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COLLABORATING FOR THE WIN REINVENTING ERNSTBROTHERS.COM
Some of you have seen Joe Ernst work at a perplexing problem with single-minded devotion until he finds a solution to give our clients what they’ve asked for. The more others say, “it can’t be done,” the more he digs in. Case in point: the owners of our featured Haverford home wanted to remove a visually obtrusive column and the dropped beam it supported to allow Bluebell Kitchens to design a new, bright, open kitchen. Eliminating the column called for installing a new 27-foot beam to maintain structural integrity, but that, too, would be partially exposed and make the ceiling feel lower.
column and split the garage evenly to accommodate two cars. But before you think Ernst Brothers is all-Joe, we’d remind you that our entire team is amazing: skilled craftsmen, agile thinkers, innovative problem solvers, persistent detail nerds— and artists at heart. Stay in touch. We’d love to hear from you.
When another contractor said the beam could not be concealed, Joe disagreed. “Ernst Brothers can make it happen.” He worked with the design engineer to come up with a solution to hide the new beam, ensuring the kitchen would be open and airy. It took extra effort and ingenuity, but he persisted. Joe also figured out how to eliminate another ill-placed
Jake Taylor, Managing Partner
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Joe Ernst, Principal Project Manager
Tim Ernst, Principal Project Manager
ON THE COVER This iconic stone home, which has graced its lovely walkable Main Line neighborhood since 1926, caught its new owners’ attention just as it went on the market in 2019. While it may have begun as a “location find”—since they knew some of their neighbors and loved the area’s beauty—it soon became a love story on its own merits. “It’s a happy house, with a good aura,” says the homeowner.
alterations to become a joyful gathering place when the kids and grandkids arrive for holidays and celebrations. “This is the first of five homes that feels like it’s actually mine,” says the owner. “I love every room. When I walk in this house, it really expresses my aesthetic; every space is me.”
Although the footprint was not altered beyond enclosing a covered rear patio to create a mudroom connecting the kitchen and garage, the interior changed dramatically. Every room on the second floor received attention. Working with the original 7 bedrooms and 5 full baths, we removed and built walls, doors, closets and bathrooms, working around the limitations of the home’s eaves and dormer windows. It now serves the empty-nesters with abundant sleep, office, bath and dressing amenities at one end, opposite the separate, roughly designated “guest wing.” A spacious but unnecessary linen closet converted happily to a well-appointed laundry room. On the first floor, the kitchen received the most structural
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BEFORE
LIVING ROOM
Self-professed “old house people,” the new owners were captivated by the home’s history, its “good bones” and its peaceful setting amid trees, stone walls, rolling yard and creek flowing by. But clearly it lacked color and needed extensive renovation. The owners saw the potential to create not only a series of beautiful rooms deserving of the setting and exterior, but also a practical, comfortable domicile that would serve their current and future needs and desires. Key issues: old-fashioned bathroom fixtures, dull wall and trim finishes well past their “use-by” date, no direct access between garage and house and myriad small structural matters. The kitchen alone was dark, poorly laid out and showing its age. And then there’s the kitchen’s exposed beam and unsightly column.
FOYER
MAIN STAIRCASE
POWDER
KITCHEN
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RENOVATED LAYOUT
2ND FLOOR
1ST FLOOR
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The door is open, so please come in and let us show you through this amazing Haverford home! The custom door’s beveled glass panes, set in painted sapele mahogany, allow natural light to brighten the foyer. The formal entryway features painted millwork with fluted pilasters against the stone and a charming leaded glass panel.
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ENTR ANCE 7
FOYER 8
Eye-pleasing textured wallpaper wraps the walls in color, while a whimsical, stylized animal print dances gracefully up the main staircase.
we installed 130 new recessed lights, many to spotlight artwork. Through the French doors to your left…
We refinished wooden floors throughout the home to create uniformity with new material underfoot in select areas, such as the kitchen. Along with this suspended globe in the stairwell,
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LIVING ROOM 10
Enter the living room and feel the sense of peace brought by pale oranges and blues with soft—or bolder—greens for accents. Fluted pilasters framing the fireplace wall mimic the front entry’s millwork and lend gravitas to the restful setting. Another set of French doors opens into the sunroom…
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Sunroom or game room? Tea and cookies and amiable conversation? Or a noisy round of cutthroat Monopoly? By adding color to the walls and comfy furniture in one of their favorite shades, the owners have created a haven for doing whatever they please. Going back through the foyer, get ready for a fun surprise…
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SUNROOM 13
Down a short hallway, step into the dining room for a feast—for your eyes. This stunning room, papered in a deliciously bold print in peach, salmon and raspberry, is perfect for joyful, celebratory meals, whether avec des amis or en famille.
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DINING ROOM
This fireplace was one of those that we refaced, along with that in the primary bedroom. Skipping back down the hallway, we come to our next stop…
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Blue reaches a new level in this uniquely finished room. Glossy lacquered walls are created with multiple layers of custom-colored, extraordinarily durable and rich Dutch-made coating from Fine Paints of Europe®, applied by specially trained and certified painters. The audacious finish provides a perfect backdrop for the colorful seating and watching old James Bond movies when the kids are home. Have you figured out yet that the homeowners love color, especially this dusty dark blue and shades of orange and orange-red?
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DEN
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We updated every bathroom, including these two off the entry. The blue powder room had been carved out of an oddly configured space under the main staircase; the other is accessed through the spacious hall closet. Fanciful finishes, new fixtures and refined features transformed all six of the home’s current bathrooms—one was eliminated to enlarge the second primary dressing room—into delightful spaces.
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POWDER ROOMS When you’re ready, let’s go to the new kitchen…
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KITCHEN
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An all-white kitchen? Look again. Sure, there’s Namibian white quartzite counters, white painted cabinetry and an elegant custom metal hood by Raw Urth. But for splashes of wow color, check out the fabulous wallpaper and happy trio of light fixtures. Then, open one of the glass-fronted cabinets to see close-up the yummy raspberry high-gloss interior.
windows replaced, new doors hung and floors re-laid and finished—to deliver a space that’s as efficient and fun to “kitchen” in as it is gorgeous.
By getting rid of the oppressive beam that others said couldn’t be eliminated, Joe Ernst set the stage for this remarkable re-design by Bluebell Kitchens. Walls were moved,
A doorway to the left shows a glimpse of the new mudroom, formerly a covered patio and now enclosed with double-hung windows. Set beneath the bluestone floor is a comfortable,
And the owners got what they’d envisioned: a kitchen with enough room “for little kids to ride bicycles through.”
BUTLER’S PANTRY efficient hydronic heat system in the new floor we poured. The homeowners now have much-needed secure access between the garage and the home. To the right, behind iron and glass doors, a luxurious butler’s pantry with custom built-in cabinetry accommodates all the necessities for entertaining.
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This bluestone patio is just one restful “room” of the home’s lovely outdoor spaces where the family began early on creating beautiful memories: a daughter’s intimate, joyful wedding was held outside at the height of the pandemic, just before demolition started. Returning inside, let’s take the back staircase to the second floor for a quick look at the homeowner’s wing.
PATIO
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PRIMARY SUITE 24
The primary suite was made possible by moving walls, changing doors and re-purposing rooms. As a result, the owners enjoy a tranquil bedroom, two spacious walk-in closets-slash-dressing rooms and this amazing dual-fixtured, his-and-hers primary bath dominated by a shared glass-walled shower.
the new second-floor laundry room and the mudroom between the kitchen and garage.
Our craftsmen built custom cabinetry for all the bathrooms,
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A GREAT PARTNERSHIP MEANS EVERYONE WINS When the new owners of this distinctive 95-year-old stone residence in Haverford invited Michele Plachter Design to lead the interior design for their whole-house renovation, the Center City firm was thrilled to be part of a project with such exciting potential.
yielding exceptional results and an easy win for everyone involved. Strong relationships and exceptional listening and communication skills are critical when your job is to interpret and realize your clients’ vision—and that’s true whether it’s constructing a home or designing its interior spaces.
“We just clicked right away,” says owner and founder Michele Plachter.
“Michele is a straight shooter, very up front,” adds Tim, “and a genuinely nice person.”
Fortunately for this Ernst Brothers story, we had already worked with MPD and gone through her vetting process. Before Michele trusts a partner with her clients and her
As Michele put it, “I feel comfortable recommending Ernst because I know the end product is going to be something my clients will never regret.” That sentiment goes both ways.
reputation, she wants to get to know them and how they operate so she can feel confident about aligning her firm with another’s. When Michele’s Haverford homeowners began reaching out to builders and ran into some difficulty getting what they wanted, she confidently recommended they look into Ernst Brothers. The result was the color-filled collaboration you see in these pages—and clearly, it was a brilliant, successful match-up of talents. Joe Ernst says, “It makes our job so much easier to have a partnership like ours with Michele and her team. We both believe direct, honest communication and uncompromising quality are top priorities, while MPD’s creativity and high skill level really elevate the entire project.” And then there’s the synergy, which enables Ernst and MPD to offer their clients more together than separately,
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SCAN TO HEAR THE HOMEOWNER AND MICHELE TALK ABOUT THIS PROJECT
ERNSTBROTHERS.COM RELAUNCH GIVES YOU MORE Speaking of important, successful renovations…we recently launched our freshly super-charged website. With the company growing rapidly in the past few years, we have more stories to tell, more images to share and a host of things we want you to know about us. Visit today’s ErnstBrothers.com and you’ll see a new focus on clean lines, easy navigation, top-notch imagery and great storytelling. Our site now better represents how we see ourselves and what we want our partners and clients to understand about this Ernst family business. At the heart of Ernst Brothers are our core values—authentic client connection, uncompromising integrity, exceptional craftsmanship and legendary attention to detail. They continue to reflect who Tim Ernst, Joe Ernst and Jake Taylor are and how every Ernst team member approaches their tasks. We hope you’ll agree that our refreshed site serves well as a streamlined resource for our clients and partners to connect with us, scroll through dozens of examples of our work, look at current and back issues of Plumb Line and see the faces of some of the folks they’re likely to meet on our jobsites.
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John Chirico Senior Field Manager 33 Years with Ernst Brothers Uses 1937 Warren Knight Transit Level to check site work
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