Remodeling Bryn Mawr PA

What we know about Bryn Mawr homes

The defining Bryn Mawr project is a pre-1930 stone colonial — and the same housing realities drive both kitchen and bath remodels here. After 35+ years, here’s what we tell clients before signing:

• The original kitchen layout fights modern living. Pre-1930 stone colonials have a small kitchen at the back of the house connected to a butler’s pantry off the dining room. The dominant move on a Bryn Mawr kitchen remodel is opening the wall to the original butler’s pantry to create a real working kitchen.
• The original baths sit above the kitchen. Most original primary and hall baths are on the second floor, often directly above the kitchen, on 50–75 sq ft footprints designed for a different era. Modern owners typically want to expand the footprint by absorbing an adjacent closet or smaller bedroom, add a walk-in shower with frameless glass, and install a freestanding tub if space allows.
• The infrastructure is part of the project — for both kitchens and baths. Knob-and-tube wiring, 100-amp service still on a 1970s panel, galvanized supply lines corroding since 1925, and cast-iron drains that may or may not need replacement. Bathroom replumbing is non-negotiable on most of these homes. Service upgrades and partial rewiring are standard on kitchen scope.
• Inset cabinetry is the right finish call. Painted or stained, flush-front, classic detail. It’s what looks right in these houses. Modern frameless European cabinetry rarely lands the same.
• Plan for plaster ceiling work below. Almost any meaningful second-floor bath remodel requires opening the dining-room ceiling below to access plumbing. We restore the plaster ceiling as part of the project scope.
• Post-2000 contemporary rebuilds exist but are rare in Bryn Mawr proper (more common in Gladwyne). When they happen, scope is closer to a typical refresh — newer materials over an already-modern shell.

Recent Bryn Mawr work:

• Kitchen (1910 stone colonial) — $194,000 / 10 weeks. Opened the wall to the original butler’s pantry, installed painted inset cabinetry with a stained walnut island, Calacatta marble countertops and full-height backsplash, paneled Sub-Zero refrigeration, a Wolf 48-inch range, and an integrated Miele dishwasher — plus full electrical service upgrade with plaster repair where mechanicals required new runs.
• Bathroom (stone colonial primary) — $94,000 / 8 weeks. Expanded the footprint by absorbing an adjacent closet, installed a freestanding cast-iron tub and frameless-glass walk-in shower with marble tile to the ceiling, custom stained vanity with marble top and radiant-heated Carrara hex floor, replumbed the full second-floor stack with plaster ceiling restoration below.