Neighborly North Carolina

Richard Phillips isn’t the least expensive builder to be had in the mountains of upstate North Carolina. But he always pays his subs and vendors in a timely manner, has never been involved in a court case, and ends up being friends with the clients he builds for. That’s what landed him the contract to build a one-of-a-kind custom log vacation home for a couple who wants to relax and enjoy time with family and friends. Phillips says, “In these parts, we’re all neighbors, everybody knows everything about everyone, and word of mouth carries a lot of weight.

My track record of home building is squeaky clean and I plan to keep it that way!”

With a 360-degree view to beat all views, the home was sited on a ridge overlooking the North Carolina mountains, forests and a blue ribbon trout stream. The family has an ardent love of nature, and enjoys fishing and hunting. The property was chosen, after nearly five years of searching, for its great access to both activities, as well as the stellar views.

 

“It has been a lifelong dream of ours to own a log cabin in the mountains,” say the homeowners. “For about 10 years we subscribed to several log cabin publications. We would save clippings about various types of logs, log construction methods, and building materials, including lighting and decorations. By the time we found our property and were ready to build, we had a pretty good idea of what we wanted.”

The couple attended a log home show in Knoxville, Tennessee, and were very impressed with the knowledge and information offered by Bob Walker, an Appalachian Log Homes sales representative. They also liked the look of the large, square log dovetail construction the company offered.  The design of the home began with a floorplan the homeowners had developed from different houses they had seen in their log home magazines over the years. “We pretty much began with the basic floorplan we thought we wanted,” they say, “and then made adjustments based on the unique properties of the building site.” The couple was introduced by Appalachian Log Homes to architect Damon Falconnier, based in Knoxville, who took their footprint plan and developed it into a finished design.

Construction of the 10,000-square-foot ridgetop lodge began in March of 2006, and the family was hoping to be able to spend Christmas, just nine months later, in their new log home. Richard Phillips and his team fulfilled the request, just barely. “We moved furniture in on Christmas Eve,” Phillips recalls, “with only one coat of finish on the wood floors.” The county building inspector gave the contractor a temporary occupancy permit, and after a 10-day stay the family departed and work resumed for two additional months, when a final inspection was done.

Phillips had some previous experience building smaller log homes, but this was his first one of such a large scale. One significant challenge was getting the logs and materials to the building site. Dave Carter, president of Appalachian Log Homes, says, “Bob Walker and Damon Falconnier visited the site and determined that our tractor trailers would not be able to make all the switchback turns up the steep driveway to the job site. Even if they could make it, there would not have been enough space at the site to stage all of the materials from a tractor trailer.” Carter contracted with C.L. Loven, a local lumber company, to receive all of the materials shipped by Appalachian on semi trucks. The lumber company off-loaded the logs to a smaller truck, then transported them up the narrow, winding road to the job site as the erection crew called for them. “What could have been an even bigger challenge,” says Phillips, “was coordination, having all the subs there at the right time, with the right materials.”  He used local subs that he had worked with before and knew to be trustworthy. This helped make the project a smooth, relatively trouble-free operation.  Some specialty subs, such as the log construction crew furnished by Appalachian Log Homes, came from out of state.

Appalachian Log Homes provided knowledge and technical support to Phillips throughout the entire construction of the home, providing a qualified technician to oversee the log construction, along with architects and engineers to check on the project from start to finish. “They answered all the questions I had,” says Phillips, “and supplied me with all needed materials right on schedule. We were in constant contact with each other right up to the move-in stage. Dave Carter and his team were great to work with.”

The homeowners had spent many years planning the home, so they were very specific about what they wanted. “We didn’t make a lot of visits to the job site during construction,” they say, “maybe once or twice a month. We trusted the building team to do it right, and very few changes were made during the construction process.” All of the lighting and plumbing fixtures, appliances, paint and stain colors, granite and tile, were decided upon by the homeowners and delivered as needed during the course of building.

Janice Phillips, Richard’s wife and owner of Nana Jan’s Landscape and Designs, was in charge of the landscaping of the home. “The homeowners had only two requests concerning the landscaping,” says Janice. “They didn’t want any plantings tall enough to block their views or any plants that would obstruct the view of the house from below.” With this in mind, she used a variety of perennial flowers and ornamental shrubs that she grows in her own gardens. The balance she purchased from local nurseries. “I selected plants that I love and know well,” she explains, “with the primary goal of creating a beautiful garden that would give great pleasure to the homeowners.” The variety of plants chosen surround the home with brilliant blooms from late April until late September or early October, when heavy frost arrives. “We have not yet been able to spend as much time at our mountain home as we would like,” say the homeowners, “but we certainly enjoy every moment we have there. Our children and grandchildren love being there as well, and hopefully it will be something they will want to hold on to and preserve for the future.”

Phillips sums up the experience of building a home of such grandeur: “I learned that no matter how big the project is, the secret to a successful outcome requires the same operating principles: seeking advice from professionals in the field, hiring responsible and reliable workers, and maintaining a good relationship with the homeowners.”

As is their way, Richard and Janice Phillips still provide the homeowners with service, maintenance, and tender loving care of the home. And, true to their reputation, they have also developed a wonderful friendship with the family.