Vanessa Mac Innes, owner of the interiors shop Industry in Temple Bar, took inspiration from salvaged and upcycledfurniture for an industrial revolution at homeWORDS: ANNA SHELSWELL-WHITE PHOTOS: PAUL SHERWOOD

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The young designer and businesswoman,Vanessa Mac Innes, is nothing if notindustrious. The vintage utilitarianfurniture that fills her revamped Dublinhouse is a fitting nod to the hard work it

took to get here: gutting, extending, refurbishingand finally, furnishing it in pitch-perfect industrialchic style.

Vanessa is convinced she inherited a flair for justthis sort of thing. "My mother was always renovatinghouses while we were growing up. It must havemade some kind of impression, as my sister and I areboth designers.'' says Vanessa. Owner of the interiorsshop Industry on Cows Lane in Dublin’s Temple Bar,Vanessa fell in love with this property over threeyears ago, when it appeared in an executor sale.However, she originally lost out to a higher bidder.When that offer fell through, Vanessa jumped at herchance, managing to get the house for even less thanshe had bargained for.

No time was wasted in planning and designing arear extension to house a kitchen, bedroom and two

»Fact fileOwners: Vanessa Mac Innes, an interior designer andinteriors shop owner, and her partner John Inglis. Type of property: An extended three-bedroom houseon Dublin’s southside.Lived here since: October 2011What Vanessa did: A complete gutting andrefurbishment of the house. Extending the rear of thehouse, adding a kitchen, an extra bedroom and twobathrooms.

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SITTING ROOMA favourite piece of Vanessa's is the Siemens box behind her Danish 1960s-style couch. “The box came out of a factory and I love it. I'm particularlyimpressed that it has lasted this long as it's made out of very, very thin ply.”The lamps throughout the house were all acquired on shopping trips for thestore. The silver lamp in the sitting room was a gift.The cast-iron radiators are new. "They look fantastic and give off the best heat."The coffee table in the sitting room is a recent piece that Vanessa bought forthe shop. “It's by House Doctor and makes for fantastic storage.” Resting onthe coffee table is a large tray of printing blocks, also for sale.

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One of Vanessa's favourite piecesis the large metal unit in thekitchen with drop down doors.“It's an industrial piece, but sopractical.” Vanessa stands by herethos of having pieces in her shopthat function well, as much as theyare easy on the eye. The metalunit is from northern France andwas bought from a professionalmarket ‘picker’ who suppliespieces to retailers like Vanessa.

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bathrooms. The original 470-sq-fthouse had absolutely nothing toboast about: no heating, bathroomor any plumbing at all. On top ofthat, not a single morsel of theinterior could be salvaged andreused. To Vanessa'sdisappointment, even the rottenfloorboards had to go. The househadn't been touched since the1950s. "It was a huge amount ofwork," Vanessa says.

The existing front windows wereoriginally plastic and in the poorestof conditions. “I replaced themwith double-glazed wooden sashwindows, as I felt this was a bitmore original and sturdy." Thefloorboards were replaced withreclaimed boards from the 1930ssourced at Wilson’s Yard nearBelfast.

Few might imagine a pint-sizedsouth Dublin house would lenditself to a raw, edgy style, butVanessa has made it work. Herachievement is the most evident at

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I love Spitalfields market inLondon. One of my favouriteshops, although it’s quite pricey,would be Elemental. I also lovePedlar’s as they are like anolder sibling to Industry.

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KITCHENAnother much-loved piece of Vanessa's is the numberplate in the kitchen, which came from the US and hasbeen part of her collection for years. “It's from a station,and I think it's the number of the next bus or train. Manypeople think it's a clock. I love it because it's quirky." The pendant lights in the kitchen are from a supplier inAmsterdam and although very much one of a kind,Vanessa sells similar in her store.

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the rear of the house where she also introduced aconcrete floor. This industrial-style backdrop wasperfect for her collection of furniture and accessoriesgathered over the years, much of which is straight offthe floors of former factories and institutional buildings."The back of the house is more industrial than the front,which is a bit more traditional," she says. "You have tomake sure that something sits well with what youalready have or else it won't work."

Industry opened 18 months ago and is a directreflection of Vanessa's style. Its launch was arguably abrave step to take in recessionary times. “I’m verycareful about the money I spend on the business and Ivirtually don’t pay myself anything,” Vanessa says.

To source items for her the shop, Vanessa travels tothe UK, Belgium, France and Holland, and even plans toventure as far as eastern Europe to ensure Industrystocks the most eclectic and original pieces. The beautyof being her own furniture buyer, of course, is that hertrips around Europe allow her to shop for her own home(most of the pieces in her house are available to buy inthe store). She also trawls markets for surprise finds. Athome, the Brocante Furniture Market is her port-of-call,and abroad she loves ‘les puces’ at Porte deClignancourt in Paris.

The artwork in Vanessa's house is an eclectic mix of

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street art, recycled materials, prints and herown personal collection of butterflies invintage frames. A lover of typography, randomletters and numbers are scattered throughoutthe house. “There is absolutely no meaningbehind the letters and numbers. I just reallylike unusual and quirky fonts.” The large 'S' inthe hollowed fireplace came all the way fromAmsterdam.

Being an advocate of old pieces steeped inhistory, Vanessa doesn’t make a habit ofshopping for new pieces, but she appreciatesthe mix and match mentality to an extent,when mainstream and budget brands come inhandy. Despite her love of the old, the rug inVanessa's sitting room is from IKEA.“I brought a lot of old, expensive rugs homefrom my travels and none of them seemed to

BEDROOMSFollowing her own advice, Vanessaknows that softening the industriallook is important in the Irish climateto avoid an unwelcoming and coldatmosphere. Cushions and softfurnishings complement and tonedown the industrial bedside lamps.

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online extraFor more funky real homes see www.houseandhome.ie�

work, but the IKEA one did, so Iwent with it.”

The interior was painted inwhite, a good basis for theindustrial look. However, Vanessais wary of diving head first intothe full bare-knuckled look, givenour climate. "That's where colourcomes in; it adds warmth andcharacter to an otherwise coldand potentially clinical space." Shelikes to soften up her scheme withfurnishings such as cushions andrugs. Splashes of colour such asbaby blues, greys and that pop ofmustard yellow in the diningroom show how functional andutilitarian appeal can be achievedwithout dreariness.

Although renovating the housewas both daunting and a lot ofhard work, it was worth it.Luckily Vanessa’s partner Johnhas similar tastes. "It's great, as Ihave free reign with the place,"she says. Vanessa’s home is arepresentation of the ethos ofIndustry and in turn, Industry is arepresentation of her: witty,independent, original and hard-working.

To try a touch of the industrialchic at home, visit Industry, 5 Smock Alley, Essex Street West, Cow’s Lane, Temple Bar,Dublin 8, 01 613 9111,www.industrydesign.ie

VANESSA’S DESIGN TIPS>> Keep it simple. Paint the walls white,

but if you want to bring colour in gowith soft greys, dusty blues and darkblue greys.

>> With woods, try to use reclaimedwhere possible. Make shelves out ofold floor boards or other salvagedwood. It they must be new, choosesomething with a rustic feel.

>> Industrial kitchens tend to be verysimple using a mixture of wood,steel and concrete. Open shelving isalso a very simple look for a kitchen.If possible find an industrial pendantlight fitting - these can give anykitchen an edge.

>> Furniture: mix some metal pieceswith wood or even contemporarypieces. The industrial look cansometimes be cold so add somecolourful accessories, cushions andartwork to bring warmth back in!

>> Don't be afraid to start with one ortwo metal items and let the lookgrow over time. It’s very difficult toget an organic, well-composed effectovernight. It takes time to collectquirky accessories and usual itemsto make a space a home.

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