A Love Affair with Ireland's Georgian Doors

There's something wonderfully distinctive about Ireland's Georgian doors. Their elegant proportions, colourful paintwork, decorative fanlights and handsome brass door furniture have always fascinated me. From the beautiful streets of Belfast and Royal Hillsborough to Dublin's famous Georgian squares, they're little works of architectural art in their own right.

And as it happens, they've been woven into my design journey for rather a long time.

Our First Georgian Door Decoration

I first designed our little Georgian Door back in 2019, inspired by the beautiful Main Street of Royal Hillsborough in County Down, Northern Ireland.

At Christmas, the residents adorn their handsome front doors with festive wreaths and decorations, making the village particularly lovely at this time of year. There's something rather special about wandering along the street, admiring all the different doorways, each with its own personality.

Coming from a family of architectural historians, I've always had a particular fondness for beautiful buildings and their finer details. And as it turns out, these little Georgian Door decorations have become rather popular gifts amongst the architects and architecture enthusiasts in my own family!

A Fitting Home at the Royal Society of Ulster Architects

I was delighted to be invited by the Royal Society of Ulster Architects (RSUA) to stock our little decorations in the bookshop at their headquarters, Mount Charles, a handsome Georgian building in Belfast.

A rather fitting home for a collection celebrating architectural beauty!

A Pink Door, a Chocolate Shop and a Matching Linen Top

Another favourite inspiration was a beautiful pale pink Georgian doorway on Chichester Street in Belfast, above a little basement chocolate shop called Co Couture.

This wonderful artisan chocolatier, sadly now gone, once stocked our hanging decorations, making it a rather special little corner of the city for me.

I couldn't resist a photograph beside the pink door, wearing my appropriately matched Irish Linen 'Roisin' ruffle top in Milky Pink. Entirely intentional, of course!

And before I'm inundated with enquiries, the top was from a limited batch!

A Georgian Doorway at Ballymaloe House

My love of Georgian architecture has followed me on my travels, too.

During a summer 2020 trip along Ireland's Wild Atlantic Way, I visited the beautiful Ballymaloe House in County Cork, which became another wonderful stockist.

The magnificent Georgian entrance to their restaurant was particularly memorable, as was the Sunday roast we enjoyed before heading to the shop, where you'll find our Teacup decorations.

It's one of those places where the architecture, setting and atmosphere all feel wonderfully considered.

Sybil Connolly, Irish Fashion and an Old Mood Board

Another photograph I've always loved features a model wearing a creation by celebrated Irish fashion designer Sybil Connolly, photographed beside a Georgian doorway.

Connolly's elegant bows, romantic frills and wonderfully voluminous silhouettes were a great inspiration when I was designing some of my fashion-inspired luxury cushions back in 2014.

She often used Dublin's colourful Georgian doors as backdrops for her fashion photography, and this particular image was actually on my mood board twelve years ago.

I love revisiting it now. It's rather wonderful to see two of my longstanding design interests, Irish fashion and architecture, brought together in one photograph.

From Hillsborough to Dublin

Over the years, our original Georgian Door has evolved into a much more colourful collection, celebrating the wonderful variety of Georgian doors found throughout Dublin.

The brightly painted doorways around Merrion Square are particularly memorable, and have become some of the city's most recognisable architectural features.

We've introduced a lovely palette of colours, with some designs featuring 'DUBLIN' embroidered across the front, while our original Georgian Door remains without a place name, allowing it to represent a beautiful Georgian doorway anywhere in the world.

And rather fittingly, our decorations have found their way into some lovely Dublin stockists, including Padison & Yule, The Little Museum of Dublin and Stór, the latter having its very own beautiful Georgian doorway!

A Little Architectural Keepsake

Handmade from beautiful Irish Linen and finished with intricate hand-stitched beads and metallic embroidery, our Georgian Door decorations are miniature celebrations of architectural detail, colour and Irish heritage.

They're lovely souvenirs of a visit to Ireland, little reminders of home for those living abroad, and thoughtful housewarming gifts.

After all, there's something rather lovely about a front door and the promise of a warm welcome behind it!

You can explore our Georgian Door and Dublin Door variations together in our Georgian Door collection.