Inspiration Article
Why I chose Heritage: Jessica O’Mahony
Influencer and wife of Irish Rugby captain, Peter, Jessica O’Mahony combines a stylish mix of old and new with a bold palette from the Dulux Heritage Range that creates a gorgeous living space with an easy vibe.
Jessica at home in Tenby cottage in Cork. The room’s walls are painted in Dulux Heritage Green Oxide while the bespoke cabinetry has been updated in a tonal Dulux Heritage Rosemary Leaf. The fresh coats on the architraves and ceiling is Dulux Heritage Fennel white, which has soft-green undertones to create a crisp finish.
You could be forgiven for assuming that a house belonging to an Instagram influencer would be professionally styled within an inch of its life - a beautiful but soulless show home. But Jessica O’Mahony’s Cork abode is refreshingly uncontrived and wonderfully inviting. Contemporary yet steeped in history, this charmingly cozy home is a homage to lived-in-luxe, eclectic style and a passion for collecting. It’s the interiors equivalent of comfort food.
“I wanted to have the feeling that when you come here, you feel at home”, explains Jessica of the house that she shares with her husband, Ireland rugby captain Peter O’Mahony and their three young children Indie (8), Theo (5) and Ralph (2). It was love at first sight when she and Peter first spotted the house ten years ago. “It was entirely accidental,” she explains, “we were viewing another house nearby and we walked back down a lane and spotted this house through a fence. It wasn’t even on the market but a few weeks later, up it popped in the property section of the Examiner, and we pounced.” Built in the 1890’s, the house had great bones - if a little tired and dated - but the couple could immediately see the potential. “It had a really nice, calm feeling and we felt we could make such a lovely family home here,” says O’Mahony.
There is lots of Belgian influence seen throughout the house. Her colour palette choice includes Dulux Heritage Green Oxide on the chimney breast and Dulux Heritage Fennel White on the door and surrounds.
Jessica normally prefers neutrals but is delighted to have chosen green tones in the living area. The dresser has been updated in coats of Dulux Heritage Rosemary Leaf with a green-toned Dulux Heritage Fennel White on the door.
Stylish individual charm here comes from a cleverly curated choice of vintage style lighting, colourful curios and punchy modern art, while nostalgic Tintin cartoon figurines and framed prints are dotted around the house. It’s the little details that mesmerise the most, like the antique brass shell casing by the fireplace in the living room that she inherited from her Irish grandmother who lived in Ballymore Cove.
“I wanted my house to be a collection of things that tell a tale, rather than buying everything from one shop.” Each room in the house reflects the spoils of Jessica’s joyful dedication to local design and antique stores, vintage fairs as well as interior shops in any city she visits - she recently carted home a quirky industrial neon lightbulb in her hand luggage which held her up in Amsterdam airport security for 40 minutes. She is inspired by dozens of Instagram interior accounts but has her own style. “I remind myself that taste is subjective and while it’s easy to get caught up in what everyone else is doing on Instagram, this is a house simply to please me and my family. Pete is great, though. He just rolls his eyes and lets me at it.”
Jessica loves to print and frame photos and switches them around regularly. They fill the shelves of the bespoke cabinetry, painted Dulux Heritage Rosemary Leaf
The colours she chose from the Dulux Heritage range add depth. The cabinetry shelving is painted Dulux Heritage Rosemary Leaf
The timber window box and shutters are painted in Dulux Heritage Fennel White, a tone with a hint of green that works really well with the Dulux Heritage Rosemary Leaf on the shelving.
Jessica says the room now feels more serene and revitalized. The warm green tones chosen; Dulux Heritage Green Oxide, Dulux Heritage Rosemary Leaf and Dulux Heritage Fennel White, complement her existing furniture and furnishings and helps give the room a fresh new look
Up till now, O’Mahony had been nervous of colour other than neutrals. So why did she pick green? “It felt brave,” she laughs. “But also, so right. Subconsciously it’s one of my favourite colours - I mean, my car is green and I wear a lot of green. But then I noticed that elements in the room already had green tones - specifically, the bookcase, one standing lamp and the TV unit. And of course the room looks out on to Pete’s prized garden - so maybe it was my desire to connect to the outdoors. Ultimately, I wanted something soothing and relaxing, a shade that would add calm to the space.”
With 112 Dulux Heritage colours to choose from, selecting greens to suit the room was a fun process, Jessica says.
The shade in question is Dulux Heritage Green Oxide and part of the Dulux Heritage range – a timeless, luxury colour palette of fittingly classic hues with a modern twist. She used Green Oxide in a hard-wearing and wipeable eggshell finish on the doors and shutters and opted to paint the bookcase in Dulux Heritage Rosemary Leaf. The Dulux Heritage Green Oxide was paired with Dulux Heritage Fennel White for the ceiling, a clean fresh green-toned white, which sits very happily with it.
Colours Chosen:
Rosemary Leaf on bookcase
Fennel White on the ceiling
Green Oxide on walls, doors and shutters.