A FAMILY HOME THAT INSPIRES CREATIVE PROJECTS
For producers and creative brands alike, the perfect shoot location balances functionality, aesthetics, and character. “Teach an Fód Dubh” achieves all three. Built by Eloise Duffy and her husband Sean, this home combines natural materials, thoughtful design, and practical living. We spoke to Eloise about creating a space that adapts to both daily life and creative projects.
DESIGN ROOTED IN SIMPLICITY AND NATURE
Eloise and Sean’s love for texture, concrete, and wood began long before they built the house. On early dates to cafés and restaurants, they would notice interior details they admired and imagine how they could bring those elements into a home. This attention to detail became a guiding principle for their own space.
A chance meeting with architect Tom O’Brien at the Ploughing Championships cemented the vision. Eloise explains, “We just clicked. Tom understood simplicity, natural textures, and designing a home that suits how you want to live.” Their brief was clear: concrete ceilings and floors, natural wood, floor-to-ceiling windows, space for a working farm family, and four bedrooms with functional layouts. Beyond these essentials, they allowed Tom’s creativity to shape the home.
“If you are hiring an architect, you have to let their creativity come out. Tom delivered us our forever home, there’s nothing we would change in this house.”
Tom, who is from a farming background himself, took their references to farm structures and natural textures and turned them into a family home that feels warm, grounded, and deeply functional, without ever feeling like a literal farm building. “That is art to me.”
A small excerpt from Tom’s writing on the project:
This project is not beholden to an ideology of craft, it is not about the landscape, it is not about truth, and not expressly about materiality … It contradicts itself in its efforts to mine novelty / eccentricity from convention and precedent, in the balancing of the aspirations of the architect and the aspirations of the client …
FUNCTION AND DURABILITY FOR EVERYDAY LIFE
The house was designed to support the realities of family and farm life. Sean regularly comes in covered in muck, so the home includes spaces for wellies, handwashing, and laundry. Eloise notes that permanent features such as wardrobes, kitchen units, and built-ins, use simple, durable materials meant to last a lifetime. Laminate floors will eventually need replacing from years of family use, but the home’s core elements were chosen to withstand daily life without compromising aesthetics.
“There is (washable) marker all over a kitchen wall from my two-year-old, and a trampoline outside the window. We move things when necessary, but this is our home.”
FLEXIBLE SPACES FOR CREATIVE USE
One of the home’s biggest strengths as a location is its strong personality combined with flexibility as a space. Furniture can be moved, toys relocated, and temporary adjustments made for shoots. The family has found that creative teams often see possibilities they hadn’t considered. A sitting-room couch was recently moved into a new space during a shoot, changing how the family uses the rooms. A temporary bedroom swap for the four-year-old became permanent because he loved the new room so much.
“Seeing creative teams use the space differently shows us ideas we had not thought of. It inspires how we live and how we might use our home.”
PRIORITIZING ETHICS AND VALUES
The homeowners are selective about who they welcome into their home. Eloise is vocal about Palestine, and their ethical values guide decisions about which projects to host. “No amount of money is worth compromising my values,” she says. They make sure the projects they accept align with their principles, creating a respectful environment for both the production and the family.
LIVING FIRST, HOSTING SECOND
Every addition or change to the home prioritises family wellbeing. The couple is currently installing a sauna, not for shoots but for their own relaxation and together time – time that isn’t spent tidying or meal prepping or scraping porridge of their concrete floor. Productions work around these personal priorities, ensuring the home remains comfortable and functional while still serving as a dynamic filming location.
“Everything we do in this house is for our family first. Producers can adapt around that, and it works for everyone.”
A LOCATION THAT INSPIRES
Teach an Fód Dubh balances daily life with creative potential. It is durable, adaptable, and full of personality, making it appealing for creatives & producers seeking a location that can support photoshoots, or film. The home’s attention to natural materials, thoughtful layouts, and lived-in charm makes it versatile for multiple creative uses.
Eloise concludes, “Hosting projects lets us see the house through other people’s eyes. It reminds us why we built it and helps us appreciate the space even more.”