I have a lake home in Maine, we use it year round for get away time. The entire ceilings and walls were done in douglas fir boards over a hundred years ago. Five years after we purchased it, I was tired of all the wood look so I painted all the walls white and we love it. It goes well with all types of decor and yet it still reads as wood. So I can attest that wood is a great way to go.

I think white painted with an accent wall of reclaimed boards would be great.

Thanks for the vote for white painted wood walls. I've always liked this kitchen, featuring a reclaimed accent wall and white painted panel walls elsewhere, including the ceiling. I'm trying to see how this will work with concrete floors (I'm not convinced about the look, but they seem like a sensible choice) and a wood ceiling though. I will keep searching for inspiration pictures.

[Contemporary Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/contemporary-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2103) by Portland Interior Designer Jessica Helgerson Interior Design

Here are some images from a space I like featured in Atticmag, concrete floors with wood:

I like this too, using drywall here I guess. We will have a sloped shed roof too I think:

I like the look of wood but my 1915 house was totally wood on the walls and had huge screw/nail holes that made it look horrible. My daughter bought a older house with a stunning wood accent wall facing the livingroom door that was in the same condition. So if you go with wood keep in mind where your going to put everything because it isn,t as forgiving as sheetrock.

I love the look of a white painted boards on the ceiling and I hope to do them in our new build along with some rustic beams. Our home will also be a sort of rustic-craftsman-cabin, though ours will probably be more transitional than modern. I wonder about the cost of boards. Are they just put up over drywall or instead? I like them on the wall too, especially when they run horizontally. Just not sure about cost or practicality. We may just go with a fair amount of board and batten style panneling, maybe 2/3rds of the way up the wall.

About concrete floors, do you think it will be too hard on your feet/joints? I'd like to go with radiant heat and concrete would be great for that, but I love the look of wood plus it is forgiving. However, concrete may hold up better.

I'm in my shiplap phase now, and i love it everywhere.

Another product you may want to look at is American Clay. The color choices are fairly wide (they can custom mix, too), and you can decide how pronounced or subtle you'd like it to be. It is also supposedly green.

We opted to use it in our main entry hall, PR, and in our (first floor) MBR. People think it is plaster (we chose a very subtle application and matched it to FnB Wimborne).

I like it because it subtly, almost imperceptibly, ages the structure.

Costwise, IIRC, it was more than painting w BM Aura but less than the rooms we did in FnB.

Good luck!

We used a high gloss paint on the wooden ceilings and it reflects light so well and actually makes it cozier. Used semi gloss on the walls.

i keep thinking about those concrete floors and with radiant heat, how long it will take to heat the house if you are there only occasionally in winter...

in addition to the hardness factor...

You can pretty easily and cheaply get systems that will turn the heat on remotely.

madeyna - great advice, I will definitely keep that in mind. Thank you.

Olivesmom - sounds like a great project you're working on! I hope we can see progress pictures. I too wondered whether boards (shiplap I guess) is applied over drywall or instead of drywall. Perhaps someone here knows? I fairly certain in can be used instead of drywall (as it no doubt once was). I don't want to go through the trouble of installing drywall if we are just going to apply boards over it. I *think* the exterior of our cottage will be painted board and batten, so we could continue that inside as well. I would likely go all the way to the ceiling with it though.

mtn - we also share a love of shiplap it seems! Thanks so much for the information about American Clay, I had never heard of it before. It looks great. Did you have trouble finding an applicator with the knowledge to do it properly? Thanks as well for your post on the building forum about keeping costs in check, it is a great thread, very helpful.

Yayagirl - great tip about painting the ceiling with high gloss paint. I will likely keep the ceilings wood and the walls white shiplap (or American clay maybe). Older traditional cottages in my area are all pine and few windows. I want to respect the tradition for wood interiors, but in a more restrained manner, plus bigger windows. I do LOVE Douglas Fir though, so much nicer than pine.

Annie and Olivesmom - about the concrete floors, I too am concerned about the hardness. While we are a 'take your shoes off before you come into the house' family at home, it may be a little more relaxed at the cottage. If so, most will have shoes on. I already have sore feet issues and I wear interior shoes with good support all the time, so that will help. But I take your point and that is why part of me prefers doing engineered hardwood over concrete. I also find concrete an aesthetically cold choice, but with dye that can be improved upon I think.

About heating - mtn is correct that you can put it on a timer, most cottage owners around here do that. But we will also have a wood stove that will be capable of heating the whole house when needed. That too takes some time of course.

I need to think through passive solar/concrete pretty thoroughly. The cottage will be used heavily from April to October, lightly in November, December and March, and possibly not at all in January and February (the dark months as I call them, certainly the two coldest months here). Once our kids are off to university in another 10-13 years we may spend more time up there in the cold months, but likely not January and February (I'm not much of a cold weather girl). This will influence how much money we should spend on heating, on triple vs. double glazed windows, etc. Lots to think about.

Could you get anybody to do actual plaster and just keep it naturally white?

Sochi,

We are very happy with our American Clay. I think it was cheaper than plaster would have been? Plus I fell for the green thing.

As for application, the company gave us four or five names within an hour of us. It was not an issue. If you are going for a very light color make sure they do a sample board for you. Apparently it is hard to go very light with this product, although we did get what we wanted.

best
Mtn

PS Those building guys (gals) are amazing, aren't they? They must love what they do. I have this vague dream of going back to school and studying architecture ...

sochi,

I love your first inspiration picture.

You can use this wi-fi thermostat and have it activated by your phone or any web browser anywhere in the world.

Here is a link that might be useful: Ecobee Thermostat

That is very cool juliekcmo, thanks.

Mtn, too funny. I've actually gone so far as to discuss whether I should go back to school and become an architect with an architect neighbour of mine. I'm not sure if my math is strong enough, and I'm not sure DH would approve at this particular juncture! But I'd love to. Yes, I just discovered the building forum, it is wonderful. I'm really impressed with the generosity and knowledge of the men/women there.

Pal - maybe I could. It is a rural area, I'm not sure how much expertise there is around with plaster. Although my city is nearby, I live in a separate province from the cottage, and tradespersons from my province can't freely work in Quebec (where I'm building). But there must be someone, I will ask around. I have no idea at all how much more expensive that might be over drywall or pine board.

Sochi,
I majored in Statistics and then Finance, so I have a little math aptitude. At least i thought so until the discussion on stairs. But I would only want to go if i could get into like Yale or RISD. Fat chance, unless they were under a consent decree for age discrimination or somesuch. And then I'd have to move again! LOL Maybe when the kids are grown and in college. If I'm not senile by then!

OMG, I didn't know it was in Quebec province! What a lovely lovely capital city. You cannot use American Clay then, LOL. Surely the French have clay. : )

Were you the one who posted the rundown old house with the Grisaille wallpaper in the foyer? That was in Quebec City, no?

Mtn, my degrees are in law and int'l relations, so not exactly math friendly. Plus I'm getting old. Or maybe I too will go when the kids go, and drive them crazy! My dad (an accountant, I didn't inherit his love of math) went back to university at age 58, part time at first. He majored in law and political science and graduated at 63 I think. But I'd love to take about five more degrees, so much to learn. Right now I mostly just help my five year old learn how to read. That is fun enough for now!

I live in Ontario (Ottawa), the cottage is just 30 minutes north of here, but in Quebec (not near Quebec City, which is a fantastic city, I agree). I didn't post about the rundown house, but I remember it well, it was quite something. It was in Montreal I think. I'm off to Montreal tomorrow actually!

Ah yes....maybe in my next life I can go to Pratt...of course, maybe in my next life I'll have talent! (I can dream, can't i?)

It's regional in the US but it tends to be about 30% more than drywall in most regions, I believe. In my area at least most plaster contractors are either elderly, Irish, or Italian, or two out of three, the younger plasterers having been born overseas. My younger plasterer (who is in his early 50s) was born in Ireland, where plaster is still the finish of choice because of the general differences in building materials, and climate. (Masonry construction and dampness).

My wood ceilings are a haven for spiders. Make sure to drywall first, put wood up over the drywall.