Name: BT
Location: Western North Carolina
Size: The semi-custom manufactured white-pine log cabin's interior measures 11.5' x 34' to stay within legal size for travel trailers (max 400 sq. ft.)
Favorite resource:
My favorite resource is my wife, then myself as designer, carpenter, laborer.
What inspired you?
After living aboard our 37' ocean-cruising sailboat in the Pacific for seven years, we were determined to keep "living- small." The lack of space was welcomed - it's cozy, like the referigerator box we played in as kids. It makes a small footprint on the land, leaving more of the land bucolic. It took fewer resources to build. It means low heating & cooling bills. It's a more simplified, responsibe way of living on an increasingly crowded planet.
...Though it weighs 16 tons, it's in the same legal catagory as an
Airstream your uncle would tow to the beach with his Oldsmobile, thus
avoiding some building/zoning code hassles. It was towed to its site
and set up like a mobile home, though there's no reason these things
couldn't be helicopter-lifted atop a city skyscraper or to a remote
mountain- or lake-side. Quality is mixed: It was built in the South.
I had to redo much of it.
Design Tip:
Build one long high bookshelf around the walls above
doors & windows to keep more wall space free. We can stand in our shoes on most of our furniture, so getting books down is no trouble.
EXTRA:
-Top left: living room with corner of kitchen counter at bottom of
photo. "Coffee table" is an old ship's carpenter's sea chest in which
off-season clothes are stored. Large wooden bowl atop chest was carved & used by my mountain-man great-grandfather. A fifteen-light front door is to the left of the couch which opens into a wide single-guest-bed.
~Top right: Rest of livingroom. Antique boatbuilder's working
half-models and friends' bird & whale carvings on wall over oak
chest/cabinet. Almost all windows look out on the Blue Ridge
Mountains. Old oak dining table for four is by large window opposite
the half-models.
~Bottom Left: Boat galley kitchen with 4-burner stove/oven, double
sink; pottery & baskets kept atop cabinets.
~Bottom right: Bedroom w/ queen-size bed. Out of view is a large
cedar wardrobe for a closet (Tip: built-ins can't be moved for
rearranging rooms but wardrobes can) and two chests-of-drawers. View
out large window (out of sight to right) is of a large mowed field;
small window over bed looks into a large bamboo grove.
Another tip from Helouise's illegitimate brother here: In small spaces, install hooks to hold open doors back against walls. In tight quarters, you will bump into a door that's swung even an inch out of its usual position. And another thing: Angle a few pieces of furniture to avoid a boxcar feeling.
I like that this space is so different from other entries and how you've used the space all the way up to the ceiling. And I love/respect the small ecological footprint. So, I am voting you a contender despite the potshot at the South. :)
The bookshelf ledge around the ceiling reminds me of a really cool idea I saw once where someone created a cat-track along the ceiling for their cats to roam around on. It was bizarre yet ultra cool!
...not that my couch cats would use something like that.
(I've got to stop coming here today! Too many fun distractions!)
I'm really impressed when people outside of NYC choose to live in ultra-small spaces. Good on you for being environmentally conscious. I love how warm, cozy and efficient your space is.
I second Li. I love this one. Who are all the negative voters, I wonder? Please let's consider some things outside of the realm of strictly urban, modern, and polished. Not that I don't love those 3 things but I love me some different stuff, too.
I really like how thoughtful you are about your space and surroundings BT.
This reminds me of these little places http://www.tumbleweedhouses.com/ which I love :)
When did you take these pictures? 1962?
Kudos to you for living small. Could we see a floorplan?
Danielle, I adore those tumbleweed houses too!
I think this also is a nice approach, despite having the room to live big, they're choosing to live small - I also envy their position right in the mountains. :)
You know, I think to urban eyes, this can be kind of unappealing. I can appreciate that someone wants to live in this kind of style. But I also think that if you look closer, you'll see that, once you get past the novelty of all that knotty pine paneling, the furniture is chintzy and there really isn't any style or thought here. Like someone said, I appreciate when people who have access to more space choose to use less but I still had to give this a no vote.
I'm cross about the "Quality is mixed: It was built in the South. I had to redo much of it" comment and I haven't lived in the South for 22 years. Yes, I think living in a just-right sized space is important and thoughtful, but deriding the locals undoes a lot of that ecological goodwill.
i'm with ruth. sorry.
Thanks for submitting this. How great to have a small, homey place as your Blue Ridge base. To me, this is about being in and connecting to a specific place and culture/heritage -- emotional resonance and getting the right balance between people (small) and nature (big). And sometimes its nice to close the door on all that nature and be cosy.
I do look at this and think, cobwebs and dust and mice nesting in the sofa -- my own mountain cabin fantasy calls for simpler furnishings -- but if this is a full-time home those won't be issues.
BT here.
I think there are likely two reasons for the negative comments on our little cabin: One, the lousy photos make the place look dingy, which it isn't. It's all rather new light-colored pine, including the bead-board overhead, and the furniture is definitely not chintzy. It is all well made stuff, a mix of family heirlooms and stuff I built. For instance, I built the bed out of ironwood to traditional wooden yacht standards. It has teak slats under a layered-density foam mattress. The Shaker-style headboard slats are iron-bark, a wood so dense it sinks. My bedside table is made from the oiled teak cockpit sole of a Hinckley sailboat, its wrought-iron base built by a pal, one of Northern California's finer blacksmiths. I won't have junk.
The other reason for negative comments is, I suspect, due to the young city-slicker's grooming these days to like hard-edged and cold materials. I'm not interested in being cutting-edge, and more to the point, I've long believed people truly are shaped by their environments. Being surrounded by unyielding and abrasive concrete, steel and brittle glass fosters intolerant, abrasive and brittle people. Some comments above seem to confirm that.
Further, ours is a cabin in the woods. It fits. An ultra modern glass-&-concrete home on a mountain farm would seem as out of place as a battle ship in the `burbs.
The little log cabin was in-part a quick solution to an immediate problem - where to live awhile close enough to care daily for my elderly mom without living in the same house. Two women in the same kitchen is not good, especially when one likes sprouts & tofu, the other grits n' barbecue.
If I build another house, it won't likely be of logs. It'll again be small and tight, preserving the land and fostering simplicity, but more passive-solar by design. If in the country, I'll have a masonry exterior and tile roof to repel wildfires, an insulating 4"- to 8"-thick closed-cell foam liner-wall, and inside will be a mix of artful stone masonry for heat or cool-sinks, and plenty of wood for psychic warmth. Were we to fetch up in town or city, I'd want an apartment as small, furnished with warm, friendly materials and located so one seldom need start a car for daily chores & pleasures - like K/B's place.
Incidentally, our cabin is tightly built, ck, there are no vermin in our couch, nor elsewhere inside; the dust and cobwebs are probably no worse than in your place.
I love that you chose to have such a small footprint - and that you are in a seperate house from your mom! I live on a 35' trawler and appreciate the wood furniture. It is much more difficult to be space wise when not using the newer, modern furniture, I believe. It may not be as flashy as the apartments are, but the fact that it is a self-contained unit with no shared walls is a wonderful bonus.
It's the photos -- the lighting is killing the space.
We lived very briefly in North Carolina, so yes, I can see how your home makes aesthetic sense in its proper setting, as well as how it honors a tradition of handcrafting.
But the poor lighting in the photos mean I'm having to use my imagination a *lot*, and it's difficult to compare it fairly to tiny woodsy cottages in the Northern California woods that I've seen professionally photographed, making no imagination is necessary.
BT-Your small space in the Blue Ridge Mountains is very organic and probably looks wonderful in the setting. It looks a lot like houses that were built on the NC coast in the early 20th C by boat builders;both in quality and appointment. It's too bad that all the dazzeling urbanites have an fixed idea regarding media and style.
I think this place is probably wonderful in person, but is hard to photograph. I also think that, in context, you'd probably walk in from those beautiful views and feel right at home.
it may not be my thing, but there is something so very genuine and thoughtful about this place. it feels real. it's nothing like the other entries. no DWR, or Miss K lamps, Eames chairs or Saarinen tables here. it's doesn't give a d**n about being hip, or urban or cool or mid-century. it reflects who these people are. i congratulate BT on this. this is a DIY handmade house. kudos to you for chosing to make your living environment, your home, something so unique and personal to you and your wife.
Maybe I'm just particularly defensive of BT because the text for this entry made him and his wife sound like people I'd want to know, but the comment "to urban eyes this is unappealing" sounds pretty condescending. And then to use the word "chintzy" to describe the furnishings? Sheesh. Agreed, the photos are quite bad but it is obviously a personal style issue - you like the cabin vibe or you don't—it's not a question of urban sophistication.
Is my city-dweller-for-half-my-life brittleness showing?!?
OK, I was really wrong to use a word like "chintzy" to describe the furnishings. I should have accounted more for the photography and the lighting not really being able to show this home off in its best light. And I agree that the lack of Eames, Panton, mid-century blah blah blah is refreshing.
But I am a city gal, a proud one, have been all my life and expect to die with asphalt under my feet, thank you very much. The rustic look just doesn't work for me, even when it's done very well. And I'm not sure that I'm seeing the design sense and creativity that I see in other entries even within the context of a log cabin, country style. So I'm sticking with my opinion but I am sorry if the way I said it caused offense.
And rr, yes your brittleness -is- showing.
I agree with wende, the lighting on the pics dont help
Interesting.
Well, I dig this a lot. I wish it were shot better. But I am born and raised in the City and I expect I'll die with Asphalt under my feet as well, and I'm really digging this entry and I'm glad he entered it.
A lot of the "modern" and "clean" entries are not doing it for me at all; they're looking clinical and boring to me.
I don't look at the entries to see my own taste, I look at the entries to see other people's tastes. I love when someone shows me beauty in something that I would never do.
Excellent Entry!
- Tania :)
BT, I wasn't speculating about your carpentry or housekeeping! my point was, rustic country cabins are prone to cobwebs, critters etc. so I envision my own place (if it ever comes in to being) with less stuff for said cobwebs to cling to. The last wood cabin I rented, I just stopped wearing my glasses so I didn't see all the spiders.
You might have noticed all the nice things people said too.
BT here.
I do appreciate the nice things folks have said here, ck, and thanks for your note, and for yours, Ruth.
Just as soon as I've the time, I'll try to set up lights and take better photos & send them to Maxwell, along with a floor plan. My initial effort was clearly too-quick & dirty. Meanwhile, like Tania, I enjoy seeing other people's places & taste, and I like the clean, spare look so long as there's warmth since a home should be a refuge from our ever-harsher world, .
This website experience is interesting for several reasons - the urban/rural differences, and generational preference among `em. F'instance, having been a kid in the `50s, a time of zits, of teenage uncertainties, repression of several sorts, and greater, more hateful and violent racial intollerance in the US, I'm not likely to decorate with the look of that era. For someone new to that style, I can see the appeal - also, this pine cabin would seem pretty corny in the city.
I liked Tania's preference for asphault under her feet. City living sure has appeal and it's the saner way to live and preserve more of the planet if one is not growing crops or in need of bucolic quiet for inspiration.
Thanks, Danielle, for turning us on to Tumbleweedhouses.com and its excellent links! I had no idea there was a movement for small homes across the land.
BT
Bravo to BT for putting this on. I'm gonna reserve further judgement until I can really see it, though.
I love it. BT, the modernistas will never understand. I can't believe some of the comments. I live in Manhattan, but am not a fan of slick urban style. In fact, Modern is my least favorite decor. But for some reason, it seems that many people think that modern style is the best for small spaces. I think a home should suit its environment and its inhabitants. A friend of mine in Vermont lives in a little cabin with a pot-bellied stove in the living room and a view of a red farmhouse and silo up the road. Not a slick piece of furniture anywhere and thank goodness!
I love the white you have with all the wood. I love that you brought some nautical style to the mountains, along with a sailor's sense of using space efficiently. I half-expected to see a gimbeled stove! I "got it" right away - I was brought back to schoonering trips along the coast of Maine, which my husband and I try to do each summer or fall but haven't been able to in a few years. For a while we had a fantasy of buying a boat and going cruising. I bought the cruising magazines and the books about boats. Someday, maybe we'll do it... after I learn to swim and most of the piracy is under control - so I'm in awe of the cruising lifestyle. It's so brave and independent. I've also spent a little time in Asheville - just a long weekend - and I would love to have a home there. The beauty of the mountains left a huge impression on us. HGTV's 2006 dream home is there, a huge place (I mean HUGE!) that they designed to look like it was dropped on top of the mountain. I always loved that line from 'Cold Mountain' when Inman says, "I've got to get back to the Blue Ridge!" You've managed to combine the best of two worlds. Kudos!
Looks like the Walton's vacation home. Good-night Johnboy!
Too dark and depressing for me...
BT and others -- next time you're in Washington, check out the Mansion on O Street. Within this unusually self-conscious hotel is one bedroom dressed as a log cabin, and complete with grandmother's collection of authors and Navajo type rugs. My question: was much additional wood required to line the walls inside? Or is it part of the structure?
I can't believe BT criticizes other people for being "intolerant" yet has such crudely expressed prejudice against Southerners. This makes me not interested in voting for this house.
Don't know if you meant the wood in the Washington hotel or this cabin, Only, but the cabin walls are solid wood. It's a milled-log cabin, meaning the logs have been sawn into rectangular timbers a full 4" thick by 12" tall by 15 to 25' long.
Anya, my family on both sides is thouroughly Southern and I am not at all intolerant of Southerners. I enjoy my neihtbors and some of my relatives quite a lot. However, I've lived in the Northwest, in Northern California, in Maine and elsewhere and notice craftsmanship is more highly valued in some places. There are fine craftspeople south of the Smith & Wesson Line, but in general folks just aren't all that fussy here. That's not always good or bad, it just is. Raised in the West to revere good fits and finish, I had to re-do lots of work on this cabin for it to meet standards I grew up with. I'm kind of envious of those who aren't so fussy nor bothered by gaps in the woodwork and by stuff like dangerous wiring.
412117
I like a new take on conservative (space/environmental) living. The use of book shelves along the wall is one I'd love to employ when I get a workable space. The use of iron wood is a great idea. I've always loved it as a material and it really lives up to its name.
btw, thanks to the poster for the link to tumbleweekhouses.
-t
no affence, but your hole place looks like it hasent been dusted in like 10 years *sighs* you got more coming lol. it looks durty and way unclean the walls and all the wood, are what make it look so durty. it would be way better if you dident have logs but thats my oppion. baceicly what im trying to say is that your hole so called "log cabin" looks real unclean.
Can you advise me of the cost of the completed unit after built and electricity and septic installation system with shower. Please email me of the info as I am interested I am single and looking for quietness and living light.
Leroy
Smithbuilt or Bullshed in Florida is the maker of the "cabin" dwelling I occupy in east central Florida. They claim it's not for occupancy, however. I got the idea from tumbleweedhouses website. My "Thoreau cabin" is a 12 x 20 frame-built, aluminum covered shed with vaulted ceiling and four little windows, which the distributor installed nicely in my backyard. I have three "roommates" who occupy the 3 bedrooms in my main house and I legally, finished the shed, including a full bath, sleeping alcove, bar sink and undercounter frig. I still use the kitchen in the house, too.
Oh, the cost
12 x 20 shed with eave - $3500.00
Plumber and fixtures $3500.00
Self-Finished Interior: refrig, insulation,electrical, carpet,interior cedar wood paneling, plus misc. $1000.00
Tim Jones, you are obviously a moron, and I don't just mean your poor spelling and grammar. Can't you see how crisp and white the fabrics are, how shiny the surfaces, how gleaming the sink, how crystal-clear the windows? The photos are not the best resolution/contrast, but anyone can see this place is neat, clean, and tidy. This is the home of someone who sailed around the world in a sailboat and then moved to the mountains. If you know anything about sailors, they know how to conserve space and keep things clean.
This is what I call design disaster.
Is this an 80's hunting lodge or what?
The reason the quality may not have been the best has less to do with being in the South as much as labor practices in the area. It is a question of not wishing to pay for skilled labor so you get what you pay for.
Secondly, I would like to point out the nice touches you have here. The simple white curtains, held back on one side, the beautiful pottery above the kitchen area, (is that local?) and the double duty coffee table.
Thirdly and more importantly, the house may be efficent on size, but lacks the simple grace of the cabins you are trying to capture. May I give a few examples of what so many are trying to say?
The couch looks comforatable, but oversized for the area, the fan is frilly enough to detract from the wonderfl wood celing, the wall with the boats feels cluttered.
It is not a question of your home not fitting into what most urbanites would appreciate, because there are plenty of non-urbanite homes here that are recieving good votes. Homes that are cluttered, or even appear so as in your pictures, are not seen as good design.
........this is scary. Where is Grizzly Adams?!
BT...
I just noticed your comment from earlier mentioning that you didn't know about a movement for small homes... so I thought I'd also let you know about the "Not So Big House" books by Sarah Susanka. Her philosophy is about using space efficiently and beautifully and adding details and elements that create a cozy effect. That doesn't mean that her houses are necessarily all small but I think they are a great counterpoint to the cookie cutter McMansions filling up the burbs.
she has a website:
http://www.notsobighouse.com/
looking at this entry again, I think I was mostly turned off by the poor photography.
it's still not my taste, but I'm really, really glad it got an honorable mention.
Go, BT!
"WOW" WHAT A NEAT SMALL HOME. WHEN ARE PEOPLE GOING TO REALIZE THAT THERE IS A RESPONSIBILITY TO,(AS MY GRANDFATHER WOULD TELL ME WHEN I HAD MY TREE HOUSE AS A CHILD) "ALWAYS LEAVE THINGS BETTER THAN YOU FIND THEM" AND IT WOULD BE A MUCH BETTER WORLD IF EVERYONE DID!!! LET = "SAVE THE TREES AND PROTECT THE WATER" BE OUR NEW GOALS. AFTER ALL IT'S OUR "BUTTS" IF WE DO NOT!!! THANK YOU FOR SHARING PART OF YOUR PRIVATE LIFE WITH ALL OF US. MAY GOD BLESS YOU.
I love it. This home is warm and cozy, the way a home should be. This home reflects the owners personalty and you can clearly tell they are happy.Your home should be filled with things that you treasure.
Small really is better, and I love the compact design of this little log cabin. Log loft beds are always a great option too, when space is an issue.