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Looking around Amber Clery’s Carlow home, it’s clear that it’s the product of a lifelong passion for interesting pieces. “I’ve been gathering stuff for years,” she says. “Things I couldn’t leave behind on my travels or I found trawling vintage markets, salvage yards and antique shops. I’m always on the hunt for pieces that have personality, soul and a story.”
She’s also carved a career from her eye for finding and styling treasures, first as an interior designer, then as a wedding stylist, and most recently, launching an online homeware store, Amber + Willow.
As well as offering a curation of pieces from international brands, she stocks handmade crafts from female-led artisans and makers, and one-off finds. This combination of craft, modern design and the rich character that vintage pieces can bring, is exactly how she decorates her own home, she explains.
Amber also designed the large island to resemble an antique baker’s table. “I wanted it to feel like a piece of furniture in the room. It’s where homework is done, breakfast is eaten and where everyone congregates when we’ve family and friends over.”
Amber and her husband Mick built their home 12 years ago, and while they were inspired by elements of Georgian architecture, they designed the layout with modern living in mind.
“We prefer the cosiness of separate rooms as opposed to big airy open-plan spaces with walls of glass,” Amber explains, “but we still wanted our main living spaces to flow together and be connected. They all open onto each other in one long block, leading out to the patio and garden, so the whole space can be used together or separately.” Each area is differentiated by subtle details such as glass doors in the living room, a reclaimed brick wall in the dining area and an arch separating the sunroom.
With so many pieces having an interesting story or history, it creates a home with a sense of rich layers, of styles and influences meeting and merging to create something new and beautiful, as well as entirely personal to the family that lives there.
There’s also a wonderful sense of playfulness in the home, from colourful modern prints to the enchanting rooms Amber has designed for her children, Willow and Finn. “We created a Narnia-inspired ‘magic wardrobe’ for the kids on the upstairs landing, which they just love. I searched high and low for an antique wardrobe that would fit into the space and got the back panel taken out.
“The walls and ceiling in the corridor behind are papered in a star print from Cole & Son to create that magical feel, and I attached some leftover navy velvet fabric to create a drape that you walk through, into a secret play space.”
Photography: Ruth Maria Murphy
