Should we paint beadboard on dark log cabin?

7 years ago

Hello! This is our vacation house in NH’s white mountains. It’s a 100+ year old log cabin that has been a golf clubhouse, tea house, and maybe had a checkered history during prohibition . before we bought it this winter it had been empty for at least five years and we are bringing it back to life.

Because it’s a log cabin, the roof extends about ten feet past the house on all sides, giving us a great shady porch (on two sides, it was removed on the third relevant side but the overhang is still there). The logs were stained a pretty dark color which we will Be lightening a bit. With the exception of tow walls in the kitchen, all non-log walls are covered in beadboard which was coated in an oil stain—even in the bathrooms. In the bedrooms, even the ceilings are covered in it! It’s looks very 1970s! But the issue is that this giant room is so dark it’s like a cave. After taking this picture on a sunny August day, I was amazed at how much lighter the pic Looks than the room does in reality. In this giant room, there are three log walls and the fireplace wall is the beadboard. in addition, the sconces all have wiring covered in metal that will stick out much more on a white wall. There are also two plywood bookcases, one partially painted black, that we think are covering old doors (one rumor about the house is there were 10 private “dining rooms” during Prohibition, so lots of former doors...). We are thinking about painting the beadboard white. No budget to remove the bookcases now so I guess just paint them white as well? Just let the metal wire covers be? Any thoughts

or advice? Thanks for reading!

Featured Answer

decoenthusiaste

7 years ago

I'd love to help you make this a vacation rental during the time when you can't be there. I've been managing vacation properties for 17 years, and am always looking to acquire a new client who needs their home to help pay its own way. Are there any outlets for plugging in lamps? You may simply want to tap into the current electric conduit for the sconces so you can use lamps in some areas instead. Are you good at DIY? Seems you've bitten off quite a bit of work for yourselves. Cleaning the FP and having a sweep check it out so you can bring it up to code will be a prime project before you need to fire it up.

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Comments (10)

branson4020
7 years ago
Pictures please.
erlizard thanked branson4020
erlizard
Original Author
7 years ago
Ugh I thought I posted them with the Q, will try again
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erlizard
Original Author
7 years ago
erlizard
Original Author
7 years ago
smitrovich
7 years ago
I wouldn't paint it. Lighten up the space with fabrics—upholstery, window treatments, bedding, etc.
Karenmo
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
I would leave the logs and the beadboard in their "historical" condition. Frankly, it's part of the cabin.charm, just like the chunky stone fireplace.

Now, about those bookcases.....I would repaint the black parts, probably a warm white/off-white.

Agree with lightening the space with upholstery, window shades, etc. Even carpeting -- there are lots of light colored but washable rugs on the market now.
Jennifer Hogan
7 years ago
I would leave the logs in their historical condition, but brighten the room up by painting or covering/replacing the interior walls.

Here are some ideas:

https://www.logcabinhub.com/luxurious-log-cabin-interiors/
erlizard thanked Jennifer Hogan
Karenmo
7 years ago
One other thought about window treatments -- if the idea is to introduce lots of light colored material onto the surfaces of the space to brighten it, then one strategy could be to use curtains that extend way past the window trim, covering more of the wall than usual.

Typically the recommendation seems to be for drapes to extend 6-12 inches on either side of a window, but if you bent that "rule" and went a bit past the 12 inch mark, maybe the Houzz police would give you a pass!

For the big three window bank, for example, I'd probably extend the curtain to the halfway point between the window edge and the wall and start the rod well above the window towards the ceiling. From the photo, it appears that there are sconces with the wiremold metal covering at the window edge, so you'd need to take that into account somehow. I might use shades at the windows for any times when you want to cover the windows and fabric sidepanel drapes from the sconce towards the corner, which would simply be decorative and never actually close over the windowglass. Curtain rods are made specifically for that kind of window treatment (see first photo).
erlizard
Original Author
7 years ago
Thanks all! These were very helpful. A bunch of These pics were inspiring We’ve decided to wait until the logs are restained and lightened. (By the contractor we we hiring to fix the logs, we are handy but not that handy!). After the logs are done we will reassess, but it seems more lighting and lighter textiles might be A better first step.