Bryn Mawr home, listed for $2.2 million, gives ‘Mad Men’ vibes with a midcentury modern aesthetic
Irwin Stein, a Philly native and Penn grad, designed the home for himself, complete with a swirling spiral staircase and a sunken conversation pit.
It’s been a decade since Mad Men’s Don Draper pitched his last ad, but the midcentury modern revival inspired by the show’s 1960s aesthetic lives on.
Lovers of the retro style will be wooed by a Bryn Mawr five-bedroom home listed for sale last week for $2.2 million. Its jaw-dropping spiral staircase and earthy color scheme will send buyers looking for pillbox hats and polyester.
“As soon as you walk in, you can see the curved staircase,” listing agent Marion Dinofa of Compass Real Estate said. “I see a lot of cool houses, but this is one of the most interesting I’ve seen.”
Located at 390 S. Bryn Mawr Ave., the home was designed by architect Irwin Stein, a Philly native and a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania.
Stein, who worked alongside other modernist architects like Oscar Stonorov and Frank Weise, designed more than 150 residences in the Delaware Valley and in Florida, including an interestingly roofed home in Wallingford that graced the covers of several shelter magazines.
He planned this five-bedroom, five-bathroom Bryn Mawr home for his own family.
“You can tell when the architect was given the freedom to really carry out their full vision, including details like hardware and lighting and the surfaces of the walls,” Dinofa said. “That was certainly true in this case because Irv was designing for himself and his own family. You can feel the attention to detail from the moment you walk in the house.”
Spanning more than 5,500 square feet of livable space on 2.65 acres of wooded land, the low-slung, 1½-story home features sweeping glass walls and soaring ceilings that cultivate a bright and airy feeling throughout the house.
Porcelain hexagonal tiling throughout the first floor creates a cohesive look that adds depth to the space while a sunken conversation pit with a custom leather sectional and a wood-burning hearth evokes an era of swilling gin gimlets while watching Johnny Carson on The Tonight Show.
The kitchen, designed with playful circular geometry, comes with abundant storage space along with a built-in oven. The cabinets were designed by Stein but built by award-winning Pennsylvania woodworker Jasper Brinton.
A finished basement provides a second full kitchen, two additional bathrooms, an office or studio, and copious storage. The property also has a four-car garage as well as parking for an additional four vehicles.
The back of the home features an oversize deck and patio, surrounded by a mix of gardens and areas that are wooded.
“It’s secluded at the same time that it’s close to everything for convenience,” said Tobey Stein, son of Irwin and current owner of the home. “I think sitting out behind the house in the summer is really fantastic.”