Dublin florists swapped their three-bed home in the city for the quiet life in a country mansion

Larch Vale House, Moneygall, Co Offaly

Asking price: €1.2m

Agent: Casey Kennedy (01) 2883688 & Coldwell Banker Estates & Homes (01) 4110012

It’s no secret that you get more bang for your property buck when you move out of the city, so it’s surprising that more of us don’t do it.

But the owners of the Blooming Amazing Flower Company, Anna and Kevin Finlay, seemed like an unlikely couple to take the leap to the country back in 2006.

With flower shops on Dawson Street, in Ranelagh and Foxrock at the time, they were house-hunting around the southside of the city and becoming disheartened by the size of the houses available within their budget.

“We had been looking to move to a larger property in Dublin from our 1930s three-bedroomed home on Lower Churchtown Road after the birth of our third child,” says Anna.

“I love period properties and after looking around for a year or so and not finding anything suitable in Dublin, we had to come up with a new plan.

“I’m a country girl from Scotland, so I started to look in the country section in the Irish Independent and on various websites, hoping to find our perfect home.

“On one of our jaunts to look at a mill in Moneygall Village, we dropped up their lane for a wee peek and what we saw was this amazing three-storey house, which looked so big to us.”

The 1829-built house sitting on 3.6 acres of grounds spanned more than three times the average family home at 3,300 sq ft, with four receptions, five bedrooms and four bathrooms along with a substantial amount of outbuilding space.

Not wanting to take on a massive project, the couple were relieved that the property had already been completely gutted and brought up to current building standards.

The outbuildings were still derelict and there was building rubble everywhere, but with the main house in good shape, they went for it.

“We loved the elegant rooms, the space and the converted coach house,” says Anna.

“As an avid gardener, I wanted a kitchen garden and a polytunnel, so there was definitely space for that. The kids loved the grounds and we were 300 metres from the road.

“The trees are home to an amazing array of birds — we have kestrels nesting in the Scot’s pine, as well as barn owls.”

Once the Finlays decorated and filled the already-renovated house, they got to work on the outbuildings. Rubble was removed and new roofs, plumbing and electrics added.

The lean-to conservatory, which was also piled high with bricks and dirt from the house renovation, was replaced with a timber-framed garden room.

The layout of the three floors mirror each other, with an extension from the 1900s at ground level.

Downstairs is the living room or the ‘Christmas room’ as the family calls it, as it sees most use during the festive period, with the ‘formal’ dining room on the other side of the hall.

There is a bedroom behind the dining room and in the extended part of the house is the kitchen, utility room, pantry, shower room and walk-in hot press.

The dining room leads into the converted coach house, now known as ‘the long room’, which is Anna’s favourite part of the house, featuring the original arched carriage doorway, lofted ceiling and wood-burning stove.

On the first floor are two more bedrooms and two bathrooms, and the top floor also has two more bedrooms, one bathroom and a playroom.

The 9ft ceilings are adorned with coving and centre rose plasterwork, and the original stained glass in the hallway dates back to the 1820s.

To support and sustain the old building, all the walls have been underpinned, and all floors and walls insulated. There are two wood-fired stoves, solar panels and a new high-efficiency condenser boiler for heating.

The move was a bigger adjustment for Kevin, who is from Mount Merrion, but Anna says it didn’t take him long to adapt. He discovered a love of DIY and gardening, and was soon in his element.

“Kevin had to take on a lot of the work in the garden and after initially working with a landscaping company, he has done a great job.”

The 3.6 acres were wilderness in parts, so a huge amount of time and effort went into landscaping, maintaining the health of the old trees and planting new ones.

The couple enjoyed finding furniture to fit these larger rooms and also restored some old pieces they had, including Anna’s father’s old paint storage chest that sits proudly in the hallway.

There was one item already in the house they only lately discovered they had a link to.

Kevin’s mum went to Sacred Heart Convent Boarding School in Roscrea and on meeting up with previous owners in the last few weeks, they learned that the free-standing bath in one of the bathrooms was reclaimed from the school when it closed.

Outside, the Finlays added a secret garden where they created a double patio and herb garden. For Kevin, the house has provided the family with a balance to their busy working lives in the city.

“After a few days working in Dublin, I always enjoy turning the corner and heading up the drive. You instantly feel the calming effects of the peace and quiet of Larch Vale,” he says.

“I always enjoy an hour or two on the mower — cutting the grass is my way of de-stressing.” Now that their adult children Callum, Sarah and Ava have moved out, the house is too big for just the two of them.

“We spend at least three nights in Dublin working in our flower shop in Ranelagh. We also both think it’s time to travel and do all the things we’ve been putting off,” says Anna.

“I would like to stay here forever and I’m so sad to say goodbye to this amazing home and to all the great friends and neighbours who we’ve made here.

“We only hope that another family has as great a time in Larch Vale as we have had.”

Joint agents Casey Kennedy and Coldwell Banker seek €1.2m.

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