2016 Cabin Renovation Showcase

Give your cabin or cottage the renovation and makeover it deserves.

By Janice Brewster Your cabin provides you with years of memories and fun times with friends and family. Why not show it some love with a renovation project? Whether it’s something major like a kitchen or bath re-do, or just a bit of spiffing up, renovations call for you to envision a beautiful new outcome. Here are a few ideas to inspire you.

Elite Outdoor Custom Fireplace

With outdoor living high on homeowners’ lists of amenities, adding an outdoor fireplace to your cabin is a wise investment. Woodland Direct helps customers plan custom fireplaces, offering a choice of firebox size, mantel and hearth. Suitable for gas- or wood-burning applications, a custom fireplace will become the center of attention for you and your guests. Woodlanddirect.com

Iluma Rail Lighting

Add ambiance and safety to your deck or outdoor living space with a rail-lighting system from I-lighting. The cost-effective LED lights join with micro connectors that are almost invisible. Rail sections come in 4-, 6- and 8-foot lengths and can be used together with a stair-lighting system. Cooler LED lights will not attract insects and turn on and off with an automatic sensor. I-lightingonline.com

Banded Bamboo Panel

Adding a sliding glass door to your cabin will bring in plenty of glorious sunlight and offer views of the surroundings, but what about privacy? Country Curtains offers a sliding-glass-door curtain with a natural feel. The bamboo panels, available in three colors and outlined with contrasting twill tape, gently filter light as they slide on rings. An optional blackout liner is sold separately. Countrycurtains.com

Closet Factory Mudroom

Creating a functional mudroom in your cabin will pay off in a home that looks neater and stays cleaner. This mudroom organizing system, built of golden oak by the Closet Factory, is perfect for snow country. Hooks for jackets and sliding baskets for hats and gloves make it easy to bundle up. The bench is perfect for sitting while lacing up boots. Closetfactory.com

Cypress Ridge Stone

Rugged exterior stone veneer will anchor your cabin to its site visually and give it unmatched charm. Eldorado Stone’s Cypress Ridge veneer uses clean lines and a neutral color palette to create visual texture that can be applied to your home’s interior or exterior surfaces. Choose from a variety of stone shapes and profiles in dozens of different colors. Eldoradostone.com

Bathroom Vanity

Give a tired bath a facelift with a new vanity. Mid Continent Cabinetry crafts a range of furniture-quality cabinetry for the bath. Choose from your preference of color, base size, trim profile and leg style. This sunny yellow cabinet features drawers and pedestal corner feet. Midcontinentcabinetry.com

Grand River Lodge Fisherman's Pendant Light

Nautical is nice with this maritime-inspired pendant light from Cabela’s. Available in weathered copper or antique bronze, the fixture includes a metal hanging chain. Try grouping a pair of these over a kitchen island for Old World charm. Cabelas.com

Birch Tree Stained Glass

Have a not-so-great view from one spot in your cabin, or simply want to add an artful touch to a room? The Birch Tree in Winter stained-glass window was inspired by the forest of the Adirondack Mountains. The window ships with mounting brackets and chain, and measures 28x36 inches. Blackforestdecor.com

We Montage

Truly personalize your cabin by turning your vacation, event photos or digital artwork into oversized collages or removable wallpaper. Choose from one of the company’s standard size montages online or create a custom size, then upload your photos. The finished montage can by hung easily on any type of wall surface with a few household tools. The montage can be removed without harming the wall’s surface. Wemontage.com

Vintagecraft Beams & Timbers

Treat your home to the character of salvaged wood with beams and timbers from Appalachian Antique Hardwoods. These pieces of history, pulled from antique log cabins, vacant industrial buildings or abandoned barns, are hand-selected for structural quality and aesthetic appeal. The beams and timbers in fir, pine or oak can be left natural or finished with water-based acrylic and come in lengths up to 50 feet. Aahardwoods.com

Wall-Mounted Heater

Make a three-season room truly comfortable without breaking the bank with this wall-mounted, ecofriendly heater. Using less energy than a traditional space heater, the unit can heat a room up to 10x12 feet. The heater can be painted to match your walls and won’t take up valuable floor space. Problemsolvers.com

Sink Cutting Board System

In the kitchen, even small changes can make a big difference in functionality. This sink cutting board system expands your work space: perfect for the small kitchens found in many cabins. The cutting board and drain board fit into the sink, making prep and dishwashing easy and effectively transforming your sink into countertop space. Bradleyinteriorsmn.com

Bearricade Folding Glass Window

Cabin owners who must defend their homes from bears know how difficult it can be to keep a marauding animal out. The BEARricade window-wall system allows for beautiful views and the ability to open a cabin fully to the outdoors (up to 38 feet wide) while providing extra protection. Reinforced posts and impact-resistant, laminated glass hold up to a bear’s brute force. The multipoint BEARlock system keeps doors securely closed. Nanawall.com

Concrete Log and Timber Siding

Transform your cabin into the rustic retreat you’ve always wanted with concrete log siding from ClearCreek. The durable concrete siding features fade-resistant color that’s mixed into the concrete. Available in rounded “log” or flat “timber” profiles, the siding will not warp, check or peel and is easy to install over exterior sheathing. Clearcreeksiding.com

Brass Rain Chain

Ditch the downspout and opt for rain chain when renovating your cabin. Wind and Weather patterns this all-brass umbrella chain after a centuries-old Japanese system. Falling rainwater adheres to the chain due to surface tension and can be easily routed into a rain barrel or away from your cabin’s foundation. The chain measures 99 inches along and extensions are available. Windandweather.com

Screen Doors

Nothing beats the charm of a classic screen door for making a first impression. Seaport Shutter Co. builds mahogany screen and storm doors with traditional mortise-and-tenon joinery to each customer’s specifications. Custom colors, cut-outs and designs, like these compass coordinates, make every door unique. Seaportshutter.com

Classic Cupola

Top your renovated cabin, shed or garage with a cupola for traditional country charm. Choose from a range of sizes and materials, including cedar and vinyl, to create the perfect topper for your building. Royal Crowne Outdoor Accents finishes its cupolas with copper cladding and offers optional weathervanes in motifs from classic roosters and compasses to whimsical airplanes and animals. Royalcrowneoutdooraccents.com

Castle Combe Originals Flooring

Replacing your cabin’s flooring will make a huge difference in the way it looks and feels. Get the look of weathered, reclaimed flooring with the performance of today’s engineered surfaces with Castle Combe Originals. Three series – Market Cross, Manor House and Relics – offer a variety of styles that mimic the rustic look and hand-scraped feel of vintage wood. The flooring can also be used for distinctive wall paneling. usfloorsllc.com