vintage clawfoot tub and antique farmhouse sink

I have a wish list for the cabin and two things on my list are a claw foot tub and a vintage farmhouse kitchen sink. Luck would have it that I found a sink and tub at the same time so I took off with the truck and went after my haul.

I have my heart set on installing a claw foot tub in the cabin bathroom.  I have been watching and shopping around. They either needed lots of restoration work or were way too pricey for a cabin. I stuck with my shopping till I found one.

I also really wanted a vintage farmhouse kitchen sink, the kind with the big sink and the built in drain boards on the side.  The sink was much harder to find than the tub but I finally found one of those too. It's 24" wide with 2 drain boards on each side. The entire sink is 54" long.  It's a big one and I love it! It needs some minor repair and it is going to be gorgeous.

These are going to look awesome when we are able to get them installed. I can't wait!

Now we just have to get them all the way to the top of the mountain. Any volunteers?

I'm glad you're here, pull up a chair and sit a spell.

Mountain Belle

Cabin Remodel Part 1

our not so attractive ceiling       

First on our remodel list was to remove the  standard 8' ceiling and raise it to make the space feel more open.  So we had the carpenter start taking the ceiling and insulation down on one section so we could take a peek.

Our original plan was to leave all the trusses exposed and paint them; sadly that look was not to be. The trusses had ugly wood plates since it was built before metal plates were used. The trusses themselves were all rough cut lumber. This meant they all had pieces of insulation stuck to them and they were going to have to ALL be de-fuzzed and groomed before we could paint them and all the rough cut wood was going to be a real pain to paint; pink fuzz not the look I was going for.

It was going to be an extremely time consuming project so the original plan was vetoed. If it hadn't been for all that pink fuzz I was going to sic Darth Vader and his power spray painter on those trusses. I think those cool exposed trusses need to be planned for at time of construction and not after the fact.

It all worked out because I had a Plan B! (actually Mr. Carpenter did …. shhhh). We decided to have the ceiling re-engineered and vault it. Good idea Mr. Carpenter; let's do it.

So, we began the long process of reworking the ceiling, supports and preparing for a tongue and groove vaulted pine ceiling. I have never learned to do things the simple way and decided that the pine needed a subtle white washing before being installed. I began experimenting with different colors and options till I found the one I liked. Subtle but pretty. Then….. the wood arrived. All the ceiling boards needed to be whitewashed and all the exterior trim pieces I had wanted needed to be primed and painted. Oh no!!! What was I thinking? I have to whitewash and paint all of those?

While the new supports and trusses are being taken care of I am up to my ears in boards to whitewash. 

The Husband took this photo because he thought my "backside" would give folks an idea of how big that stack of wood really is by using my backside for comparison. Very, VERY funny!

Somewhere in New England there is lovely old covered bridge with very wide boards. The Husband used this same measurement technique (my backside) to show how BIG the boards were. Ha Ha!       

Thank goodness Mrs. Carpenter came to my rescue. She helped me whitewash board after board after board. She is actually there more than I am so she has actually whitewashed more than I have. Thank you Mrs. Carpenter!!!!! I was proud of myself when I finally finished all the exterior corner trim pieces (that were on site) to go on the cabin. Then …. Mr. Carpenter informs me that more are coming; all the new window trim pieces. Sigh, this is going to take a while folks.

Tongue & Groove boards before whitewashing      

After whitewashing. I'm really liking it.      

While I am up to my elbows  in painting and whitewashing Mr. Carpenter is wanting me to make decisions . Where do I want lights, where do I want switches, how do I want to ceiling boards to run. The nerve of that man! If you have ever built or remodeled a home then you know what I'm talking about.  I was about ready to do my best Linda Blair imitation. He just stood there smiling waiting for me to process and decide.  All I could think was "where is the chocolate"?  During most of this The Husband is doing the power spray painting and his Darth Vader act. All we got out of him (when he would stop to talk) was "whatever she says" in his Darth Vader voice. I don't think Darth Vader ever said those words.

Trim painting and ceiling board whitewashing are rolling along and the new windows and doors arrived  have arrived.  Hooray!

I'm glad you're here, pull up a chair and sit a spell.

Mountain Belle

Cabin Living Area

This is where I hope to put a cute wood cook stove, when I find it

Before remodeling      

The cabin work continues, we have made lots of progress but we still have LOTS to do.

I have been writing so far about all the exterior progress and all the work The Husband has been doing. I have been working too, really! My work has been focused on the cabin interior; I leave The Husband outside with the bears.

The cabin was purchased "as is" which means there was a lot of stuff left behind in addition to the repair work that needed to be done.  There was a lot of linens, mattresses, rugs, miscellaneous household items, basically just lots of stuff. Also, the cabin had been abandoned for a while and the mice had decided to move in. One day while cleaning a large closet I got a "feeling" that I was being watched. Sure enough, sitting up high on a shelf was a mouse watching me and he had a really big smug grin on his face. BIG YUCK!

this is a job for a BIG trash can    

Big BIG trashcan   

I sorted, ripped up carpet, bagged up the discards and cleaned everything I could; the discard pile rapidly grew.  After many pickup loads and a large utility trailer full, we finally have the bulk of everything removed from the cabin. Do you know a mattress and box springs is very heavy? The last time I tried to help The Husband carry a mattress and box spring he said I tried to kill him. This time there were only a couple steps involved so he remains alive and unharmed.  

Then I had to have a heart to heart talk with the mice; they didn't appreciate me cancelling their lease!

I did all that cabin cleaning so it could become a  construction zone covered in sawdust, tools, paint and wood… sigh. I feel better with all the "chocolate sprinkles" cleaned up though! Construction will be going on for a while and the mice are currently evicted. I know the mice are outside plotting their revenge against me but for now I'm winning so don't burst my bubble yet. 

Panic attack .... I mean strategic planning mode      

Now time for the real fun began; we brought in a carpenter to start the remodeling process. Hooray!

I'm glad you're here, pull up a chair and sit a spell.

Mountain Belle

The Mountain Cabin

When we first found the cabin we had to park at the end of the lane and walk up a winding path to the cabin. No one had been there for a while and the forest was trying to take it all back; it was too closed in for a vehicle without getting a paint job messed up.

After making our way down the long driveway we made it to the cabin.  Awwww….. poor thing! It was sitting there in the middle of the woods and barely visible. The forest was trying to take it back too. We were instantly smitten! The cabin was sitting there all hidden in the woods waiting for someone to love it again.

In spite of the years of neglect the structure was sound and we knew it had lots of potential. The view was spell binding off the front deck. The elevation on the deck of this cabin is 4412'. At this elevation the climate can be harsh and cabins need to be maintained promptly so they can weather the harsh winter. The cabin was needing some attention. 

So, we bought it and jumped right in. Because winter comes early at that elevation we started on the outside as quickly as we could before the first snowfall comes. The Husband power washed the house, storage building and all the decking. This took a couple trips to the cabin to complete but made a huge difference. 

Look at the difference the power washing made to the deck

  

Power washed cabin .... already looking better      

 Once we had this step completed it was time to paint. The Husband wasn't thrilled with my plan for the cabin paint job but he followed through with it. Thanks goodness for his power spray painter. Whew!

Two coats of primer went on first. 

Then 2 coats high gloss enamel. 

The Husband wasn't sure he needed to paint that last coat of paint. The carpenter suggested he could wait till spring and see how the one coat held up. The Husband liked that idea.  Then the carpenter said "if it needs another coat then you can paint it again but in the spring you will have to tape all the windows and doors because the news ones will have been installed". The Husband didn't like that thought; he muttered a bit but he did the second coat of paint. We started calling The Husband "Darth Vader" because he wore a respirator while painting and sounded just like Darth Vader.  The force was with him; two coats of primer and two coats of paint later Darth Vader was finally finished painting the main color on the cabin. It was well worth his effort; the siding is well protected and feels great.  

The little ugly duckling is changing everyday    

 After the painting was complete Darth Vader confessed his secret. He only painted the storage building one coat; "I want to see which paint job lasts longer".  Hmmmm ….. storage building protected by trees vs. cabin on side of mountain taking the brunt of the weather and wind? No fair! No wonder Darth Vader was a villain.

When the windows come in the cabin will really start to look great. I can't wait. Now I have to work out a front door color.  I wonder if Darth Vader has any suggestions? 

The carpenter has started replacing the trim boards, which I have already painted white. I can't wait to see them all up. He should start putting in new windows next week. Once the ugly brown windows are replaced with the new white vinyl ones it's going to look sharp. I can't wait!

There is lots more to come.

I'm glad you're here, pull up a chair and sit a spell.

Mountain Belle

The Mountain Cabin Storage Building

 

The Storage building is finished! 

There is a storage building on the property with the cabin. We have been working on the cabin too but the building is showing the most signs of progress so I'm starting with that. I have to attempt to redeem some of my sanity with you guys!

Poor building           

The building, like the cabin, had been neglected, piled full of things, covered with soot from a non-vented generator and the generator needed serious attention before we could use it. There was a large gaping hole in the bottom back wall that I was sure a bear could fit through.  That thought got me one of those looks from The Husband.  Yes, I am nuts! (but I still think a bear could have fit through there). The Husband said he would fix the hole so "mice and squirrels couldn't get in".  What about the bears I ask? I think our daughter inherited her eye roll expertise from him!

It's a man-thing and and The Husband wanted to stake his territory in the building before I could so he jumped right in and because we really needed to get the generator working. He worked his fanny off on the building while I was busy clearing out closets and cabinets in the cabin. The building is a lot smaller than the cabin so it is showing signs of progress pretty quickly. He did a great job!!!

The above photo is after he had power washed the entire building and he had already started to prime it. I missed a couple photos....oops.

While he is doing all this work I am still plotting on exterior colors. About the same time we were purchasing the cabin I had a birthday and The Husband handed me the keys and said "Happy Birthday". Hmmm.... I said "Cool! This means I can paint it pink!". Now a photo of that face would have been awesome! I can't wear it and it doesn't smell good but I'll take it. Planning paint colors can be a daunting task. Do you know how many shades of pink there are? I still think that building would look lovely pink. Don't you?

I kept working on paint colors and this is the compromise I came up with.

Looking nice! He then put down a nice layer of thick pine bark mulch till we decide on permanent pathways. We bought 8 bags but we need to pick up a few more to finish the job. The residue on the ground is paint from using the power spray painter. The Husband says it will go away soon; I think it makes it easier to see bears!  :)

As I mentioned earlier, I just had a birthday during all of this. Our son is in the service and he and his wife are currently on the west coast and couldn't be here for my birthday. They sent me a gift card for my birthday to use on MY (snicker) cabin. I took my gift card and bought some out door candle lit lanterns for outside the cabin. Thanks for the present guys!! The Husband stood back and viewed his awesome job on the building and decided it was missing something. He rounded up some hooks and 2 of the lanterns and put them on the building.

This is the end result. I think it turned out great. The Husband did a great job!

We are making progress!

I'm glad you're here, pull up a chair and sit a spell.

Mountain Belle

    
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Introduction to the Mountain

Somewhere over the rainbow we have a cabin     

We have been looking for a cabin for almost 4 years now. There were numerous reasons why we couldn't find what we were looking for but we were determined to find "the one" and kept looking. Our main criteria was elevation and view, The Husband and I are both heat wimps and we wanted the higher elevation for the lower temperatures. If a cabin wasn't much cooler than here at our home it didn't make much sense for us to run off to a cabin. That was our logic and we're sticking with that!

We found this particular cabin in June; the elevation on the cabin's deck is 4412' and the view was awesome. Wow, now we're talking! We felt an instant need for this cabin. We had the high elevation, awesome views and the  eastern exposure we were looking for. We were sold! The catch was the cabin was in need of some serious TLC; big time! After we both agreed we wanted to put in an offer The Husband looked at me and asked "Are we crazy? This is ugliest cabin we have looked at and we want to buy it." My response was "Yes, we are crazy. What else is new? Let's go for it!".  That is exactly what we did.

The gorgeous mountain laurel around the cabin  

We have been working our fannies off since mid July and I have lots of posts to catch you up to where we are now. Some of the pictures and cabin details are not for the squeamish; you may want to run now! ( I almost did)  Did I mention we are crazy! The cabin started out pretty bad; for those of you brave enough to stick through the bad I will have lots of good coming, eventually. I will try to get some of the good posted as soon as I can because I don't want to be sent 100's of straight jackets; I already have one. I will begin posting about the renovation / cleanup process. This is requiring lots of chocolate so if you do
send me a straight jacket please put some chocolate in with it. Please!!!

The cabins in this area are not for the faint of heart. The last stretch of road to the cabin is 3 miles straight up a rugged mountain road with lots of bumps, rocks and switchback turns. Did I mention it was a single lane road? Coming down the mountain is a bit of a different story. We use 4x4 to hold the vehicle back without constantly using our brakes; that's so we will still HAVE brakes when we reach the bottom. Still with me so far? Scared? ROFL, it's not too bad...um....most of the time.

 

When you see this view you are almost there. Deep breath now

If you are brave enough to drive up this mountain all the way to the top this is one of the views that awaits you off of the deck.

You can see for miles      

The cabin is currently a construction zone but due to the travel required we have made a "camp" with some cots in the bedroom after we finished scrubbing and clearing out. We don't want to take additional furniture up there to have in the way during the remodel so we make do with very minimal. Below is the sunrise on our first morning there. It was stunning!

and higher

Good morning       

On one of our evenings there we had a thunderstorm. It was a sight to watch. We were too amazed to attempt photos and we'll try to remember next time. The following morning again the view was spectacular and I never get tired of it. As The Husband would say: "Sometimes I wake up grumpy and sometimes I let her sleep". This is the view I woke up to:

Fog in the valley at sunrise       

The valley below is covered in fog and just the tops of the mountains were showing above the fog just as the sun was also coming up. It looked like a churning ocean. I enjoyed my coffee and the view that morning! Actually 2 maybe 3 cups of coffee but with that view I had to stay put a while.

This cabin has been neglected for quite a long time. We have a few trees that have overtaken the view. We will be opening the view up even more. I'll make sure to show you the updated views.

Lots more to come as we renovate and decorate the cabin.I have started at the beginning and will continue with the updates. Stay tuned, lots more to come!

I'm glad you're here, pull up a chair and sit a spell.

Mountain Belle