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"Woodland Jewel: A Michigan
lakeside home makes the perfect rustic retreat built with Insulspan
panels that enabled a nearly 7,000 square foot complex design to
be enclosed in three weeks."
Timber
Homes Illustrated • June 2002
Story
by Colleen Morrissey • Photos by Roger Wade
Reprinted with permission. © 2001 by Goodman Media Group Inc.
 The
owners of this distinctive-looking home had long been interested
in having a summer place on Lake Michigan. When several lots opened
up on a previously unavailable stretch of shoreline, the couple
jumped at the chance to own a home along the water.
They chose a timber-frame home
for the property after admiring a friend's place that had been built
by Riverbend Timber Framing of Blissfield, Michigan. After working
with a local architect to hammer out the details for a vacation
home that could be used year-round, the owner says, "We fiddled
with the plan ourselves for a while and then we gave it to Riverbend,
who took it and ran with it."
Riverbend's Jim Balmer designed
the frame to fit the couple's floor plan. "I did bubble diagrams
and sketches to show them what the frame was going to look like,"
he explains.
 The
home was designed to resemble an Adirondack-style home with a hint
of Victorian detailing. Located in a woodsy development, it has
two levels of extensive decking, along with a patio, making this
rustic getaway perfect for enjoying the great outdoors.
The design process lasted about
a year. When the plans had been finished, Jim handed the blueprints
over to Stewart Elliot, a project coordinator at Riverbend. Stewart
worked with the couple's builder, Easling Construction Company of
Leland, Michigan, to raise the frame properly. In just about three
weeks, the three-story, 6,735 square-foot timber-frame home (including
insulated wall and roof panels) was closed-in and ready to be finished.
The home was built to accommodate
guests, especially grandchildren. It features four bedrooms, including
two on the lower level with their own private baths where the kids
make their home while visiting. The couple also placed a family
room on this level so that the children can entertain themselves
while the adults chat in the upstairs great room. To give the kids
easy access to the outdoors, this level was designed as a walkout
basement protected by a covered patio.
Visitors entering the home find
themselves engulfed in the warmth of wood. Starting in the entryway,
tongue-and-groove pine and fir paneling covers all of the interior
walls, while down below rough-sawn maple tops the floors. "The
couple wanted a wood look on the inside," says Jim, "to
complement the Douglas fir frame. The paneling has a similar color
and grain pattern."
The focal point of the great room
is the home's round-stone, wood burning fireplace. The gray and
putty colored stones blend in naturally with the light tones of
the home's Douglas fir frame and all-wood walls and ceilings. An
oversized couch and armchairs, paired with an Oriental rug, give
this room a casual feel. And while the timber-framed ceiling raises
the roof in this section to nearly 23 feet, the soft tones of the
wood and hearth combine to make this room a cozy and inviting place
to relax.
While the great room's massive
hearth serves as a dominant feature, there is also an intricate
bit of timber-frame engineering in a round-shaped alcove off to
one side of the greatroom. In the roof, Jim designed a timber-framed
octagon to support this section of the home, which faces the lake
and contains a small game table. The octagon features a decorative
boss pin, which holds the elaborate timber frame structure together.
"There are two sets of roof rafters here," Jim explains.
"All of the upper and lower rafters are brought together into
the face of the boss pin. It is suspended from the roof by triangulation."
The focal point of the great room is the home's natural, round-stone,
wood-burning fireplace. Just above the great room is a loft that
leads to the master bedroom suite and a spare room.
A
timber-framed octagon supports the roof over one section of the
great room that faces Lake Michigan. The octagon's decorative boss
pin, which holds this elaborate timber frame design together, is
suspended by triangulation
Overlooking the great room is
a loft that leads to the master bedroom suite, which includes a
master bath with a whirlpool tub and a walk-in closet. Down the
hall, above the home's two-car garage, is an extra room that the
homeowners made wheelchair accessible by installing an elevator,
which serves all three floors of the home. Because visitors are
usually famished after an active day out on the lake or hiking in
the woods, the dining room plays a key role. While guests can grab
a quick bite to eat at breakfast at the kitchen's eat-in bar, the
informal dining room is where the couple likes everyone to gather
and discuss the day's events. While enjoying home-cooked meals,
guests can enjoy stunning views of Lake Michigan through a series
of floor-to-ceiling windows, which make this country-style dining
room the room with a view. In contrast to the great room, Jim designed
the dining room to have a low, heavily beamed ceiling to create
a feeling of intimacy.
The kitchen, which opens to the
great room, blends in seamlessly with the room it faces. To help
it keep a low profile, most the appliances were hidden underneath
cabinetry facings to match the tone and look of the wood in the
rest of the home. Marble, cut to resemble small tiles, tops all
the countertops, the backsplash protecting the wall behind the range
and island workstation. To one side of the kitchen is a small built-in
desk with a six-shelf cubbyhole for storing cookbooks and other
handy kitchen references. Facing the kitchen is a walk-in pantry.
For the outside of the house,
the couple wanted a combination of the two home styles they both
admired: Adirondack and Victorian. Jim took the couple's ideas and
combined elements of the two styles. While most of the home's Adirondack
features can be found inside the home, the home's long broad porches
and timber-framed deck supports hint to an updated Adirondack look.
Many of the home's Victorian features are found in the home's exterior
details, such as the pointed turret-like roofs and the choice of
window shapes and styles.
Since the couple purchased this
particular lot because of its views of Lake Michigan, they wanted
to make sure that they had plenty of access to the outside. As a
result, their home has extensive decking on both the main and upper
floors. Thanks to several sets of thoughtfully placed French doors,
the couple and their guests are always only a few steps away from
enjoying the wonderful view.
Like all good grandparents, the
homeowners don't mind their grandchildren using the home in the
winter as a base camp for ski trips with their friends. Just as
long as the kids promise to visit them come summertime, too. Not
to worry, though, no matter what time of year, the retreat on the
shores of Lake Michigan is an inviting and popular place to be.
 The
kitchen, which is open to the great room, blends in seamlessly with
the room it faces. To help the kitchen keep a low profile, most
of the appliances were hidden underneath cabinetry facings to match
the tone and look of the wood in the rest of the home.
Floor-to-ceiling
windows give the country-style dining room a clear view of Lake
Michigan. A low, heavily beamed ceiling topped with pine paneling
makes this room a comfortable place to share a meal with friends
and family.
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