The Eternal Refurbishment Elphin

The Eternal Refurbishment Elphin Mary & Colm The Great House Revival S6 . Refurbishment of The BOI Elphin, a Listed Heritage Building into our Home & Business .

A refurbishment with Love of each other , for the building and for interiors.

💖Just a photo 😊, but there are so many beautiful elements to this small little space and it’s wonderful window reflectio...
14/06/2026

💖Just a photo 😊, but there are so many beautiful elements to this small little space and it’s wonderful window reflection💖.
This is a tiny snapshot of where one armchair is in the Drawing/Sitting Room .
This is ‘Colm’s armchair’ , beside him are his books on a coffee table, a telescope bought at as a birthday present for Colm (what do you get for a man that has everything 😉😉, he has me hasn’t he 😂😂😂).
Then we have the beautiful curtains and their exquisite trim and tiebacks from .
The armchair was in its original form a lovely arm chair , however just to suit the decor I got it upholstered by Tommy Keenaghan as they are such a beautiful comfortable chair.
Then we have the reflection in the window , where because of the night sky - we can see reflected perfectly the Mallard Green Paint from . Here we can also see 2 of our wedding photos taken by Alan Hunt Photography , beautifully framed by Ivan Keaney .
If we look hard enough we can also see the reality of life - The Fire Escape through that window , yes not aesthetically pleasing , however it is real life (not just instagram 🙄) .
Nearly forgot the beautiful wallpaper , my favourite style Damask - as if you haven’t noticed already 😂- from Taylor’s .
This photo was taken last night as we sat having a little glass of wine 🍷,
It literally was just there like a ‘picture’ , I took the photo at that time , this evening I looked at the photo again and it really is as beautiful as it was last night as I was looking at the real thing through ‘Red Wine Glasses’ 😉
Too beautiful not to share 💖





❤️I have been very fortunate to have been sent this photo by a family member of Mr. Charlie McBride,Bank Manager of The ...
13/06/2026

❤️I have been very fortunate to have been sent this photo by a family member of Mr. Charlie McBride,Bank Manager of The Northern Bank here in Elphin . Yes, you have read that correctly - this building was originally a Northern Bank, subsequently bought over by The Bank of Ireland .
That is why its architecture does not resemble other Bank of Ireland Branches , as it was designed by prominent architect Godfrey William Ferguson.

Godfrey William Ferguson (1855–1939) was a prominent late-Victorian and Edwardian architect based in Belfast. He is best remembered for his prolific work as the official architect for the Northern Banking Company, shaping the look of provincial town centers across Ireland.

His design of The Elphin Branch heavily reflects his Italianate-classical styling.

Ferguson frequently utilized a well-composed Italianate frontage to project a sense of wealth, permanence, and reliability.

The windows on Ferguson’s banks were heavily stylized to differentiate the commercial ground floor from the domestic upper floor.

As was standard for regional Victorian banks, the building had to house both a secure public office and a private manager’s residence.

The upper silhouettes of his regional banking houses were designed to mimic elegant town manors.

Ferguson designed numerous commercial, civic, and residential buildings throughout Ireland:

Chronology and History
* Establishing the Presence (1879): The Northern Banking Company commissioned Godfrey William Ferguson to build a prominent regional outpost on Elphin’s Main Street. It projected the bank’s wealth into the West of Ireland, acting as both a secure vault and a grand residence for the bank manager.
* The Banknote Integration (1908–1912): In the early 20th century, Elphin’s growing financial importance was highlighted on physical money. In 1908, the Northern Bank issued Type D One Pound banknotes with “ELPHIN” specially overprinted as an extra branch. By 1912, the town was officially integrated in alphabetical order directly into the main branch listings on the banknotes.




💖What can be created with time , resilience , beautiful crafts and beautiful materials . Beautiful panelling from , ...
10/06/2026

💖What can be created with time , resilience , beautiful crafts and beautiful materials .
Beautiful panelling from , Beautiful carpet from , beautiful lighting from
Flaxseed on panelling & sage from on walls .




05/06/2026

🤩Fit for Mrs Bouquet 😂. Another little Auction find from Sean Eacrett Antiques, Auctions and Restoration- I know I don’t NEED it but I love it 😍. AND it works 👌





USE OF EVERY AVAILABLE SPACE 🤩. As you know the rooms we used for each purpose were in situ , we worked with the footp...
03/06/2026

USE OF EVERY AVAILABLE SPACE 🤩.
As you know the rooms we used for each purpose were in situ , we worked with the footprint of that particular space . So for this kitchen from - each inch was of importance .
To the right of the cooker was a tiny space which may have become a wasted space , but with the availability of this lovely chopping board and tray facility supply , it now is a essential purposeful space/facility 🤩.
Also, as can be see from the front of The Breakfast Counter , there could have been a lost/inaccessible corner space/press 🫣.
So with a little thinking outside the box , we decided to put the door the other side of the counter and make that space accessible and purposeful 👌Now, Colm has ‘another’ space for his paperwork 😂



It’s the little things (or the things that drove everyone else to think I was crazy 😜) , that makes a house YOUR home 💖...
31/05/2026

It’s the little things (or the things that drove everyone else to think I was crazy 😜) , that makes a house YOUR home 💖.
So, basically this is a tiny feature in the house , which may go unnoticed to everyone but not to me 😊.

This kitchen upstairs was always going to have a peaceful feel. Its purpose was our ‘sanctuary’ part of the home .

After designing the kitchen with all this in mind and ordering the cooker from at .
The next step was the tiles .

I obviously got Daddys interiors Eye, so I had this image of a Terrazzo Tile , however I had a very strict remit , it NEEDED to be subtle and timeless (like daddy, we’re doing this only once and that’s it- as he used to say, ‘it will do me for my lifetime ‘😊).

It also needed to fit in with the era of the house 1870’s .This room very much was lending itself to having a European Chateau feel to it too , I think it is the natural light coming in through the higher windows 💖.

Headed to Athlone and Fair Play to Timmy he tried and tried showing me all the popular on trend tiles . They really were not working for me in this space .

I went back to my fathers taste and headed for The Terrazzo, this particular one satisfied exactly the remit , subtle , a little colour splash , a nice light base grey (easy to keep clean - very very important to me 😉) .

I honestly think at this stage poor Timmy thought I had no idea of design or taste 😅.

But, worse was yet to come …. I still wanted ‘something’ to add a little personality to this floor (while also blending in , and going unnoticed under normal circumstances , oh where does my head be at 😉)

NEXT INSTALMENT IN COMMENTS





🌞 is there anything nicer than the sun shining , and air circulating in and through a half door 🌞.This is the back door...
25/05/2026

🌞 is there anything nicer than the sun shining , and air circulating in and through a half door 🌞.
This is the back door in our utility space , and as can be seen , the wall still has to be painted, check out the telltale signs of paintbrushes and tins 🤪, but I just couldn’t let this exact moment/view slip away by tidying those things away …. This is real life 🤩
I’m just right now, sitting here enjoying this , the very simple things in life 💖




23/05/2026

Is there any such thing as coincidence?A beautiful piece of history about this building we had NEVER heard.
This building in its formative years has been home to many wonderful people , but one of those people has contributed MASSIVELY to The Arts and Artistic Community in The Northwest particularly Sligo .
When the beautiful Rosemary called and spoke to me about her family’s history here and to know that there was another Columb here in the very beginning , also filling this building with their beautiful presence , just triggered my soul ❤️
How could this building NOT ooze the feeling it does. I now understand why this building never overwhelmed myself or Colm, it was always a place of creativity, a little culture and drama 🎭
To know this was the place Columb McBride spent his formative years is just amazing and I am humbled to be sharing the same space as he and his family have done ❤️
Columb was a pillar of the Sligo arts and theatre community for over 40 years. He was a highly respected, versatile stage actor who graced both musical and theatre productions ,earning a reputation for his exceptional range and stage presence

He served on The Steering Committee (1970’s) that actively championed the development of theatrical arts and infrastructure in Sligo

Columb stepped up as Acting Chief Executive of the Hawk’s Well Theatre from 2005 to 2007, guiding the venue through key periods of administrative re-organization and programming.

* An aside , Columb was also Director of the Board of The MS Northwest Therapy Centre Sligo.

He was a man of many things ,and it is wonderful to think he started off his life here in this building .

Columb passed on to his eternal rest in 2019 , may his beautiful soul rest in peace , we will endeavour to continue your artistic presence here in your Alma mater 🎭.




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Main Street
Elphin
F45K996

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