Looking for a rural idyll? Inside the 19th-century home of decorative artist behind some of Ireland’s most stunning destinations

Asking price: €950,000

Agent: Savills, (01) 6181300

​When Jane Willoughby and her husband John bought Donaguile House back in 2017, they harboured the age-old aspiration of moving to the country from their home in Dun Laoghaire, Co Dublin, where they live with daughters Sophia (22) and Simone (20).

“We bought it with the intention of moving here permanently and living an idyllic country life,” she says. “My husband and I were both raised in these types of houses, and we had this romantic notion of living here and having a vegetable garden, cats and dogs running around, and maybe some chickens.”

Donaguile was built around 1840 and it was in good condition when they found it, having been re-plumbed, re-wired and re-roofed by the then-owner. The previous owners had also made some ergonomic interventions.

“There was a hatch from the dining room to the kitchen which the last owners did away with. They also made the door from the hall to the kitchen wider,” says Willoughby. “It created a flow to the rooms.”

They hadn’t overly modernised the house, however, and this remains part of its charm. “It’s still a little bit crusty around the edges, so it retains its character,” she adds.

Situated just outside the town of Castlecomer, Donaguile was once home to the manager of the town’s significant coal mining business, having been originally built by the Wandesfordes, the Yorkshire family who were given lands there in the late 1630s and who built the town itself.

The Wandesfordes resided in Castlecomer House, an imposing castellated mansion on the other side of the town which was demolished in 1975.

Castlecomer became known for its coal mining industry, which began in the early 18th century and continued for over 300 years. Mining grew up after high-quality anthracite was accidently discovered during iron-ore extraction works, presumably to supply the Wandesforde’s pot-making business in the town. At its peak, the mine employed 3,000 full-time workers.

Willoughby is a decorative artist, mining the style that originated in 17th-century Europe known as chinoiserie, a version of Chinese painting.

She used to specialise in painting murals. “In the past, I’ve worked on the interiors of The K-Club, Mount Juliet Estate and many big old houses around Dublin,” she says. “I don’t do it anymore, but now I paint the same type of images onto panels, which I sell.” Willoughby also paints large canvases, which you can see at janewilloughby.com.

She had a painterly vision for the property. “As an artist, I try to make the world around me beautiful. It’s a compulsion, and one only people who have it will understand,” she says. “It’s a blessing and a curse.”

She set about renovating Donaguile House on a careful budget, but with attention to detail. “What I’ve added is mostly decorative,” she explains. “I bought old second-hand stuff, fixed things and painted all the walls using Farrow and Ball.”

In the kitchen, for example, she painted the walls in a greyish green called Green Smoke. The kitchen cupboards and island here are made from salvaged shutters from another old house, and there’s a wooden contraption above the island for hanging pots.

“There was one like it in the house in which I grew up,” she says. “It was on pulleys and we used to dry clothes on it. I bought this one to hang above the Aga, which dates to the, but it didn’t work, so I put it over the island instead.”

Much of its period detail is still intact. The tiles around the stove and on the floor in the kitchen are original, as are the three Belfast sinks.

The sash window shutters of the three differently-angled windows in the drawing room are also original. However, the glass has been replaced with double-glazed panes. The fireplaces throughout the house have also been there since the beginning.

Willoughby has showcased her creative talent again in this airy room, which is centred around the timber fireplace. Here, she hand-painted the intrinsic panelling on the wall in grey-green and white. All the art on the walls is also hers, save for the oval portrait of a lady in a convex glass frame, which she bought in an antique shop.

In the west-facing half conservatory, which has shutters that allow it to be closed off when needed, she hand-painted the walls in her trademark chinoiserie style.

Elsewhere, her canvases can be seen in all six double bedrooms upstairs. “They’re all different,” she says of the artworks. “For my own amusement, I paint in a variety of styles.”

Willoughby has applied her skills to the garden too. “It’s a potager, or decorative vegetable garden, and it’s a lot of work, but wonderfully satisfying,” she says.

Here, she grows vegetables including lettuce, tomatoes, celery, courgettes, broccoli and kale. Her fruit plants include strawberries, blackcurrants, raspberries and gooseberries.

There are also apple and pear trees, a herb garden and even a grapevine in the greenhouse. “It’s an old vine, which produces little red grapes that are sweet and edible.”

Although Donaguile retains a rural feeling, it is just five minutes away from the centre of Castlecomer on foot, lending it access to shops, bars, restaurants and other amenities.

Although they’ve enjoyed living there, Willoughby and her husband are selling the house now they find themselves drawn back to Dublin. “It’s just an hour-and-a-half from Dublin, but we were always going back and forth when we stayed here,” she says.

​“I’d love for another family to do what we didn’t manage to do, and live the country dream,” she adds. “It’s a perfect place in so many different ways. It really is quite magical.”

Donaguile House has an asking price of €950,000 with Savills.