Coastal Cool

This beachside home in Holywood, Co. Down has been given a new lease of life and the final result is the perfect mix of classic and contemporary styling.

When ex-Miss Northern Ireland, Instagram influencer and estate agent Tiffany Brien purchased this house in August 2018, she wasn’t daunted by the work that lay ahead to bring it back to life and in line with how she wished to live in it. ‘There was just something about this place which kept drawing me to it and even though I was aware of the condition it was in, I did approach the homeowner with an offer and it was accepted.’

One the biggest draws for Tiffany, apart from the fact that the house is located in Holywood, County Down where she grew up, is the fact that the beach is only 100 metres from her front door. ‘I am a keen sailor and love the sea, always have. To have a home in Holywood this close to the sea was always a dream, but with house prices the way they are in this area, it would only be a project such as this one that would allow me to make my property dreams a reality,’ she explains.

At the very beginning of her renovation project, Tiffany engaged the services of the award-winning Des Ewing Architects to bring their expertise to the table and breathe life into this property once again. ‘I am familiar with Des Ewing’s work and knew that if anyone could achieve what I was after he could,’ says Tiffany.

Des was able to look at various layout options to introduce light into the ground floor. As he explains, ‘This house is unique in that it has no windows to the rear and side but only from the front. We looked at introducing lightwells with gardens within them but ended up with an airy vaulted ceiling and three roof lights.’