fog

little house in the big woods

2 weeks in the tiny cabin, the longest stay yet and it was perfection. I’m pretty sure I could live there for a whole summer no problem — all I really need next is a wood fired hot tub. We didn’t get as much done as we wanted, as usual – but left my brother with a long list to be done by the wedding. I’m back at work now & it’s culture shock. But for now, come into the cabin…

doorThe doors & windows are all salvage.

creelThe vintage fishing creel hung next to the door holds keys, bug spray, flashlights.

trunkThis trunk will double as a coffee table, though we didn’t find a couch. I want to mix in some modern pieces to keep the feel more Scandinavian and less “rustic country.” I need to pore over Anna @D16‘s flickr inspiration sets, for sure. (No, really. I’m going to go through all 900 photos, plus my tumblr, & make a collage to send home/keep my focus so I don’t just buy 48734 mismatched things. Link me to more like minded inspiration, please!)

I’m also looking for a rope chair or hanging chair to hang from the beams – something modern and comfortable. Ideas?

table2We picked up the ice cream chairs the last trip, and this stunning antique tiger maple table is from my mother’s friend Jane. She is a tiny tiny 90 year old rare book collector – wee and hunched, she answered the door in a button up dress, apron, sweeping with a tiny broom, wisps of white hair like cotton candy. We looked at her glamorous honeymoon photos in Havana, and S. got an amazing vintage Brooks Brothers Panama hat from her husband. She told me stories about choosing shoe buckles to go to the opera! So lovely. That stack of books on the table is from their collection as well, and a lovely old Persian rug.

table3birchA better view of the birch tree & ladder. It doesn’t go though the cabin, but is just a support beam. A fancy support beam. We’ll need to add kitchen cabinets and a farmhouse sink where that shelf is, behind the ladder.

screenAnd the beams of the loft! Perfect for a hanging chair. This vintage folding screen that hides the storage closet is one of the first pieces I ever bought – ummm, 17 years ago for my first apartment. Crazy.

windowstreamLook closely and you can see the brook!

tablesuitcasesuitcase2Some treasures – the suitcase is for S., camp blanket, yellow linen 40s dress, grey hat, gorgeous 1943 leather folio set with cream paper and envelopes and a tiny calendar.

teardropUpstairs loft! 70s teardrop shelf, which maybe needs to be moved to the left now that I’m looking at this photo…

loftThat little white nightstand was left to me by my grandma. We painted it and my dad INSISTED the handle be black. I like it! Thanks, family.

loftviewnightLate night is cozy, too. Because nothing says cozy like a hatchet.

5amI woke up at the crack of dawn to read and write.

breadThrifted bread box (snack box!!) & Irish enamel stew pot.

I’ll do more woods photos in another post, this one is getting long. But here’s a tiny microcosmic world just down some mossy steps from the front door.

mosscolorI left my brother (Are you in VT or NH & want to hire him? Check out his site at ferro-construction.com. Ahem.) with a list of things to do, and a robin’s egg and swatch of fabric for the outside trim – because it’s totally amazing to go into a hardware store with AN ACTUAL ROBIN’S EGG to match. What else? Inside trim on the windows, finish the whitewashing, re-sand and finish the floor, & I’d like to add this hanging solar lamp to the upstairs loft. Eventually, the siding will be done and you all can get the uh, big reveal on what the outside looks like. Sigh. Definitely a little frustrated to live so far away…but when we eventually buy a real house in Vermont, it’ll be a great getaway cabin for friends who want to visit!

17 Comments

  1. sigh, sigh, sigh, coo, sigh. it’s perfect. i totally agree that a few modern pieces will make all scandi-fied. the light is WONDERFUL! brings to mind summer houses on tiny islands, eating wild strawberries and fishing in brooks.

    but WHY can’t you hire a bunch of bell tents? you really should be able to! have you looked into it? can someone else (in another state?) perhaps?

    verhext wedding camp out!

    1. Yes, it was insane, everyone woke up and thought the neighbors were burning something til they went about their day and the smoke was everywhere!

      Are you still planning on moving away?

    1. Thanks! I just reblogged pretty much all of your tumblr. So many pretty things! I think you will really like my friend Dori’s house – I’ll post about it later this week!

  2. Be still my beating heart. I am head over heels in love with your cabin. Enough so that I showed my husband and I think I have him dreaming too. We adore living near the ocean but can’t afford to live CLOSE to it (20 minute drive)…but woods with a stream and cabin…and a baby….yep, it’s dreamy!

    1. I am lucky to have a crazy family of builders! S. kept saying we are a little beaver family with all our little tasks. Ok, let’s build a dam! Ok, let’s paint the house! Ok!

  3. I thought it was fog at first! I was at work at the Shelburne Museum, which was very dramatic. Most days lately it seems crazy to move away, but I’m planning on it for school, at least for a little while…not til late fall though. You really can’t take the Vermont out of the girl :)

  4. Ok, it’s official. You dear lady, hands down get my vote for favourite blog in cyberspace! How I wish I was anywhere near the Northern Hemisphere to maybe sit down one day, drink tea and talk all things magic. Danke!

  5. Awww, Tamera — your cabin looks amazing!!! Of COURSE you have a tiny babbling brook right out front. I wouldn’t expect anything less! And I remember that screen, too!

    I just found out recently that we have a mutual friend: Diane Naegel from Zelda Magazine. She found out I went to Moore and asked me if I knew “Ratty.” Small, small world…

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