The Log Home Floor Plan Blog

The McKinney’s log home inspiration came at a very young age, spurred by the work of artisans and laborers who’d gone before him, and a love for the landscape of the American West.  Decades later the dream of his own log home hadn’t faded, so McKinney followed it to a parcel of land with a view of the Grand Tetons, then a meeting with Mountain Architects, to start making the dream come true.  Follow the link to read about Jim’s journey and see pictures of his dream home realized.  Inspired Living: Jackson Hole Haven - A Custom Handcrafted Log Home.

A Vermont couple works with PrecisionCraft Log Homes and Mountain Architects to design a customized version of the Cedar Falls log home plan. This beautiful log home features an extended stone & log accented prow as well as a double-sided fireplace that warms the great room and the deck. It is a grand welcome home in Vermont!

See more Log Home Pictures & Designs at Facebook!

This custom log home, recognized in Country’s Best 2009 Design Awards, features a gourmet kitchen. Here are the features that make this kitchen truly a work of art:

• Seamless boundary between the indoor and outdoor living space.
• Opening, glass wall that lets the outside in.
• A convenient large pantry featuring an oven stack.
• Open design with the kitchen flowing effortlessly to the dining area.
• Two, separate sinks and work areas.
• Butler’s area.
• Expansive pantry storage positioned behind the appliances.
• Custom interior design elements include: a concrete sink laden with pebbles, stucco walls, and tile murals.
• Knotty alder cabinets.
• Kitchen island finished with barn wood siding.
• Cedar logs walls.

View our collection of log home kitchens at our Facebook Page or at our Log Home Kitchen Photo Gallery at www.PrecisionCraft.com!

A North Carolina couple falls in love with PrecisionCraft’s award-winning Crested Butte floor plan. Modified to fit their land and architectural style, this handcrafted log home meets their every need. A true second home retreat.

Crested Butte Floor Plan | Modified with Handcrafted Logs

Mountain Architects - Custom Mountain Homes

Custom Designed Handcrafted Log Home | North Carolina

Waterfront Log Home with Expansive Great Room Windows

Reminiscent of the old-style cabins of our American forefathers, this Appalachian style home features beaver tooth corners, long, covered porches, warm hued stone and rustic, metal roofing. Based on the Blue Ridge floor plan, this home is a stunning mountain home retreat in Colorado. Traveling to every client’s build site, PrecisionCraft’s professional stacking crew installs the log and timber structure on the foundation. From fabrication to installation, PrecisionCraft ensures top quality and excellent structural engineering value.

Blue Ridge Log Home Plan | A Custom Log Home Design by PrecisionCraft

Appalachian Log Home in Colorado | Luxury Living & Log Homes

A Mountain House Designed by PrecisionCraft Log Homes

Many people spend years searching hundreds of different log home & timber frame floor plans; ones that showcase a specific style, layout, or size. For this Idaho couple, their search focused on finding a floor plan that would complement their build location.

In their pursuit for a floor plan that would highlight their one-of-a-kind view, Kelly and Marie fell in love with Mountain Architects’ Laurette Chateau timber frame home plan. The couple felt that the massive timber window “framed their view like a picture” while the large wraparound deck and multiple patios made outdoor living easy. See pictures of this finished timber frame home below:

Timber Frame House | Inspired by the Laurette Chateau Plan

~Custom timber frame home design by Mountain Architects

Custom Timber Frame Bar with Steel-Brushed Barn Wood

~Distinguished mountain architecture & design

Timber Frame Great Room: Custom Timber Frame Trusses

~State-of-the-art log & timber manufacturing techniques ensure top structural value for your home.

Timber Frame Home Designed for a Beautiful, Mountain View

~Learn more about the custom log home design process.

Amid the foothills of the Pocono Mountains in Pennsylvania, this log home is a variation of PrecisionCraft’s most popular plan and rendering - the Caribou Log Home Plan. This Pennsylvania home was modified to include a basement and to accommodate a sloping lot. Still under construction, this custom log home incorporates distinctive stone work, milled logs, character logs, and expansive windows. Truly a natural wonder!

Log Home in Pennsylvania Inspired by the Caribou Log Home Plan

Wood Design, A Classic Log Home - Custom Log Home Design

View more pictures of this log home on Facebook and see the process unfold from design through construction: http://www.facebook.com/#/album.php?aid=142758&id=75290931938&ref=mf 

Classic Log Homes & Lakeside Living

Moose, pronghorn antelope, wolves, osprey and more enjoy the great watering hole found on the shores of Henry’s Lake. Mesmerized by theater-like views of the surrounding wildlife, Doug and Kristin make it a daily endeavor to enjoy the great outdoors from their home in the mountains. Several outdoor seating areas, private balconies, an expansive deck off the main level, and magnificent walls of glass surrender beautiful, uninterrupted views of the lake and mountains. With intimate living spaces and abundant views out, Doug and Kristin have redefined lakefront living with a beautiful log home.

Even with its focus on the outdoors, Doug and Kristin’s log home is completely functional. The master bedroom is located on the main level of the home and each guest bedroom features its own full bath and private access to the outdoors.  Fashioned with a Western, rustic décor, Doug and Kristin’s cabin retreat is adorned with Navajo blankets, heavy wood furniture and custom designed, antler lighting.

Doug and Kristen’s home was inspired by PrecisionCraft’s Tahoe log home plan.

Spectacular View from the Log Home Great Room

This dreamy cabin, built at Tamarack Resort in Donnelly, Idaho, represents the classic, rugged beauty of Idaho’s backcountry. Complimented with modern styling, this log and timber frame cabin is truly a marvel inside and out.

Snow-Covered Log Cabin Home: Entry
Created by the award-winning team PrecisionCraft Homes & Timber Frame and sister company, Mountain Architects, the snow covered retreat, named the Eagle’s Nest, has created quite the “buzz” in the log home community winning awards from the Building Systems Councils and many accolades from log cabin enthusiasts worldwide.

The Eagle’s Nest log home plan boasts a unique design, driven by a unique build site. “The sloping lot nestled against the mountainside at Tamarack Resort demanded a design that was long and narrow,” says designer Matt Franklin, who works at Mountain Architects. “Though the design is intricate with various angles and bump outs, there are few steps in the roofline and limited level changes, making the home work beautifully with its surroundings.”

Eagle’s Nest Log Home: Custom Designed for Narrow Build Site

The intricate design of the Eagle’s Nest makes this home a true, dream cabin showcase. With an open layout, private sleeping quarters and a cozy outdoor living area, the Eagle’s Nest, according to respected team at Log Home Living, “turns the familiar log home tune into a chorus of hallelujahs.”

The layout of the Eagle’s Nest is not the only distinguishing feature inspiring the singing of hallelujahs. Artfully designed timber frame trusses and heavily adzed, square log walls are complimented with the elegance of modern finishes making this home the only one of its kind.

The kitchen comes to life with its custom, knotty alder cabinets. Distressed and glazed, the euro style cabinets magnify the warm hue of the timbers and compliment the granite counter-tops and travertine backslash.

Custom Log Cabin Home: Kitchen

Beautiful hardwood floors, manufactured from wood salvaged from an old bridge in Utah line the kitchen, dining room and great room. The entry, mud room and powder room boast heated slate tile flooring with custom tile rugs.

The two-sided, wood burning fireplace adds to the cabin appeal with its cozy charm. Enjoyed from the great room or the outdoor living area, the fireplace commands attention with its natural stone quarried in Montana.

Log Home Great Room: Featuring Handcrafted Timbers and Square, Milled Log Walls

Recognized for its focus on mountain style architecture, the award winning team at PrecisionCraft Log Homes & Timber Frame and Mountain Architects has custom designed thousands of log homes and cabins worldwide bringing them to life using the industry’s only Design Build Best Cost program.

Charlie and Lauren realized their mountain style home amid the beautiful scenery and quiet comfort of Lake Pend Oreille. Known as Idaho’s most magnificent lake, Lake Pend Oreille is one of the few places worthy of this brilliantly crafted timber frame cabin; it is simply breathtaking with its glass prow design and cathedral ceilings.

With entertainment at the heart of their home’s design, Charlie and Lauren Bisbee worked with PrecisionCraft Log Homes & Timber Frame and sister company, Mountain Architects to create a home perfect for hosting guests.  The indoor pool, complete with a waterfall, cozy movie theater and artfully designed bar make entertaining easy and fun. With a little extra planning and careful thought, Mountain Architects was able to create a design that would function to entertain while also create an environment conducive to enjoying the great outdoors and finding time to relax.

Timber Frame House: Designed to Entertain

Although larger in size than a traditional cabin, Charlie and Lauren’s timber frame home is their cabin retreat; a place where they can come together with family and friends. With an open design, the kitchen allows the couple to interact with their guests, creating a spirit of togetherness. The great room also invites its guests in with a large stone fireplace and comfortable seating area. Venetian plastered walls, mocha colored timbers and warm stucco hues add character and also create an ambience that is pleasant and welcoming.

Timber Frame Home Kitchen: Open Design

When family and friends are not the focus, the reading area in the loft is an ideal place to cozy up with a good book or simply enjoy a splendid view of the majestic lake, perfectly framed by a custom, arched barrel truss. In addition, the home’s multiple decks provide ample opportunity for enjoying the great outdoors.

Loft Features Custom Timber Frame: A Unique Arched Barrel Truss

Often times, couples like Charlie and Lauren fall in love with a company because of a particular log home plan, design, or a company’s distinctive architectural focus. Other times, couples are passionate about the building process looking for the safest path to realize their dream home. Together, PrecisionCraft and Mountain Architects provide the best of both worlds. This artistic duo has the reputation of bringing award-winning log home designs to life using the industry’s only complete Design Build program, saving clients time, effort, and money. Learn more at www.PrecisionCraft.com.

PrecisionCraft’s Wood River Log Home Plan features a unique combination of log and timber frame. This customized version takes shape at a beautiful build site in Alberta, Canada.

Rear View: Wood River Log Home Floor Plan Constructed in Alberta, Canada

Front View: Wood River Log Home Plan Built in Alberta, Canada

Great Room Features Breathtaking Timber Frame Trusses

Rustic Handcrafted Log Home in Idaho

Log home enthusiasts worldwide will love PrecisionCraft’s final Inspired Living story.  With a 360 degree view of the Lemhi Range, access to Idaho’s finest rivers and headwaters, and a style reminiscent of an old mining town, this handcrafted log cabin home blends modern design with true rustic living!

Over the past few months, PrecisionCraft has presented its Inspired Living stories, real life examples of clients turning Mountain Architects’ design concepts into extraordinary log homes. This month, PrecisionCraft takes you on a tour of its final Inspired Living home, a beautiful handcrafted log cabin home nestled in the Lemhi Range just outside Mackay, Idaho. Get the full story behind this rustic log cabin home.

Find more design inspiration in PrecisionCraft’s award winning Log Home Plans Gallery.  Here you will find PrecisionCraft’s featured Client Variations; examples of how their clients have taken a Mountain Architects’ plan and customized it to make it their own.  Now that’s Inspired Living!    

Learn more about building log homes in Idaho or view a map of PrecisionCraft’s homes!

Last month, PrecisionCraft announced its new Inspired Living feature sharing real life stories of how Mountain Architects’ new design creations come to life.  This month, the award winning team shows how one log home plan, the award-winning Woodhaven, inspired three separate couples to build their dream homes; each customized to match a different lifestyle, architectural taste and budget. 

Read the full Inspired Living story and try out PrecisionCraft’s customized Comparison Tool to see side by side comparisons (photos and floor plans) of each featured home. 

This Inspired Living feature begins with an Idaho couple, Sandy and Dennis.  For years, this couple dreamed of building a log home.  But, it wasn’t until they found PrecisionCraft’s Woodhaven plan that they knew it was time to make that dream a reality.  And, with children, grandchildren & a large extended family living within driving distance, they knew their home’s design had to fit their specific, family-centered needs.

Then there is Carol’s story.  Inspired by the same Woodhaven floor plan, Carol worked with Mountain Architects, PrecisionCraft’s design firm, to design a home that combined the rustic look and feel of a traditional log home but with a modern twist.  From a restaurant style kitchen with moveable pieces, easy-to-clean cement floors, and a lower level designed to host parties and entertain guests, every room in her home has an underlying purpose.

Lastly, there is Dave and Penny.  This couple wanted a home that would stand out; an authentic, handcrafted log home.  Dave and Penny worked with their designer to customize the Woodhaven, room by room, paying close attention to how the logs came together and where stone accents were incorporated. 

With an inspiring floor plan and PrecisionCraft’s skilled team of architects, engineers, log & timber manufacturers and builders, each couple started at the same place but ended up with a one-of-a-kind log home, specifically designed to match their own architectural style and budget.

“This is the kind of thing our clients want to see, says Mountain Architects’ lead designer, Matt Franklin.  “Real life examples of how their designer can modify a floor plan to match their needs, from simply altering its layout and size to integrating a completely unique combination of log and timber.”

For years, PrecisionCraft and Mountain Architects have released a new log and timber frame home design each month. The purpose? To inspire and excite log home enthusiasts world-wide and to give them a variety of creative plans to browse.   With over 65 of Mountain Architects’ most admired log home plans now showcased online, PrecisionCraft’s wide ranging floor plan gallery offers a lot of design inspiration!

So, what’s next for this artistic duo?  Showing you how these great designs come to life, of course!  Hold on tight as this creative team takes you for a detour over the next four months, sharing real life stories of how Mountain Architects’ new design creations come to life.   Get the inside scoop on what inspired each home’s design – was it to build a legacy for family generations to come, to incorporate “green” elements to ensure energy efficiency, or to create an atmosphere of warmth and intimacy?  Despite the reason behind the design, you are sure to find inspiration for your own log home design here!

This Month’s Story: Building a Legacy Home - see how Kelly and Marie take Mountain Architect’s Laurette Chateau floor plan and turn it into their own legacy timber frame home!

BONUS Feature!   Each online feature story is equipped with an interactive floor plan tool.  If you like the layout of the great room and want to see it come to life, simply click on the room… easy as that!

Michael and Denise came to us with a very unique request. They wanted to design a Craftsman style home around their already existing swimming pool. Why build a home around a swimming pool? A great question and one that we had to ask as well!

Recently, Michael and Denise purchased a home built in the late 1980s but it wasn’t the home itself that had them sold. The layout of the home they purchased featured a formal entry, separated living areas, and smaller bedrooms with wardrobe closets. A design and layout very typical of the 1980s but not so appreciated by Michael and Denise who were looking for a more contemporary home. But, the home was nestled in a heavily wood area in Granite Falls, WA, complete with distant views of the beautiful Cascade Mountains and a pool with a one-of-a-kind story.

The most outstanding feature of this 1980s home is the kidney-shaped pool located in the daylight basement. This pool took quite a bit of planning and hard work to get it positioned perfectly. Huge granite boulders buried deep in the landscape that Michael and Denise love so much were carved out to make room for a pool. Their existing 1980s home is to be torn down (while saving the pool) and replaced with a Craftsman style, timber frame home complete with a contemporary flair. The layout of their new home will feature a more informal and open design incorporating new spaces and features such as offices, a workout room, a steam room, a caretaker’s apartment over the garage, and an elevator.

Well, it sounds like a great project; a fun challenge. One that the team at Mountain Architects and PrecisionCraft is eager to take on! Be sure to check back with us periodically as we plan to follow this project all the way through.