Angela’s Cork property a Home of Year contender

A Cork woman with a ion for interior design who has transformed her family home in the last two decades features in the next episode of Home Of The Year next week.

Angela Lee, her husband and their children live in a one-of-a-kind home in Cork.

For Angela, interiors are her absolute ion. Though they bought the home as a new build in 2000, it is almost unrecognisable to what it looked like all those years ago.

Through a combination of structural changes and upcycling, as well as DIY elements, she has created a unique home that gives a great sense of pride.

For Angela, the biggest thing is to be fearless when it comes to mixing styles and colours and to create something truly unexpected.

Will judges Hugh Wallace, Amanda Bone and Siobhan Lam be impressed when they drop by in the second episode of the new series on RTÉ1 on Tuesday at 8.30pm.

The Leeside property is up against homes in Dublin and Wicklow.

When Bernard and Liz Lyons first purchased their Dublin home in 1986, it was a semi-detached dormer bungalow in need of renovation and they spent the first few years doing up each room in turn.

Then, in 2004, they got lucky when the other half of the semi became available to buy so they could achieve more living space.

Years later, in 2023, they undertook a major remodel to give the place a new lease of life.

They wanted more light, indoor plants, and sustainability, a better flow from area to area, and to increase their BER rating to A2.

Their son, Drew, an interior designer, helped the couple to embrace the concept of biophilic design, bringing the benefits of green space and nature inside, inspired by Bernard and Liz’s ion for organic vegetable gardening.

The other property is owned by Lynne Clarke and Nick Drew, who live in Wicklow with their young daughter. Their home, built in 1862, was formerly a nursing home which had been left vacant for nearly a decade. They bought the house in 2022 and with it, took on a massive project.

Over the next two years an extensive renovation took place where they demolished the entire rear, built an extension, replaced all windows with appropriate period style sash windows whist retaining any original features they could.

The family also worked hard to bring the house up to a BER A3 rating.

Now in its 11th series, Home Of The Year will feature 21 stunning homes across the island of Ireland, with one from each episode going through the final.