Cabin. A Pennsylvania log home is filled with family history and there is room for many more memories to come.

Transcription

1 Cabin Comfort A Pennsylvania log home is filled with family history and there is room for many more memories to come. BY MICHAEL BAXTER PHOTOS BY J.P. HAMEL For as long as Paul Silvis can remember, he and his grandfather, dad, and brother have hunted along the banks of Windfall Creek in western Pennsylvania, each season creating new memories and maintaining a tight family bond. Today, Paul and his wife Nancy own that familiar piece of property and have built their custom log cabin, named Windfall Pines, at creekside. Topping 4,500 square feet, the Silvises weekend retreat is far from a traditional cabin, but Paul feels comfortable with that description. I had been going up to that site since I was a baby, so there is an awful lot of history for me there, he says. Windfall Pines sits in such a pretty setting back in the woods near the stream. The cabin just seems to fit there. Ed Hoffman, representative for Hilltop Log and Timber Homes and general contractor on the project, agrees that the home and its secluded location were a perfect match. A log house is so much more comfortable than a traditional home in this kind of setting, he says. Just 90 miles from their residence in State College, Pennsylvania, Paul, Nancy, and their two youngest sons take advantage of the cabin at every opportunity. Each of us might give you a different answer as to what we enjoy most about the home, but for me it s the relaxation, Nancy says. I just like to vegetate when I m there and do as little as possible. Paul and the boys like outdoor activities such as quad riding their Paul says nothing is more relaxing than sitting on an old-style front porch and listening to a summer rain on the metal roof SILVIS.indd 94 11/14/05 11:15:24 AM

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3 four-wheelers, hiking, and fishing Windfall Creek for the native Pennsylvania trout found there. Although relatively simple in design with its D-style logs of white pine and western red cedar with dovetail corners, the three-story home is more than a standard box. It s a basic two-story with a wing to the right, and a walk-out finished basement explains Paul. Then there is a bump-out in the master bedroom and a few other interesting features. Those interesting features came from meticulous planning by both Hoffman and the Silvises. They knew what they wanted for the most part, Hoffman says. Where it was feasible to do what they asked, we tried. When I had suggestions, they listened. There was a lot of communication back and forth, and in the end it worked out well. We wanted a big great room with a kitchen and dining room connected, explains Paul. We envisioned an open floorplan where anyone could spend time in the kitchen and still be involved in what was going on in the great room. This home allows for that. High ceilings, a large loft-like room overlooking the great room, and rich wood tones were on Paul s wish list. And, I really wanted a red metal roof, he says with enthusiasm. It really sets the cabin off in the trees. In the summer when it s raining, there s nothing better than sitting on the porch and listening to the sound of rain hitting a metal roof. It s just so relaxing. Knowing that Nancy loves to vegetate at Windfall Pines, it s no surprise that her favorite room is the master bedroom. For me it s a place of solitude where I can take a nap and no one misses me. The room s decor is French Country with framed floral images hanging on the tongue-in-groove wooden walls and a comfortable carved pencil post bed. The large Low-E windows allow for daydreaming and endless gazing into the forest. As for Paul, he likes to hang out in the great room with the floor-to-ceiling window wall, flat panel television, and large fireplace. Constructed of synthetic stone, the great room fireplace is one of three gas-burning units in the home. Choosing a fireplace was one of the toughest decisions that we had to make, says Paul. Did we want gas or a real wood-burning fireplace? We chose gas because when you go up to the cabin it s nice to just push a button and have a fire going. The Silvises chose a Town and Country fireplace for the great room with a large glass front and two chimneys. To make the fireplace look even more realistic, it was given additional bulk and depth clear through to the stairway behind. The mantel above the basement fireplace is special to Paul. That mantel is a heavy log from my grandfather s farmhouse from a long, long time ago, he explains. The mantel in the great room came from Hilltop and still has the look of a rough, unfinished log. We have an extraordinary kitchen, says Nancy. We planned it to be user friendly so that it works well with more than one cook in the kitchen. The spacious plan has a center island for food prep and snacking. Stained slightly darker than the walls, custom pine cabinets complement the forest green and copper-tinted Uba Tuba granite countertops. All of my hardware has an antique look to it in keeping with the wrought iron light fixtures and nickel-type hardware on the doors nearby, she adds. The appliances are all stainless steel from GE. Themed rustic elegance, most of the decorating was done by Nancy and was inspired by the choice of a light fixture. I tried to think about who would be occupying the different rooms, she says. The guest room where our parents would stay has rustic tones of rust, deep blue, and green to go with a patchwork quilt there. A smaller guest room, with an almost doll house feel, is done in pastels and RIGHT: High ceilings and windows designed to bring the outdoors in were two of the Silvises top requirements when designing their home. OPPOSITE: The one-of-a-kind antler chandelier in the great room is the sentimental centerpiece of Windfall Pines as it recalls memorable outings with several generations of the family SILVIS.indd 96 11/14/05 11:16:05 AM

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5 ABOVE: The spacious kitchen was designed to be open and user friendly with lots of storage and top-of-the line GE appliances. RIGHT: A wood-burning cook stove in the dining room is used regularly on cold winter mornings to rustle up an oldfashioned breakfast SILVIS.indd 98 11/14/05 11:19:00 AM

6 plays well off of a Tiffany-style light fixture. The master bedroom upstairs, used primarily by Paul s brother and sister-in-law, is decorated in true rustic style with a bear-style rug, canoe-based coffee table, a leather couch, and an antler light fixture. Of all the special elements in his home, Paul is most proud of the great room antler chandelier. It s a fixture that radiates as much warmth as it does light into the room. I had always wanted an antler chandelier, but I wanted a special one. I wanted one made from the deer antlers collected by my family over the years, Paul says. I had been on a trip with my father to Newfoundland and we shot a caribou, my grandfather had shot deer near here, so had my brother and I. We even had neighbors and friends offer antlers. Paul went to craftsman Tony Willis at Antler and Horseshoe Art in Webster, Florida, for the project that promised to have a special look and meaning just for the Silvis family. Today it is the sentimental centerpiece of the great room. The large deck on the rear of the house is ABOVE: The master bedroom displays a Country French look complete with pencil-post bed and decorative work desk. BELOW: Washed in earthy shades of brown and green, the master bath is a mix of complementary wood stains, deep-colored countertop, and gold-toned fixtures SILVIS.indd 99 11/14/05 11:19:30 AM

7 MASTER BEDROOM BATH BAR BATH DECK SUNROOM GREAT ROOM ENTRY PORCH DINING ROOM KITCHEN OPEN TO BELOW BEDROOM BEDROOM OFFICE BATH Upper Level constructed from a composite material resembling wood, but with an extended life and zero maintenance. The railing is a powder coated cast aluminum with cedar posts topped with copper caps. Beneath the entire deck is a specially designed pan to catch rain water and melting snow, direct it to spouts at the end, and keep the walk-out basement dry. The inviting front porch is wood with white cedar spindles and railings with red cedar posts. The land around us is beautiful, and the cabin is really nice and cozy. It s comfortable and makes you warm all over, says Paul. I really think that everybody needs need to build one in their life. Main Level LOG HOME PRODUCER: Hilltop Log Homes, Bowdoinham, Maine. LEFT: The Silvis home is landscaped in a variety of shrubs tested and found to be unappetizing to the deer in the forest surrounding Windfall Pines. BELOW: The low/no maintenance deck overlooking Windfall Creek is made of a long-lasting composite material with powder-coated cast aluminum rails and cedar posts SILVIS.indd /14/05 11:19:57 AM