From the outside number 24 Garville Lane looks smart but small. But it has a Dr Who Tardis-like quality: It is much bigger than it appears. Carpenter-turned-builder Diarmuid Clancy of Clandon Developments had time on his hands as a result of the downturn when he bought a mews site on Garville Lane in 2009 for €260,000. It was the south-facing aspect of the garden that caught his attention. He knocked down the existing building and set about creating a mini “iceberg” house inspired by London’s Mayfair mansions whose owners dug down several floors to gain space. He excavated the site to construct a two-storey over basement home that measures 199sq metres (2,142sq ft) which is a similar size to many period redbricks in the area. He, his wife Jenny and their baby live mainly on the ground floor where there is an open-plan kitchen living dining room with a solid fuel stove fitted into the chimney breast that has Liscannor stone. There is a smart utility and adjacent guest wc and the marble flooring throughout is carried outside to make the indoor and outdoor spaces seem like one. An unhoned or anti-slip version was laid outside. In its centre is a glass seam that features 5cm thick glass that creates a light well that shines natural light down into the basement. At night the garden is illuminated from below ground, a light beam effect that is a favourite feature in the house, one his brother-in-law has nicknamed Newgrange after the passage tomb in the Boyne Valley. Several parties attest to the dance-proof durability of the glass.

Upstairs there are three bedrooms. Two are good-sized doubles and each has a windowed shower en suite. The master, situated to the rear, has a vaulted ceiling with wood beams. The other has a sizeable balcony. There is an attic room with a ceiling height of about 7ft. A stairs off the kitchen leads down to the basement through a hall and into another open-plan kitchen living room. Sliding doors open onto an enclosed courtyard that needs softening soundwise. Sliding doors in the adjoining bedroom also open out here and illuminate these two rooms well. This space is used by the current owners for visitors but would also make a very nice space for an au pair. The steep stairs mean it is less suitable for an elderly relative. This space can be accessed separately via a set of steep stairs that lead to the garage where there is valuable off-street parking but it is not possible to access the apartment when a car is parked in the garage. The house has a heat recovery system and the basement is completely tanked and waterproofed with pumps in place to remove any water should it get in.

The property is asking €795,000 through agents SherryFitzGerald. Garville Lane is a cul de sac at the corner of the Murphy Gunn garage on Rathgar Avenue. See more at www.irishtimes.com