Craftsman’s dream house makes the most of idyllic surroundings

A CARPENTER in the know put his know-how, passion, energy and ingenuity into building Brookside, as bright and fresh today as when it was first built, 20 years ago.

On a great site just over the brow of a hill from Cork city, the four-bedroom home is the sort of place that gives the usually staid dormer style of building a bit of panache and character.

Situated on a half acre, with a stream at its boundary (diverted into two ponds and waterfalls in the grounds here) which feeds into the Curraheen River, the setting is sylvan, up in a valley’s folds above the main Bandon road, and is reached along the Spur Hill Road out of Wilton, a five-minute spin by car from the western suburbs.