Not long ago, a couple stopped in, curious about what Caribou Creek offers. Their dream was about elegance, being closer to family, and building a forever home in a beautiful place they loved as they transition into retirement.
Overlooking a beautiful lake, the couple had chosen the perfect place to build and they were ready to begin designing the home they had been imagining. It was a parcel of land they had been pondering purchasing for years and finally did.
Our draftsman Stuart, worked with the clients to create a floor plan and log home design that met their wishes and customizations.
The Design
The clients were ready to treat themselves with the amenities and luxuries that fueled their dreams. What resulted is a gorgeous custom home design that was finished in the first quarter of 2021.
The focal point of the home is an impressive 23 foot tall entry with a huge arched truss supported by two pillars. Each pillar is constructed with four tall posts. Looking at the renderings, it’s evident walking up to this home will inspire a feeling of awe.
Main Floor
Inside the 7 foot front door is a hundred square foot foyer with an open ceiling two stories high. Past the foyer, is a catwalk which joins the two upstair wings. The expansive 400 square foot great room opens up just pass the foyer accented with matching trusses for that jaw drop effect.
Upper And Lower Stories
The basement is complete with a guest bedroom, full kitchen and a bathroom. An open living room adds plenty of space for entertaining guests and family. The 13′ by 7′ wine room completes the basement adding its sophisticated flare.
The upper story holds space for a spacious guest bedroom and bathroom as well as a large home office room allowing for the couple to continue working from home as they ease into retirement.
From top to bottom this home is filled with elegant luxuries including the massive walk in closet with a window to capture picturesque views.
The Log Package
Initially, this home was designed to be a complete dovetail log home package. However, after the initial log design was completed it was decided hat the amount of log walls was overpowering.
The homeowners wanted a variety of textures and design elements without losing the wow-factor of the logs and the rustic charm.
As a result, the home became a classy hybrid of dovetail log walls throughout the center of the home with wings designed for traditional framing methods.
Handcrafted specialty timbers lace throughout the framed portion of the home carrying the artful elegant motif.
In the end, the home turned out to be even more in alignment with what the client was looking for. By framing the log portion of the home the dovetail section and gorgeous timber trusses appeared even more stunning.
The First Log Layout
The Second Log Layout
How The Timber Shortage Effected The Project
When Caribou Creek began the process of ordering material we reached out to our normal timber suppliers and were told they were too backed up to fill our needs. Our log acquisitions manager continued sourcing timbers only to discover the timbers he could get were drastically overpriced.
Dovetail Cants
During the second phase of the design transitioning from full timbers to dovetail cants was discussed. Dovetail cants are crafted from round logs, but rather than four flat sides being milled, only two sides are sawn creating two flat sides and two curved sides. The log package is constructed in the traditional chink-style method and the extensions are cut to have four flat sides. After the chinking is installed, the rounded edges of the cants will not be visible and the home will appear to be full dovetail. The only consolation is that the chink lines will have a more variated line giving it a more rustic appearance which suited the homeowners even more.
The image below are the milled logs awaiting crafting!
Time Frame: Project Progress
This project is slated to begin in August and be delivered in the fall of 2021. Site prep has begun while the logs have been cut and placed in the kilns to dry.
The employees of Caribou Creek are excited to see this project get underway. It brings us great joy to help our clients experience a dream home that gives them years of pleasure.
Although Caribou Creek is designing the entire home, we are only crafting the log and timber portion. The client has hired a General Contractor to finish out the project.
By making the changes we did we scaled back the log portion of the project considerably because helping our clients achieve their dream without having to compromise important design elements or overall square footage is the most important part of what we do. If you would like to discuss your project or idea with one of our log consultants don’t hesitate to call. 800-619-1156. Our passion is helping you realize your dream!
