Businesswoman Tara Chetty\u2019s sense of style from her runway days served her well when renovating her family\u2019s home\n<\/p>\n
Asking price: \u20ac725,000<\/p>\n
Agent: Team Castles (01) 4900 700<\/p>\n
\u200bA former model turned businesswoman has used her sense of style and knowledge of fashion to transform the interior of a house in Harold\u2019s Cross.<\/p>\n
Tara Chetty was a well-known Irish model in the early 2000s, having been spotted whilst still at school. She started modelling as a nixer, but later worked in it full-time, walking the catwalks of London, Milan and New York.<\/p>\n
Returning to Ireland in 2011, she went into business with her sister Sarisha Chetty and they opened a bridal shop called Suite in Rathmines, Dublin. \u201cI never planned to get into the business,\u201d says Chetty. \u201cI studied economics and philosophy in UCD and did a post-grad in buying and merchandising in London. The modelling was great for a while, but it was ultimately never going to be forever, and I always had an interest in doing other things.<\/p>\n
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The exterior of 5 Parnell Avenue, Harolds Cross, Dublin<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I came back, my sister was getting married and she couldn\u2019t find a dress, and we realised there was a niche in the market.\u201d<\/p>\n
You could say it was in her blood, as her mother had worked in fashion retail, specialising in lingerie, and she\u2019d grown up attending bridal shows with her.<\/p>\n
The business, which they started 14 years ago, is still going strong. A more recent project for her has been No5 Parnell Avenue, which she bought with her husband, John O\u2019Connor, who works in the motor trade and comes from Castleknock.<\/p>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/55e40892-b059-484d-91d9-5a67750df045.jpg\")
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The kitchen of 5 Parnell Avenue, Harold’s Cross, Dublin 6<\/p>\n
The couple were attracted to the three-bedroom mid-terrace period residence, built c.1930, because of its quiet location. They had two little boys \u2013 Frank (eight) and Joey (four) \u2013 and the house was also near to their school. \u201cThe second we walked in, we felt that the house had a lovely warm feeling to it,\u201d says Chetty. \u201cIt\u2019s definitely lived a few lives before.\u201d\u200b<\/p>\n
However, the 1,292 sq ft home was in bad repair when they bought it in March 2023. \u201cLittle had been done to it since the 1970s,\u201d says Chetty.<\/p>\n
They had it rewired for electricity, replumbed and insulated. Downstairs, they got rid of a wall which differentiated the hall, which means you now walk straight into the sitting room.<\/p>\n
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The living room of 5 Parnell Avenue, Harold’s Cross, Dublin 6<\/p>\n
They also did away with the doors leading from the sitting room at the front to the dining room, now another reception room, and the scullery kitchen at the back, creating a bigger one and making it all open plan. \u201cI wanted it be airy and bright,\u201d she says. \u201cIt also means that I can see the children, if they\u2019re in the sitting room and I\u2019m working in the kitchen.\u201d<\/p>\n
They knocked down the old single-storey extension at the back and had it rebuilt, making it two-storey. The attic was also renovated to create another bedroom.<\/p>\n
They moved in in November 2023. \u201cWe were renting and therefore eager to get in and excited to spend our first Christmas there,\u201d she explains.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The living room and kitchen of 5 Parnell Avenue, Harold’s Cross, Dublin 6<\/p>\n
When it came to the interior, Chetty used her eye for design and the influences she had seen in other cities. \u201cI guess my work in fashion has filtered down,\u201d she says. \u201cI still travel to New York and to Barcelona to buy wedding dressings, and I\u2019m used to seeing beautiful interiors there too.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her intention was to create a clean but comfortable aesthetic; to optimise the space; and to let in as much light as possible. They stripped back the wallpaper and painted the walls white throughout.<\/p>\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/fde09586-0bea-4c19-995c-9efc9bab264b.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
A bedroom at 5 Parnell Avenue, Harold’s Cross, Dublin 6<\/p>\n
\u201cThere were old-style carpets on the floors which we got rid of,\u201d she says. \u201cThen we restored the original wooden floorboards underneath. I love all the old features, like the ceiling rose in the sitting room. I think they combine well with the modern features.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the open plan sitting room\/dining room\/ kitchen, the colour scheme is mostly black and white with beige and cream furnishings, all of which create a calming effect.<\/p>\n
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A bedroom at 5 Parnell Avenue, Harold’s Cross, Dublin 6<\/p>\n
In the kitchen, they deliberately left the wall above the counters and the sink bare. \u201cI was obsessed with the TV series on DeVOL Kitchens, For The Love of Kitchens,\u201d she says. \u201cThat influenced how I designed the kitchen. I wanted a space that was a continuation of the house and not a separate room. I like the simple, uncluttered style. It\u2019s the heart of the house and where we spend most of our time.\u201d<\/p>\n
There\u2019s a wall of sliding glass floor-to-ceiling windows on one side, which can be pulled back to access a patio at the side of the house. \u201cIt\u2019s lovely to sit there in the summer and have the sun stream into the kitchen.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/cbc2ef3c-0349-448e-9ac6-6d2d2b4d77c6.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
A bedroom currently being used as a nursery at 5 Parnell Avenue, Harold’s Cross, Dublin 6<\/p>\n
Upstairs, a similar colour scheme has been continued with reclaimed wooden floorboards, and neutral walls and furnishings. The master bedroom and the two children\u2019s rooms, one of which is used as a nursery for their new six-week old son, Freddy, are on the first floor, along with the bathroom. The attic is used as a guest room and a work space.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s no back garden but there\u2019s a laneway at the back of the house which they can access, and it\u2019s where their children play.<\/p>\n
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The patio space at 5 Parnell Avenue, Harold’s Cross, Dublin 6<\/p>\n
Harold\u2019s Cross is a friendly community. \u201cMost of the residents here have been here for a long time but there are some young families too, and everyone has been very welcoming,\u201d says Chetty.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s an area that\u2019s become gentrified in recent years and has a plethora of trendy coffee shops and yoga studios. \u201cThere are some great brunch places too,\u201d she adds. \u201cAnd because it\u2019s so near the city centre and Rathmines, you have all the amenities on your doorstep.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Tara Chetty in the kitchen at 5 Parnell Avenue, Harolds Cross, Dublin. Photo: Bryan Meade<\/p>\n
Today’s News in 90 Seconds, Friday, February 20 <\/p>\n
Its proximity to the canal is another plus: \u201cWhen the weather is nice, we often walk along the canal and it\u2019s lovely to have that greenery close by.\u201d<\/p>\n
Although they\u2019ve been happy living in the house, they find they need more space as their children get older: \u201cWe\u2019ve loved living here, but we hope to stay in the area as we really love Harold\u2019s Cross. It\u2019s time to let the house go to the next owners and to live another life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Team Castles seeks \u20ac725,000.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Businesswoman Tara Chetty\u2019s sense of style from her runway days served her well when renovating her family\u2019s home…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":346927,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[73],"tags":[79,18,72513,19,17],"class_list":{"0":"post-346926","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-eire","10":"tag-erin-mccafferty","11":"tag-ie","12":"tag-ireland"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/116102144280492465","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/346926","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=346926"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/346926\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/346927"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=346926"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=346926"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=346926"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}