November 2011

FOR PETE AND TRISH DESOCIO, the second time’s a charm. Within two years of building their dream vacation log home in Henry, Tennessee, the DeSocios had sold it and moved into an expanded version of the same house in nearby Paris.

The DeSocios, whose primary home is in Newburgh, Indiana, weren’t looking to relocate their vacation spot. But when a realtor contacted the couple to see if they’d be interested in looking at the substantially larger Paris property, they decided to check it out. Drawn to the stunning beauty of the sprawling 350-acre

property, which features a 155-acre lake, the couple considered this an opportunity to improve on a home they already considered flawless. “Basically, the first house was so perfect, we thought, that when we built this second house, we just made it larger and on a grander scale,” Pete says. “But we didn’t buy the property until we knew we could build next to the lake.”

“We had a chance to work on things we thought we’d missed on our first house, and do it exactly the way we wanted on the second one,” adds Trish. “Most people don’t have that opportunity, so it

worked to our advantage.”

Produced by Honest Abe Log Homes and built by Larry Bell of Volunteer Log Homes in Henry, Tennessee, the DeSocio home is constructed of 6x10-inch, square-profile Eastern white pine logs—known as Honest Abe’s Original Chinked log. The building system includes chinking between the courses and dovetail corners. Additionally, the logs are handhewn on the outside as well as on the interior to add to the home’s authentic, historical look.

“We’ve seen a resurgence in the past few years of people wanting

PerfectDo-Over

AN INDIANA COUPLE BUILDS A SECOND,GRANDER VERSION OF THEIR TENNESSEE VACATION HOME.

As Seen In Log Cabin Homes, July 2011 Edition

November 2011this more traditional look with the chinking and the dovetail corners,” says Josh Beasley, director of advertising at Honest Abe. “It’s anAppalachian style—if you go into the woods here in Tennessee, the 150-year old cabins you’ll see will look similar.”

The Eastern white pine, a fast growing and sustainable species, is durable and an environmentally sound choice. The Honest Abe practice of air- and kiln-drying the wood results in tighter joints and stable logs that minimize future movement, shrinking, and settling.

The heavy timber roof system is constructed of 4x8-inch Douglas fir beams and 2x6-inch tongue-and-groove wood. Vaulted ceilings throughout the home showcase the exposed timbers. Adding to the home’s thermal mass, explains Bell, are five inches

of rigid foam insulation at the top of the roof, an air space for venting, decking, and a metal roof.

“The house is super sealed up, so there’s no air leakage and no water leakage,” says Bell, an Honest Abe dealer. “The energy efficiency is out of this world.”

Even though the DeSocios were using the same basic floorplan from their first log home, expanding the new house did present some design challenges. For example, the couple decided they wanted a garage on the new house. Not wanting to sacrifice a wall or the porch that completely wraps around the home, they worked with Bell to come up with an elaborate staircase that connects the detached garage to the house.

The bonus room above the garage serves as either the ultimate man cave or a secluded place for guests—particularly those visiting with families. In addition to a small kitchenette equipped with a small refrigerator, ice maker, sink, and bar, the space includes a full bathroom with Jacuzzi tub, a television,a gas log fireplace, and a pool table.

The new property’s lake also added a design problem. The house essentially needed “two

November 2011

November 2011fronts,” Peter says—one that would look fabulous from the lakeside and another that would create a grand entrance. Their solution was to design the lake side with an expansive wall of windows on each side of a massive fireplace running all the way up through the roof. The main entryway, located on the back side of the house, is inviting with a gable that features exposed timbers over a three-level porch accented by lampposts. “We wanted the house to be elegant and rustic at the same time,” Trishsays.

The DeSocios’ one-and-a-half story home makes efficient use of space through seemingly simple solutions. A spiral staircase, for example, is situated to one side of the great room, offering easy access to the loft without taking up the space that a traditional staircase would occupy. It’s also a beautiful conversation piece, made out of solid oak and without a center post. Another space-saving feature, says Trish,

November 2011is that “there are no long, wasted hallways.” The bedrooms are connected to the great room and dining room areas, with separate doors that can be closed off for privacy. Additionally, the couple asked Bell to build queen-sized beds into the slope of the roof in the loft.

Because the house was designed as a vacation home, outdoor spaces were an important consideration. The entire house is surrounded by a 10- foot-wide wraparound porch—an enlargement over the previous home’s eight-foot-wide porch. One section of the porch contains a sitting area overlooking the lake and features a wood-burning fireplace. It’s a great spot for relaxing and watching the many wild animals on the property, including wild turkey, deer, and a pair of eagles who nest nearby.

“What makes the wraparound porch so wonderful is that any time of the day you’ve got a place to sit where the temperature is ideal,” Trish says. “There may be a welcome breeze on one side, or sunshine on another side. So the wraparound was ideal for spending time outdoors.”

The home also includes outdoor spaces for the couple’s two dogs—one of whom weighs just over three pounds and needs special protection from predators like hawks, which also occupy the property. The couple worked with Bell to come up with a design to make the gable end of the porch a three-level spot that’s closed off with gates. This allows the dogs to roam around the spacious porches while keeping them at a safe distance from wild animals. Additionally, the couple built a dog run next to the garage to give the dogs a private space to roam freely.

November 2011

The couple has no plans for a third log home, feeling content that they’ve got the best location and design they could have imagined. For prospective log home owners, Pete suggests: “Build a log home if you want one—you’ll wish you’d done it a long time ago.… There’s nothing like the magic of a log home.”

Editors Note: Published with Permission. Article from Log Cabin Homes magazine, July 2011, pg 56-63.

Article By: Karen Doss Bowman

Photography By: Roger Wade Studio

November 2011

Inspiring HomeHonest Abe’s

Floor Plan, Product & Planning Guides

Receives First Place in Presentation of Floor PlansHonest Abe Log Homes, has received numerous national home building accolades, capturing top honors for best Presentation of Floor Plans, best Log Home Design Under 2000 sq. ft., and best Log Home Design between 3001 – 4000 sq. ft. in the 2012 Jerry Rouleau Awards for Excellence in Marketing and Home Design, presented by the BSC and Log Homes Council. The program is administered by the Building

Systems Councils (BSC) of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)—a trade association that represents the concrete, log, modular and panelized building system industries.

For more than a decade, the awards program has promoted excellence in the systems-built housing industry. This year, the awards were renamed to honor Jerry Rouleau, a marketing authority and longtime advocate of the systems-built industry, who lost his battle with cancer earlier this year.

The awards recognize excellence in achievement in a range of marketing and design categories. Award recipients cover the spectrum of the building systems industry, from diminutive cabins to

sprawling estates, and interactive websites to inspirational marketing booklets.

“Each year, the BSC honors industry leaders through its marketing and home design awards program. Receiving one of these prestigious awards not only elevates the winning company’s stature, but also enables them to receive national attention for their achievements,” said 2011 BSC Chairman Harry Junk, a leading figure in the concrete building materials industry. “Past award winners have stated that receiving one of the BSC’s awards for marketing or home design continues to promote their companies and has helped secure new business for them long after they win.”

The annual Jerry Rouleau Awards for Excellence are judged by an independent panel of industry experts, and companies like Honest Abe Log Homes were praised for the quality of their submittals.

“It’s quite a distinction to be recognized by your industry peers,” stated Honest Abe Log Home’s President, Randy Fudge. “Honest Abe has always strived to be a continual leader in log home design and production. Achieving these prestigious Jerry Rouleau Awards for Excellence is quite an accomplishment for the talented individuals who make up this company.”

November 2011

All winners will be formally announced during an awards ceremony at the 2012 NAHB International Builders’ Show (IBS) on Feb. 6, 2012, at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando. Select projects will be on display on the BSC Awards Wall during the show. IBS is the largest gathering of home-building professionals in the world.

Awardees also will be regularly highlighted in editions of NAHB’s e-newspaper, Nation’s Building News, throughout 2012, as well as in other NAHB and independent print and online publications.

For a complete list of winning companies and projects, including Honest Abe Log Homes, visit www.nahb.org/2012bscawardwinners.

Ready to get your set?

Award winning catalogs only $10.00, shipping included!

Visit: www.honestabe.com/info/planbook.php

November 2011

Honest Abe Home Featured in Log Cabin Homes Magazine

“Elegant Camping”, a story about how one couples camping get-a-way turned into the perfect location for their retirement home, has recently been published in the 2011 Annual Buyer’s Guide edition of Log Cabin Homes magazine. The story, featured on pages 46 through 55 of the magazine, talks about the couple’s experience building their rather large home while residing out of town. Stunning photography by Roger Wade Studio captures the wonder of this log home “castle”. The home was custom designed by Mike Magee, the couples son-in-law, and Honest Abe. Pick up a copy of Log Cabin Home’s Annual Buyers Guide, which is in stores now!

November 2011

An age-old comment about log homes is people have heard how “dark” they are on the inside, but this is something that does not have to be true anymore. Beyond the overall structure of the house, the windows are the single most important way to make a creative statement about your new log home. Ranging from gable dormer windows to a wall of gable end windows of all shapes and sizes – letting natural light into you home has become an integral part of the design process.

Honest Abe offers a wide range of choices of windows - selecting from our standard, economical wood windows to our premium aluminum clad wood windows (offered by Jeld-Wen in a variety of colors). You can select from different sizes of our double-hung or casement windows. Also, our fixed windows come in different shapes, sizes, and clad colors, from angular to arched, all to accent the beauty of your home.

Exterior doors with regular or leaded glass and/or sidelites are also available. We offer a wood-grain, stainable fiberglass door in half and full-glass options, along with patio, slider, and French doors. All doors are also offered in the aluminum clad with colors to match the windows.

Let Honest Abe provide the perfect window and door solution for your design to purposefully take advantage of natural light to enhance the beauty of your new log home.

Article By: Sharron Bilbrey, Sales Representative for Honest Abe Log Homes.

Let the Sunshine In!

November 2011

Customer: Bill SearsSalesperson: Dan Smith, Murfreesboro, TN Construction Crew: WEB Construction IncLog Profile: Round/Round Log

Coming in from the cold weather of Coventry, Connecticut, the Sears chose the warmth of an Honest Abe Log Home built in Tennessee. Upon completion of the design process this past April, the Sears’ started preparing for their log home package. It didn’t take long for Bill, a contractor himself, to be ready for Honest Abe’s dry-in crew.

Bill and Karen Sears house is a custom 32’ x 35’ Round Log home sitting on a full basement. It houses 1,880 sq. ft. of usable space with an attached two-car garage. One unique design choice is that the basement can be accessed from the house and garage, something Bill specifically chose for convenience and safety. The logs are covered by the porch on all four sides, accessing the garage on both ends. The Sears chose Honest Abe’s Heavy Timber Roof, and placed two shed dormers on the front side with a larger shed dormer on the opposite end. A balcony completes the exterior look which turned out stunning. The Heavy Timber extended out above the balcony and is contrasted by the 8” x 8” White Pine post bracing it from top to bottom. The Sears plan is our “House of the Month” so take the time to check out the interior floor plan as well.

A “congrats” goes out to Honest Abe builder, Mike Strong and his crew, who did an excellent job constructing this house as evidenced by the pictures!

Article By: Josh Watson, Construction Coordinator for Honest Abe Log Homes

Construction of the Sears Home

November 2011

House of the Month: The Sears Residence

The Sears Residence features 1,120 sq. ft. on the first floor with another 760 sq. ft. on the second. An attached garage provides 864 sq. ft. and is attached directly to the home. A wrap around porch is only interrupted by the presence of the garage, allowing for plenty of outdoor living space. A private balcony leading off the master bedroom provides even more opportunity to enjoy the outdoors. The home features two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a utility room leading to the attached garage, and an open great room encompassing the kitchen, living and dining areas.

November 2011

Ingredients:

8 large eggs6 cups baby spinach4 Tbs. Creamy Blue Cheese Dressing1 8-ounce can beets, rinsed & sliced1 cup carrots, shredded2 Tbs. chopped pecans, toasted

Preparation:Bring eggs to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce to low, cover and simmerfor 10 minutes. Cool completely. Peel and chop eggs.

Toss spinach and 2 Tbs. dressing in a large bowl. Divide between 2 plates.Top with chopped eggs, beets, carrots and pecans. Drizzle with remaining dressing. Makes 2 large servings, around 300 calories each.

ENJOY!

Loaded Spinach Salad

Recipe By: Melissa Copas, Design & Drafting, Honest Abe Log Homes

Loaded Spinach Salad

July 2011