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Rather than taking it easy when it came to creating the aesthetic for a spacious, new build home in Malahide, interior designer Suzie McAdam chose to focus on understated but beautiful pieces. Jessica Elliot spoke to Suzie to find out more.
Brought onto this 2015 new build just as the foundations were being laid, Suzie McAdams admits she couldn’t wait to get stuck in. I was really excited to help them create a home from a blank canvas, she says. Beginning immediately, she started discussing her vision for the space, suggesting design moves that would offer the house more light and space.
“Walking around the shell of the house alongside the builder, I encouraged the owners not to add any internal walls at the back,” she explains. “Two smaller rooms lead off the back living area, both with double sliding doors to allow the rooms to be free-flowing.”
The resulting ground floor offers both an enormous living area as well as cosier spaces that can be closed off for relaxing or working, whilst upstairs there are four well-proportioned double bedrooms and three fabulous bathrooms.
Throughout the house, you start to pick up on a few key materials and colours, which reappear in different guises. “There are materials that the client really liked which enhanced the house, but a secondary benefit is that they link the house and create a unified and uncluttered feel,” says Suzie.
A case in point is the beautifully simple Saarinen marble dining table, decorated with three copper hanging Plumen bulbs. The same cool white marble is reproduced on the kitchen island and backsplash, detailed only with a copper Arne Jacobsen kitchen tap and two small copper Tom Dixon pendants.
While character and colour are your first impressions of this house, when it came to accessories and furniture, there was an emphasis on pared-back, mid-century design classics. “I’m a nerd when it comes to design classics because they are so timeless in their beauty and they stand the test of time,” she explains. “It’s fun to play with current pieces but in 20 years it’s the chairs in this house that will still be the real stars and will stay in the family.” though she has a soft spot for one striking piece in particular.
However, there was one striking piece she was excited to include – the polar bear bookcase. “It’s probably my favourite piece here. I’d coveted it at Maison et Objet in Paris last year but it’s a difficult piece to place because it’s so big and requires a large space to really show it off. It was one of the first pieces I showed to the family when the living room was planned and they loved it too!”
Working with the base of textures established during the construction stage, Suzie continued with subtle layers to create a cosiness that acts as a crucial foil to the luxurious mood that runs through the house. The master bathroom upstairs features masses of marble metro tiles with chunky chrome taps and a deep basin and bath. “The marble tiles really stood out for their weightiness and depth compared to plain metro tiles,” explains Suzie, who adds that her client wanted a non-corporate look of luxury. What really makes the bathroom, though, is the patterned Moroccan floor tiles – an unexpected but perfect choice to add character.
The same colourful, intricately patterned Moroccan floor tile has also been used in the entrance hallway – not an obvious choice in a huge space but the fantastic, visually evocative effect really works and slightly throws you on entering from the modern exterior.
A new build might not be everyone’s dream, but Suzie’s creativity has rewritten the rules on this one for us, illustrating that history is not a prerequisite for a meaningful home.
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