A home is the epitome of self-expression. It shows the world your personal style and hints at what is important to you. It offers an escape from the world, creating a sanctuary for those who pass through its doors. But building the ideal sanctuary involves planning and budgeting to accommodate all the design options you might desire. Beginning with the structure, a home will speak volumes about who lives in it and where it is sited. But what about the design deta…
All doctors are familiar with the phrase, “First, do no harm.” It’s part of the Hippocratic Oath they swear to uphold once they become doctors. It means that they will treat patients to the best of their ability and judgment without doing them any unnecessary harm. When you are planning your new log home, why not treat it and the property you are building on as your patient and do your best not to disturb or contaminate it or the other living things you will be sharing it with? Today, “green” is t…
When asked if I would like to write the Trend Watch column on the subject of shared log homes I replied to my editor, “Of course, this will be fun.” Within a minute or so I was thinking to myself, “Hmmmm … shared log homes? REALLY?” The term “shared home” conjured up images of college days, when I was one of many housemates (my experience was not as bad as Animal House), living pretty inexpensively in a large, somewhat dilapidated rental home. Even after univer…
During the 32 years that Ellis Nunn has been designing luxury log and timber homes he’s seen many different design trends come and go. A member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and the National Council of Architects Registration Board (NCARB), Nunn is president of Ellis Nunn & Associates Architecture in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Nunn’s firm specializes in high-end mountain-style and log home architecture. Over the last three decades Nunn has designed over 300 log homes. A leader in t…
While some economists continue to lament that one of the longest recessions in U.S. history persists, signs of recovery and a return to economic vitality are surely coming around. Despite a lingering concern for the future, those looking for the log home of a lifetime can take heart. Somewhat ironically, there may never be a better time to buy. The reasons for this sudden surge of opportunity are varied; however, the most dramatic lies in the price of money, the funding that makes a log home purchase po…
Imagine your log or timber home is a canvas to showcase the natural beauty of logs. Handcrafted log homes take that beauty a step farther by showcasing the unique variations in each individual log while honoring the timeless craftsmanship that goes into the building process. What Makes a Home Handcrafted? In a handcrafted log home, each log has been hand peeled, notched and fitted to the log below using traditional hand tools like axes and draw knives, as well as modern tools like …
For many people, retirement means escaping the 8-to-5 grind and living life the way they want to. As your life evolves, your needs change. That’s particularly true of your housing needs. If building a log home is part of your retirement dream, there are ways to make sure that your place will age as gracefully as you do throughout your golden years. Size Matters Many homeowners consider trading down to a smaller home once they reach their 50s or 60s. D…
Control Moisture Controlling moisture also is important. But the house needs to breathe to allow excess moisture to escape. Seider recommends controlling this factor with good HVAC (heating, ventilating, and air conditioning) equipment. Grant also installs a growing number of encapsulated crawl spaces—a method of sealing off the crawl space from the ground and outside air by lining the area with a high-performance vapor barrier. This process not only eliminates moisture, mold, and mildew, but also impro…
