Dwellbeing.ie

04/09/2025

Feels like Autumn today on our coastal project.
Lots of progress and new roof structure is up.
Hard to believe nobody has seen this view from the house until now 😍🌊
We took a modest 70’s bungalow and literally raised the roof. Project in on budget, on schedule and clients happy 😅

01/08/2025

It’s taken us a long time to realise that the drawings are one part of the process and the value is in taking clients safely through the process, listening to them and keeping them safe in the process.

We will admit it’s tough out there but there are plenty of good people and skilled labour and if you find the right partners to guide you through you will be fine. Don’t fear the process of upgrading/ renovating or building!

21/06/2025

For so many clients lately, Home has so many different connotations.

For some it’s shelter, from tough times or a new direction in life. For others, it’s an expansion on the life they’re living well. And for some it’s an opportunity to seek out what they’ve been craving in terms of solitude and just a space for them to be still.

I’ve built the architect designed home in my 20s, bought the fixer upper, renovated rented and restored and everything in between but I don’t think anything has given me so much enjoyment as designing this new space .

Having a space ( this is 3 m x 3 m) approx to write, read and think always seemed like such a luxury, however in reality as I’m getting older I’ve realised that it’s a necessity.

In the often frivolous world of architecture, we must never stop searching for authenticity with our clients. Everybody’s journey is different and it’s very personal to them. That’s why I always tell clients that no two projects will never ever be the same, you’ll never get a repeat of an interior scheme and above all if you listen well to your client you’ll give them so much more than just a building.

My cabin in the forest 🌳

Concept by me ( Karen) and brought a life so beautifully by Muireann

16/06/2025

One day they’re sitting at the kitchen table colouring contentedly, all the while taking it all in.

And just like that , they’re mid 20s and they’re out in the world and that dining table is empty way more than it used to be.

We worry way too much about how our home will look, we worry about whether fabric will become marked with crayons or markers, if curtains and cushion tassels will be chewed up by the dog and whether things match or not.

But to a pair of little eyes, it’s home and hopefully it’s their safe place until they’re old enough to create their own.
They remember with fondness the patterns and the feeling of running their hand over the velvet couch, marvelling at the feeling of their little feet moving back-and-forth in the chair tassels. They will never remember if something was in fashion or not, whether something actually matched or how much it actually cost.

Life is just too short and it goes in the blink of an eye ♥️

Design stage interior render by
Concept by Karen

12/04/2025

Full circle moment from 1840 to 2025…

Lovingly restored windows and half door by local joiner John Fitzgerald ( you’ll never meet a nicer, more decent and skilled craftsperson).

What a journey… more ups and downs than a rollercoaster, we’ve met brilliant craftspeople, not so brilliant and everything in between. But the people who ultimately got to work on the cottage shared the same values as us by wanting to preserve as much as possible and allow it to tell its story again.

06/04/2025

8 more Sundays to go before our client can enjoy Sunday morning in her new home.

I find more and more that people don’t really understand exactly what an architectural practice does and while the TV programmes show a certain amount, what they don’t tend to show are the really important parts of the process and the build process in particular..

By signing an RIAI building contract ( which you can only get from a registered architect) a Client has full peace of mind on:

the start and completion dates

the contract price is locked in and unless the client makes additions that is the full and final price

Full set of technical drawings accompany the contract so everything is to the building regulations and planning where required

Nothing changes on the plans ( it’s amazing how many opinions are voiced on site ‘ wouldn’t it be better if you put the kitchen over here’ 😧 was something I heard recently. But what the builder didn’t know was that the client had a very specific reason for Locating the kitchen where it was ( not everybody wants to be blasted with south light)

The schedule is managed weekly with site photos and updates so any delays are picked up in real time

When we say May 31 hand over it’s May 31.. and unless it’s a genuine reason for extending ( bad weather, delay on materials) liquidated damages form part of the contract in the form of a penalty for the builder ( usually a fixed sum of money)

As our client we inspect the works and you only pay for work done and completed to standards and drawings ( if I had a penny for the amount of times I’ve heard people say that they dreaded visiting their home during a renovation without having an architect or QS because the builder kept asking for more money or extras).

Above all you have somebody to support you and make sure your design gets built, your neighbours are looked after all during the build, mind your money for the most expensive purchase you will make and most importantly make it enjoyable.

27/03/2025

A moment for the ‘ small’ projects

The ones that nobody wants to take on

‘Sorry we don’t work on projects under €500,000
Your home isn’t worthy of good design because it’s too small a project for our firm’

We say what a load of rubbish!

Good Design is not about elitism.. it’s about making life better and easier for people. Reducing it to a monetary value shows just how far we’ve lost our way.

This is a new project- a two bedroom mid -terrace city Centre home for a couple and their two children. It was bought before they were married and now that the family has grown they want to extend and re-orient the flow for how they live now and into the years ahead.

The problems are human, the solution is space.

Turning people away based on price tells us we have a lot of work still to do in the profession of design and architecture.

26/03/2025

23/03/2025

If you're struggling to organise your space or think you need more space this edition of our newsletter is all about FLOW in your home.

10/02/2025

Our Valentine Edition Newsletter is now LIVE!

17/09/2024

Stunning scenery on the way to a client this morning

Dwellbeing.ie