simple people; the house has good design,” Kavanagh says. It does have a hot tub, though, which was a “mad notion and is rarely used”. In a nod to its Georgian influence there are no radiators, heating is underfloor.
All of the windows overlook gardens, whether it is the courtyard or the manicured back garden. Their design was the work of Martin Hallinan, a landscape architect and the chief designer at City West in Dublin, who created a gravelled courtyard with a mature cloud tree at its centre, alongside a mixture of patio, formal box hedging and lawn in the remainder. Large mature trees provide privacy.
An elliptical water feature was added by Fitzpatrick and mirrors the elliptical shape of the hall. The back garden gets the daytime sun, while, in the evening, it shines into the bedrooms and courtyard.
“I really like the concepts and the energy in the house, and how to make the best of the house. When you have the sun during the day it’s all lively, energetic,” says Kavanagh.
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Now that their children are grown, the couple are moving to a smaller house nearby. “My heart and soul went into the house, so I really like it but now I don’t feel right about having a big house and not using it,” says Kavanagh.
Providence went to auction in 2015, but when it didn’t achieve a good price, the couple took it off the market. It is back on with Sherry FitzGerald, for €1.295m.
The lowdown
What it is: Providence, No 8 Ferndale Glen, a single-storey home with Georgian influences
Where it is: Rathmichael, in Co Dublin
Rooms: Six bedrooms, three bathrooms, reception rooms, a library, study, gym and two orangeries
Price: €1.295m
Agent: sherryfitz.ie
They say: A haven of idyllic privacy and seclusion within Ferndale Glen
We say: The courtyard would be ideal for a summer soiree.