DIY Network

West Virginia Log Cabin: Finishing Touches and Final Advice From "Be Your Own Contractor: Vacation Homes" episode DBCV-103

NOTE: Images on this page may be enlarged for enhanced viewing simply by clicking on them.

In this episode of DIY's Be Your Own Contractor: Vacation Homes, we meet Richard and Sylvia Thomas of Berkeley Springs, West Virginia and hear about their experiences relocating and restoring a log cabin originally built in 1820. In this segment, the homeowners discuss some of their interior design decisions and offer some advice to would-be do-it-yourself contractors.

advertisement

Just the Right Touches

As described in earlier segments, Richard and Sylvia Thomas went through considerable efforts in relocating their 19th century log cabin to a new location and attempting to restore it in a period-authentic manner. Appropriately, when it came to selecting furnishings and accents, they continued in their efforts to staying true to the historic period in which the cabin was built. "The furnishings really define the home," says Sylvia. "Certain things fit here, and certain things would look out of place."

The Thomas's advice for furnishing a vacation home: Take your time and don't rush the process. Richard says that, when it came to furnishing, they didn't feel seek out and purchase specific items. Instead they simply enjoyed the gradual experience of happening upon items they liked and thought would fit in with the style of the home. "Once you've finished building the house and you're ready to move in," he says, "I think it's really important to relax. . .That makes it fun too."

One of their most cherished finds was a working spit-jack or "spit clock," an antiquated device mounted above a fireplace that -- by means of weights, rope and pulleys -- allows meat to be roasted in front of the open flame of the fireplace, rotisserie-style (figures A and B).

Figure A

Figure B

"Take My Advice"

These homeowners advise would-be do-it-yourself contractors to do the proper groundwork before taking on a construction project of any type. "Whenever we weren't working," says Sylvia, "we were learning -- we were planning, we were organizing the things we had to do. And that really helped when it came down to actually starting the building process."

"Communication is the most important thing there is," says Richard, "because if you don't have communication, you don't even have plans. You first have to get a plan together, and that requires a lot of consideration and talk among the contractor and yourselves. And then when you have the workers working on site, if you have good communications with them, and you show interest and a desire to learn and be a part of it. It helps them make it a better project because they know you're interested, and you're interested in them."

If you'd like more information on log cabins, check out DIY's special Build a Log Cabin workshop.

RESOURCES :

The Complete Guide to Building Log Homes
ISBN: 0806974869
Author: Monte Burch, Richard J. Meyer, Lloyd P. Birmingham
Sterling Publishing Co. Inc.
Website: www.sterlingpub.com

Small Log Homes: Storybook Plans and Advice
ISBN: 1586850431
Author: Robbin Obomsawin
Gibbs Smith Publishing
Website: www.gibbs-smith.com

Inside Log Homes: The Art & Spirit of Home Planning and Decor
Model: 087905963X
Author: Cindy Teipner Thiede, et al
Gibbs Smith Publishing
Website: www.gibbs-smith.com

Special Resources for Be Your Own Contractor: Vacation Homes, episode 103

Fidalgo Restoration, LLC
Website: www.fidalgorestoration.com

American Log Restoration
Website: www.americanlogrestoration.com

Old Log Cabins
Website: www.oldlogcabins.com