The Best of Dwell: Main Line and Philly’s Western Suburban Home and Garden Local Businesses, and Real Estate Experts | 2023 LOVE Award Winners and Family Favorites
Find, design, and make the most of your home and garden around the Main Line with this list of local businesses our Community LOVES.
Read some great endorsements from local parents in our Main Line Parent Community about who they love and then pop over to our Main Line Parent Best for Families Guide to find more neighborhood gems!
LOVE Awards Celebration and Luncheon photos by AMC Photography.
2023 LOVE AWARD WINNER: BEST CARPET & FLOORING
Havertown Carpet Co.
“The Havertown Carpet Company (HCC) did work for two homes in our family: My parents needed carpet for their home, and with my parents’ recommendation, I reached out to HCC to have new hardwood floors installed in my home. In both cases, the work was exceptional. For starters, they were very candid about installation dates. My parents had no delays with their materials, and their installation went off without a hitch. However, my floors were so popular they were placed on backorder. I made my purchase with HCC’s recommendation. Initially, I wanted to purchase actual hardwood. However, they recommended waterproof (man-made) material. The pattern is beautiful. The floors are easy to maintain and cost less than what I had originally planned to order. I appreciated their expertise and finalized the sale. Once my floors arrived, they accommodated me with the installation date. The installation staff arrived promptly and did a very professional job. Whenever people enter my home, they compliment me on my floors. I love my floors, and my parents love their carpet. HCC deserves this award. They are: Professional, honest, accommodating, and friendly. It is clear to me they Love what they do!”
– Tracy H.
2023 LOVE AWARD WINNER: BEST EXTERIOR CONTRACTOR
MHX Designs
Serving Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery Counties.
“Everything they touched turned into aesthetic gold and this is truly the easiest review to write. I had done the due diligence on selecting the right contractor to side our house with HardieBoard (Hardieplank). MHX was by far the best priced and based on the time and effort they put into completing this job, it was better than we expected. From the initial contact to the completion, the quality and professionalism was very apparent. There were no gimmicks or shortcuts taken and honestly, they cleaned up every single day like it was the last day. I was thoroughly impressed with the project leader and entire crew. They all went the extra mile and were not flummoxed when i asked them to change or add something as the need arose. I’ll definitely be calling them again soon for our deck redux and addition. Oh yes, and they did our gutters too!“
– Robert O.
2023 FAMILY FAVORITE EXTERIOR CONTRACTOR
Rutter Roofing
“Rutter Roofing lived up to ALL THE PRAISE. I’m really cautious with new contractors and have tried out other companies on smaller jobs over the years as we’ve patched here and there. This was a full tear off and re-roof situation on our 100+ year old home and their team was AMAZING. They took care to protect our home with huge tarps, they cleaned up after themselves every day, the guys answered our questions and were sweet and friendly with our kids who stalked them out of the windows to watch them work. Here’s the difference for me, that I don’t see much anymore–every guy who was on our job took pride in their work. I pay close attention when we get stuff done, it’s a huge investment and everything was done just like they promised and as it should be. We even had neighbors who worked in construction themselves complementing the work. I’m really glad that they do more than just roofs because when we’re ready, I want to work with them again.”
– Beth B.
2023 WINNER: BEST GENERAL CONTRACTOR
The Golden Hand
“They always go above and beyond with anything that they do. Alix’s whole crew is amazing!! I can’t recommend them enough! Plus my house looks amazing!”
– Ashley J.
2023 FAMILY FAVORITES GENERAL CONTRACTOR
A.M. Pellak Construction LLC
“The Pellak Team renovated most of our home! This included our first floor (living room, kitchen, mud/laundry/office area, powder room), our master bedroom, bathroom, and walk-through closet, turned an office into a kid’s bathroom, and finished our basement. They also freshened up our screened-in porch and front door. We LOVE our new space! The process was smooth and this was a large project. We met weekly with the office team to ensure a seamless transition from design to demo to reno. Having a designer to work with was a must for me, and a huge help. They patiently turned my Pinterest pins into reality. Once we transitioned into the field, Drew was on top of the details on a daily basis. His team even installed a new sump pump mid rainstorm when ours stopped working! They really go above and beyond! The team’s carpentry skills are impeccable and added so much character to our home. Additionally, we financed the project, which adds meetings and inspections through the duration of the project. The Pellaks were very accommodating and organized with the lending process. They communicated throughout with the inspector to ensure there were no delays. The entire crew is polite, kind, and trustworthy! We felt comfortable leaving our house in their hands and would highly recommend them for your project!”
– Kate F.
2023 LOVE AWARD WINNER: BEST HOME AV SUPPORT
JL Entertainment Designs
“JL Entertainment Designs did a fabulous job for us start to finish! From the initial quote process to the install, we could not have been more happy. There was no “upsell” of anything. They worked with our budget providing different options and top quality products. JL Entertainment should be your go to company for any audio and video needs.”
– Tina A.
2023 LOVE AWARD WINNER: BEST HOME ORGANIZER
Carrie’s Essential Services
“Carrie is so knowledgable about organizing. She helped us at our home and business and we absolutely loved the results. She used her time with me so efficiently and we were able to get some much done in the allotted time. That would have taken me SO many more hours without her. I highly recommend her!”
– Michelle L.
2023 LOVE AWARD WINNER: BEST HOUSE CLEANING SERVICES
JS Services
“JS goes so far above and beyond any other cleaning service we haves used. They are easy to communicate with, reliable. They anticipate things coming up like school breaks and deep cleans before I have even thought about them. Our school is immaculate and they leave little notes for our teachers, sometimes chocolates, they have left hand cream. They have left little decorations for the teachers. It’s amazing. I was so pleased with them, I now have them do my home as well.”
– Trisha T.
2023 LOVE AWARD WINNER: BEST INSURANCE AGENCY
Peterson Insurance Co.
“The team at Peterson is top-notch. They are are a hard working team that is professional and responsive. We have been customers for years now and have multiple policies with them. In all honesty we don’t really have to think about policies that often because they do all the hard work for us and are proactive in making sure that everything is up-to-date and we have the best coverage for the pricing.”
– Colleen B.
2023 LOVE AWARD WINNER: BEST INTERIOR DESIGN
Studio 882 Furniture + Design
“I wanted to re-do my dining room and living room and went to all of the local and big box furniture stores in the area. I was blown away by the gorgeous showroom and amazing (complimentary) design team at Studio 882. Nicole came out to my house to measure for free and I had an amazing design presentation in the showroom. As a former purchaser of big box stores like West Elm, I was so impressed by the improvement in quality and I love my new furniture. And I was so happy to be able to support a locally owned small business!”
– Jen C.
2023 FAMILY FAVORITE INTERIOR DESIGN
Melissa + Miller Interiors
2023 FAMILY FAVORITE INTERIOR DESIGN
Yellow Stone Interior Design
2023 LOVE AWARD WINNER: BEST LANDSCAPER
Kagle’s Gardens
“Kagle’s is the most reliable, hard working, perfect results landscape service we have used in 40 years. They are thorough, professional, and respectful and go above and beyond. They complete the job at hand without our supervision and that is huge to us. Peace of mind, gorgeous property, well deserved accolades!”
– Donna D.
2023 FAMILY FAVORITE LANDSCAPER
McNulty and Co. Landscapes
“Tom is expert at what he does. He is creative with his tree layout designs. He is personable, thoughtful, a great listener–critical skills to building a vision together. He communicated well and was willing to revise and revise as needed. He was at the site monitoring his crew at all the right times. He treated his crew well. His crew was polite at all times. They left our place clean . The end result was beautiful. I highly recommend them.”
– Peter M.
2023 FAMILY FAVORITE LANDSCAPER
VIP Landscaping LLC
“I hired Aidan with VIP Landscaping as I thought his company looked promising. Boy was I right! Aidan gave me a quick and free estimate with a very timely response to my questions and concerns. Once it was approved, Aidan brought his crew over and did a fantastic job building me a new patio and giving my landscaping a complete remodel! I would definitely recommend.“
– Chris M.
2023 LOVE AWARD WINNER: BEST PAINTER
PJA Services
“Peter and his team at PJA Services are remarkable. The professionalism and punctuality is hard to find when it comes to people working in your home. They gave me a fair price on top of the best quality service. They painted my kitchen efficiently, we’re very kind, & I was left with the best service I ever had, will definitely use them for all my home service needs.”
– Natalia M.
2023 FAMILY FAVORITE PAINTER
Artisan Painting
“We hired Artisan for two projects – painting all of our kitchen cabinets and painting our main staircase. This company is simply the best home improvement company we have ever used. They are communicative, honest, friendly, respectful, trustworthy, and great to have working in your home. Mike, the owner, quickly responded to my initial inquiry and showed up on time for our scheduled preliminary appointment. He promptly sent me a detailed proposal and had us on the schedule asap. The team who did the work was fantastic. They cleaned up the worksite each night and were so wonderful to have in our home. All around friendly and professional. The final work product is perfect! Everything was done on time and on budget – very hard to find these days. I can’t wait to work with them again and recommend them hands down to anyone who needs these services.”
– Jessica P.
2023 LOVE AWARD WINNER: BEST REAL ESTATE EXPERTS
Nicole Klein Team
“My husband and I worked with Nicole when we relocated back to PA and really can’t say enough great things about her. Going into the process we were very nervous about the competitive market we were entering and were recommended by a friend to contact Nicole because of her deep knowledge of the main line and her down-to-earth approach. From the beginning, she devoted her time and energy into our home search. She is knowledgeable, approachable, personable, and incredibly generous with her time (including mornings, evenings, and weekends over the course of several months). Since we were relocating from out of state, she figured out some great ways to keep us connected to the ever-changing market, like previewing homes for us, taking street videos, and even face-timed us at an open house. Throughout the process, Nicole was open and honest with us but also positive and committed that we would find the home of our dreams. I could not have asked for a better agent to represent us in our home search. We not only plan to work with Nicole again for any future real estate needs but also highly recommend her to friends and family.”
– Jessica J.
2023 FAMILY FAVORITE REAL ESTATE EXPERTS
Ian Perler Team, Keller Williams
“Ian helped me find my dream home! He was a very good listener, and made sure that he understood all of the things that were important to me in a home. He showed us a handful of homes that met my criteria and budget. I am now delighted to own one of them!! Ian was very easy to work with and made the process smooth and simple for me. He also gave me good referrals for movers, decorators, etc. that helped me get settled in quickly. I had a great experience working with Ian and am nominating him because I feel that others in our community will benefit from working with him as well.”
– Lisa C.
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