Designed by James Horan of Design Strategies in Blackrock, the awardwinning space has a relatively unusual layout. There are two spacious en suite bedrooms downstairs and an American oak staircase, shielded by a glass wall and fitted with recessed downlighting, leads to the upstairs. The living area, kitchen, utility and another guest bathroom are all on this floor.

Natural light prevails on this upper level with floor-to-ceiling windows and a patio door opens on to a private decked balcony.

The colour scheme is neutral, all the better to showcase her collection of art which includes a Warhol watercolour, Nan Goldin photography and pieces by Jeff Koons, Damien Hirst and Jake and Dinos Chapman.

"One of the few problems with the house is actually that it is so neutral. I have a lot of pieces that are very, very bright and they've been bequeathed to temporary wall spaces elsewhere because they took over the whole place, such as a Jamie Reid Sex Pistols print, a very vibrant Warhol and some Phelim Egan prints too, " she says.

She moved in with only two beds, a couple of pieces from Nude restaurant designer Paul Daly's first collection and a budget of 2,000 to furnish the place. A highly rewarding trip to Ikea in Manchester solved this problem.

This was back in the days before Ikea delivered so she hired a van and, memorably, was pulled over on the suspicion of drunk driving. "I was singing really loudly to keep myself awake at three in the morning and the people in the car behind me thought that I was demented or something, and so a Welsh policeman stopped me and breathalysed me on the way back to the ferry!"

THE HOUSE

What do you love about your house?

The light and the space.

Did you have a lot of work to do?

No, I bought the place as is. I've been here five years now and I've changed very little about the place. I think I'm lucky because the building is interesting and you can get away with neutral colours inside it.

Did you use an interior designer?

Just my friends to help assemble the flat pack furniture. I had a 'construction' party with me, John Ryan, James Mooney and Gavin Friday.

Are you tidy or messy?

I am tidy but I'm not particularly houseproud. I feel it's just such a competitive realm that really you'd have no money left for eating or dressing or anything else if you started investing in a huge amount so that's why I've gone completely neutral.

Hopefully if you choose classic pieces, it's like with your clothes, you can get away with an awful lot more.

YOUR STYLE

Where do you take your style inspiration from?

Minimalism and IMAGE

Interiors What is your favourite room?

It very much depends on my mood. In honesty, sitting in bed with the laptop is my 'home office'.

What is your most coveted object?

Various art pieces. I had a boyfriend who was an art dealer and that was a huge inspiration . . . it's what got me collecting.

Unfortunately I had to sell my favourite piece in order to buy the house.

It was a Tim Noble and Sue Webster six-foot light installation, but it enabled me to afford the house. I hadn't planned on moving and needed to come up with the deposit.

What design tips have you found helpful?

This is my mother's tip. She made me make newspaper stencils of all the furniture, of all the big pieces, so that I would know exactly what dimensions would work in the place.

So often you'll get to the shop and you'll think, 'Ah, sure there's no difference between a hundred centimetres and 80cm', when there's every difference in the whole wide world.

Tell us about your garden I have Herbert Park beside me with ducks but I'm more of a city girl anyway.

SHOPPING

What was your best buy?

A white plastic and steel tray with legs for brekkie in bed, which was �1 from Ikea.

Also my art cabinet. It's great for all the little collectibles that would otherwise end up in boxes stored away. I also love my Michael Young 'magazine sofa' bought from Minima in 1996. It was my first and biggest investment.

If money were no object what would you add?

A lot of furniture from Chaplins (www. chaplins. co. uk) and a massive big Andreas Gursky photograph to hang in the living room.