ERNST RENOVATES INTERIOR DESIGNER’S DREAM HOME NO 1 2 0 2 2
RETHINKING OUTDOOR CELEBRATIONS: MEET ERNIE! MARKING MILESTONE 35
You’re looking at the premier issue of Ernst Brothers Builders’ Plumb Line, whether you’re holding this handsome magazine in your hands or opening it on your screen. Our new 20page format allows us to showcase our favorite residential and commercial projects with more oversized images and greater visual and written detail. In just a few “page-turns,” you can see and read how Ernst Brothers resolved challenges and achieved the client’s vision for this mid-centurymodern home in Chestnut Hill. Looking ahead, each issue will highlight one spectacular home or business from the finished projects in our expanding jobs file. Right now we have several nearing completion that should
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make fascinating features. If a project has excited us and our clients, we’re certain you will be charmed and enlightened as well. Speaking of those current projects, we’re extremely pleased to be growing during these difficult times. Last year, field manager Mark Townsend joined our team to help us manage the workload, and he’s been living up to everything we’d hoped he would. Mark came to us after 22 years working with another of the highly regarded custom builders in the area. Right now, Mark is supervising Ernst’s precision construction of a 10Ksf home in Fort Washington, Pa. Stay in touch. We’d love to hear from you.
Jake Taylor,
Joe Ernst,
Tim Ernst,
Managing Partner
Principal Project Manager
Principal Project Manager
It was 2015 and interior designer Hannah Dee was house-hunting. The moment she saw the compact, 2300sf boxy structure with its industrialsized windows and open interior, “plopped right in the middle of traditional Chestnut Hill,” her search was over. Designed by the late George Von Scheven in 1999 for his own residence, it had the quirks that often find their way into an architect’s personal creation, providing inspiration as well as a jumping off point for the renovation the house needed and Hannah was itching to do. Despite the busyness created by half walls, pony walls, free-standing walls and a wall and tower in the center that blocked much of the view through the interior—plus the weird floor plan—Hannah fell in love with the “amazing” architecture. “The potential was incredible. The house was so full of light and air, with enormous windows and huge doors leading outside. I loved the clean modern architecture mixed with rustic barn elements. For such a small footprint, it feels big.”
ON THE COVER: Your first impression of this Chestnut Hill, Pa., home might be its welcoming open layout and the abundance of delightful art expressing the owner’s eclectic interests and love of travel. But behind the transformation of the 1999-built residence were many unanticipated challenges and innovative decisions for the owner and her Ernst team.
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The bright aluminum spiral ducting works with the new HVAC system while playing to the design aesthetic the owner was looking to achieve.
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Ernst reinforced the original fir trusses with a trio of solutions to restore their structural integrity. The cables, plates and bars along the underside of each also enhance the industrial look.
These huge, double-paned original windows, already framed inside and out in an eyecatching red that couldn’t be painted over, make the house. By reconfiguring the layout, especially on the first level, the windows’ advantages of placement, size and increased light to the interior make a bold statement.
Turning the original loft access 90 degrees gave it a starring role in the center of the living area. By keeping them “transparent” with no risers and a deceptively delicate open cable rail, the steel and brasspainted stairs impress but don’t overpower.
Instead of conventional framing in the walls or joists in the floors, the house was built of structural insulated panels (SIPs), which are prefabricated, hoisted into place and fastened together, and post-and-beam construction. SIPs—used rarely for residential projects—don’t lend themselves to repair or reconstruction. This means Ernst had to learn how to work with and around the SIPs to address massive water damage and change the floor plan dramatically to match the owner’s vision.
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With a SIPs ceiling that could be neither raised nor replaced, Ernst Brothers and Hannah blended their years of experience and created an out-of-the-box solution. The once-oppressive cave just off the highceilinged dining room and kitchen was transformed into a cozy retreat with dark walls and fireplace— and Hannah’s absinthe green velour chairs and sofa.
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Ernst removed most of the interior walls and devised a way to add a full pantry, coat closet and small mudroom off the kitchen where a large workroom had been. Adding four feet to the loft space accommodated the upstairs bath and laundry closet.
(Left) The mudroom features rustic shelves for shoes and boots, hats and handbags, adjacent to the garage built into the Von Scheven “cube.” (Center) More of the cabling to reinforce the structural wood beams can be seen in the full bath upstairs, where it’s set off by an example of the unique lighting throughout the home. (Right) New tile in the powder room is reminiscent of a Pennsylvania German quilt.
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Ernst replaced all the doors and door hardware in the dining room, including these three with transoms. With the adjacent kitchen, this great room is what greets visitors from the entry at right. Hannah has been generous with her praise for Ernst’s collaborative skills and ability “to pivot to 10
address new ideas or surprises along the way, and most of them weren’t good surprises.” “One of the things I love most about Ernst is the creativity and thoughtfulness behind their work.”
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A respected interior designer (and frequent Ernst Brothers collaborator), Hannah Dee’s second-level office reflects her vivid brand as well as what makes her happy. Like the rest of her home, the room provides a perfect canvas for her fabulous global art collection and showcases her choice pieces of her beloved antiques.
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This view of the great room shows Hannah’s fascination with wildly innovative lighting design, from the white orbs in the kitchen to the Art Deco chandelier above the dining room table. The red of the oversized window frames echoes boldly on the breakfast counter.
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Hannah’s vision for the kitchen was implemented with space planning assistance and other help from the team at Bluebell Kitchens. With those huge windows drenching her kitchen in light, the dark-hued and deeply textured custom tile backsplash at the left becomes a threedimensional abstract art installation that’s reimagined throughout the day with the shifting 16
of light and shadows. The tiles were created by a local artist from drawings of Hannah’s. The stained and polished concrete floor visible above runs throughout the lower level.
The kitchen, seen below in its early days, was in poor shape when Hannah purchased the house and for the seven months she lived in it while planning the renovation. She moved out for the next seven months so that Ernst could complete the demolition and transformation.
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Meet Ernie! Like many of you, the pandemic pushed Ernst Brothers into reviewing how we do business safely while maintaining our epic attention to detail, quality craftsmanship, uncompromising integrity— and especially the authentic client connections that recent circumstances have made increasingly difficult. We believe the overall client experience Ernst offers puts us ahead of the other highly regarded custom builders in the area. So when the vitally important discussions and interactions between our teams and clients, interior designers, architects and trade partners moved outside or were eliminated entirely, we felt the loss. What could we do or change to help fill the gap created by fewer (and more stressful) meetings and more casual get-togethers? Our response was to invest in specialized equipment that will carry us through pandemic challenges and into a hopefully less fraught future by supporting celebratory outdoor gatherings with major stakeholders on significant projects.
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Introducing the Ernie: fancier than a lunch truck, more transportable than a catering service, way more luxurious than a typical on-site picnic. Our little custom-crafted party trailer brings delicious fun and frolic to small-scale intimate events and is Covid-compliant. Think of groundbreakings, roof-raisings, completing final punchlists and other significant construction phases between idea and occupancy. Since delivery in April, the Ernie has hosted over 10 events, helping Ernst Brothers celebrate our clients as well as those directly involved in bringing a project to life. We can’t wait for you to meet Ernie in person at an event near you. Party time!
"Ernie”
Start out with a solid work ethic. Add an appreciation for wood and great design. Multiply by fearsome determination, dedication to clients and respect for trade partners. That’s how the twin brothers launched their company in 1985 and how Joe Ernst, Tim Ernst and Jake Taylor continue to operate and grow it over 35 years later.
Authentic Client Connection Epic Attention to Detail Quality Craftsmanship Uncompromising Integrity
B U I L D I N G T H E E X T R A O R D I N A R Y.
@ernstbrothers