Log Cabin Homes Magazine

The Basics of Buying & Building a Log Home, Part 1

by Laura Stapleton | Jul 9, 2021 | Building, Exteriors, How-To, Planning, Room-By-Room

You have been dreaming of this home for years. You have collected a binder full of ideas and sketches of what you envision your log home to include. And now you are looking for a building site. What should you be looking for when preparing to purchase property? Here are five important factors to consider when choosing your building site. Where will you build? We all have a general idea of where we want to build our dream home. Maybe you envision your home tucked into trees on the side of a mountain or n…

All in the Family

by Debra Grahl | photography Roger Wade Studio | styling Debra Grahl | Jul 9, 2021 | Entire Home, Room-By-Room

Native Georgian Betty Maughon raised her family in a modest ranch house that she and her husband built in 1959. During those years she often dreamed of living in a log home. “I would tear out pictures of log cabins from magazines and newspapers,” says Betty, “in hopes of one day being able to build one. After the kids were grown, and I lost my husband to heart disease in 1996, I thought my log home dream was over … until my son Dan built one for his own family in 1998.” “My wife, Suzann, and I began dis…

Cozy Comfort in a Wide Open Space

by Mike Haskew | photography Heidi Long | Jul 9, 2021 | Entire Home, Room-By-Room

A 1,275-acre Townsend, Montana, ranch offers captivating vistas of surrounding mountains, soaring pine forests, and rolling meadows—plenty of outdoor space for its owners to enjoy the fly fishing and seasonal hunting that drew them westward several years ago. Although they were not actually looking for abundant acreage, the site was something special. Mount Baldy rises more than 8,900 feet above the valley floor northeast of Townsend, and the owners chose to build as high on its slope as possible. A 780…

Adding on with Logs

by Mike Haskew | Jul 9, 2021 | Building, How-To, Planning

Growing families, additional indoor or outdoor entertaining space, accommodations for overnight guests, and storage needs are just a few of the reasons that homeowners choose to add on to their existing residences. Depending on the circumstances, the process typically involves an assessment of existing structures, land usage, and particularly the look, feel, and utilitarian result the owner hopes to achieve. Owners of both log and traditionally constructed homes experience ev…

Log & Timber Coast to Coast: Northeast & Mid-atlantic

by Log Cabin Homes Magazine | Jul 9, 2021 | Entire Home, Room-By-Room

The Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions offer a wide variety of terrain and climate that is great for log & timber homes. If your ideal spot is a remote area surrounded by trees, you can find that here. Or you can have the benefits of log & timber living but be near an urban center and its amenities. If a water view or waterfront property makes you happy, this part of North America has plenty to offer. The regions have a long tradition of log & timber frame construction and your new home will…

The Thrill of the Hunt

by Mike Haskew | All photos: MossCreek | Jul 9, 2021 | Building, How-To

The deep texture and rich colors of reclaimed wood afford distinctive log homes and their discerning owners the opportunity to step out of the crowd. Old-growth timber, recovered from a cabin built during pioneer days or given new life when rescued from a commercial building that was bustling a century ago, adds flair to a log home like nothing else. “The actual industry term that predates the modern ecological push is ‘antique materials,’” explains Allen Halcomb, president of MossCreek, a custom design…

Up on the Roof

by Laura Cleveland | Jul 9, 2021 | Building, How-To, Planning

When you hear the word “roof” probably the first image that pops into your head is the tried and true asphalt shingle roof that is ubiquitous in the United States. When you dream of your log home, you most likely envision a more rustic roof that will complement the wood and architectural style you have selected. The good news is that you can have a beautiful roof that enhances your log home and is also durable, sustainable, and energy-efficient. If you are co…

A Place to Gather

by Tanja Kern, photography Scott Amundson, styling Tal Harris | Jul 9, 2021 | Entire Home, Room-By-Room

Mike and Julie McGlynn had vacationed on Bay Lake in Northern Minnesota for years, often boating past a quaint 1933 log cabin located on a popular causeway called Echo Point. When the property came up for sale in 2001, they jumped at the chance to purchase the lot and its dilapidated buildings. “It was always sort of a dream to find a vintage log home,” says Mike McGlynn. “We wanted a place to spend time with our daughters, their husbands, and our seven grandchildren.” The prev…

101 Design Ideas

by Jennifer Donahue | Jul 9, 2021 | Baths, Bedrooms, Designing, Exteriors, Great rooms, living rooms, dens, How-To, Kitchens, Outdoor Spaces

If you are in the process of designing a log home, or just dreaming about it, this room-by-room list is designed to spark your imagination and help ensure that you include all of your needs and wants in your floorplan. Photo by Karl Neumann Great Rooms 1. Position windows to “frame” the picture of your view. 2. Anchor a large living area with a stone fireplace; it will provide a natural focal point in harmony with the outdoors. 3. Use hand-forged log straps to add a custom touch to your home. 4. Give yo…

Ray’s Ridge

by Debra Grahl | photography Roger Wade | styling Debra Grahl | Jul 9, 2021 | Entire Home, Room-By-Room

“We just love being here,” remarks Bill Ray, gazing out over North Carolina’s Cataloochee and Smoky Mountain ranges. “It’s worth every mile and minute of the 71/2-hour drive it takes us to get here from Indianapolis.” Located at Cherry Hill, a rural development near Waynesville, North Carolina, the Ray cabin is situated on four-plus acres, but the astounding views make it feel like 4,000. “My heart has always been in the Smokies,” chimes in Bill’s wife, Louise. “My parents brought my twin sister and I d…

Sooner Than Later

by Debra Grahl, Photos Roger Wade, Styling Debra Grahl | Jul 9, 2021 | Entire Home, Room-By-Room

Ken Miles and Margo McKinney were leading very busy professional lives in the greater Baltimore area. Margo, a retired school principal, had taken up a second career in real estate sales. Ken worked as a sheet metal developer at Middle River Aircraft Systems. The couple had discussed living in a log home in their retirement years and agreed that a quieter, simpler life in the country was their vision for the future. They began to focus attention on their retirement goal, but couldn’t find property that …

A Grand Romance

by Tanja Kern | photography James Ray Spahn | Jul 9, 2021 | Entire Home, Room-By-Room

Amy and Bill Richardson fell in love with Grand Lake, Colorado—and the dream of a mountain vacation home—at the same time they fell in love with one another. “We met in grad school, and right after graduation from our two-year MBA program, we got in the car and hit 23 states in 26 days,” Amy says. The couple’s journey took them through the Rocky Mountain National Park and Grand Lake. “Grand Lake’s marketing slogan is ‘America’s front porch,’ and it really does look l…