Innholdsfortegnelse for September/October 2019 i Timber Home Living

ONCE A HUMBLE utilitarian space sequestered to the rear of the house (or even the basement), today’s kitchen is now a home’s centerpiece exposed for all to see. Like no other room in a house, the kitchen takes on the personality of its owner, and this one is no exception. In our Kitchen of the Month, Tom and Mary Reamer used the Arts & Crafts movement (think Greene & Greene and Gustav Stickley) as their guide but allowed themselves the freedom to interpret it in their own way. The result is creative and exceptional. Welcome to the Reamers’ Colorado craftsman kitchen by Riverbend Timber Framing.…

Washington’s Cle Elum River Valley, due east of the Cascade Mountain Range, is known as much for its million-dollar houses as its million-dollar views. Rising up against the landscape, these monolithic structures vie for your visual attention against the majesty of nature. But at least one home—a modest mountain cottage owned by John and Monica McArthur—knows its place among the grandeur and is content to coexist rather than compete. Interestingly, the home’s quiet presence was a happy accident. After purchasing seven acres in Colorado, the couple had begun making plans to build on the land when they rediscovered a long-forgotten love of Cle Elum, known for its towering forests and craggy terrain. “We both spent a lot of summers here as kids, but we hadn’t been back since,” says Monica.…

If there’s one thing about a timber home interior that can compete with the frame itself, it’s the breathtaking views that typically come with them. But these vistas don’t happen without windows, and though selecting windows for your timber home may seem simple, there’s a wide world of options from which to choose. From accentuating the landscape outside to keeping your home comfortable and energy efficient, high-quality windows can do their job for decades. They’re a building component that’s worth a little extra investment, but it’s important to familiarize yourself with all the possibilities before you buy. Use this snapshot of your window options as your guide. THE ENERGY FACTOR By now, almost anyone who’s researched home-related products is familiar with ENERGY STAR ratings. For the past 27 years, ENERGY…

Who designs our homes? We believe in the value of the custom architectural process. Whether we work with your chosen architect, or our own architectural staff, we collaborate to incorporate the nuances of timber framing in your project. Each of our clients has a different lifestyle and vision—a custom design improves the home’s relationship to you, the site, and the budget. What kind of wood do we use? Our favorite, and what we’re known for, is reclaimed timber salvaged from old industrial or agrarian structures. We also offer freshly harvested species from well-managed forests. Who will raise the timber frame and install the enclosure? The same craftsmen that cut your frame will raise and generally install the enclosure system for your project. Our experience adds to the safety, accuracy, and…

For more of our favorite home finds, log on to timberhomeliving.com.…

WHITE MAGIC Reclaimed, antique timbers pop against this enchanting coastal retreat. A combination of dormers, clerestory windows and skylights accentuate the bright white interior, punctuated by vivid bursts of marine blue. The great room’s kitchen and dining space is a seamless extension of the living room, while a golden hardwood floor ties the whole area together. A great room has been a fundamental piece of the timber home puzzle for nearly as long as timber frame homes have been in existence. Where it took years—even decades—for conventional construction to catch up to the “open-concept” mantra that has taken over residential design, timber-framed homes almost always flow freely between rooms—especially the living, kitchen and dining spaces. So with such a storied pedigree of open-floor-plan living, you’d think laying out a great…

Nestled within the hardwood forests, craggy cliffs and meandering waters of the Tennessee Cumberland Plateau is a house built from stone and timbers, marble and metal, hard work and happiness. Not so long ago, homeowners Greg and Sandra Teslia could feel the ocean breezes poolside at their sprawling, stucco Palm Beach, Florida, home. After relocating from Canada in 1991, the couple spent 27 years on Florida’s Gold Coast, where they developed a successful international business. However, even the allure of the ocean couldn’t hold them when the Tennessee hills began calling. The lush terrain, coupled with their equine interests, enticed them to put down roots at their seven acre escape situated adjacent to the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area. “We purchased the property many years ago,” Sandra…

We’re all trying to do our part to save our planet’s natural resources, and choosing to build a timber frame home puts you squarely on the conservation path. But did you realize your efforts have an added benefit? They can save money on your monthly energy bills as well. That’s a win-win. While we all know how important it is to improve the energy performance of our homes, few actually know how go about it. It starts with properly constructing and sealing your home. A high-tech, energy-efficient system will have little benefit if your house isn’t built properly. Begin with the basics: 1. Hire the right builder. The majority of timber homes use highly energy-efficient structural insulated panels (SIPs) to enclose that beautiful frame, but if they aren’t property installed,…

ALTHOUGH MANY HOMEOWNERS PREFER to tack their chimney to the outside of the house to maximize floor space inside, a properly designed interior chimney will almost always heat your home more efficiently and will require less maintenance than one that’s on the exterior, according to the Chimney Safety Institute of America. It makes sense. If your chimney is located inside, any heat lost from the mass of the chimney itself stays within the room. If your chimney is on the outside of your home, you not only lose that heat to the outdoors, cooler exterior temps could penetrate your chimney. A fireplace must maintain a very high temperature for the fuel to combust completely, but exterior chimneys exposed to cold weather and wind tend to foster cooler burning temperatures. As…

If you’ve followed the past three installments of this series, you’ve learned that Riverbend Timber Framing has designed a home for a Marysville, Ohio, family who need plenty of space to accommodate their extended family (and favorite furniture pieces) and that specialty fabrication techniques have contributed to the home’s ultimate aesthetic. Now, it’s time to build the house—and get the Riverbend stamp of approval. INSPECTION 1: THE FOUNDATION There was snow on the ground when the first load of fabricated timbers arrived at the job site. For eight weeks, the builder prepared for their arrival by excavating the earth, pouring the foundational slab and completing the floor deck. The team worked to lay a strong foundation for the home, knowing an inspection by Riverbend‘s project manager Eric Dempsey was imminent.…