My Little Beach House

I’ve been dreaming of fixing up our little 12x12’ cabin for quite some time. It is located in the most peaceful place around here…down by the pond. It’s within view of our house, partially hidden by the weeping willow tree.

It’s hard to tell from the picture but if you look closely you will see it hidden amongst greenery. Speaking of green – my friend and I were walking through the woods the other day and after breathing in a big breath of air, she turned to me and said “This is the smell of green.” I couldn’t describe it better – the smell of the outdoors these wonderful days…I think it’s a combination of damp soil, budding leaves and just new growth everywhere. Take the smell of “green” along with warblers singing from the treetops, the haunting musical of a wood thrush deep in the woods and the lazy trickle of a peaceful creek nearby… for me it’s a piece of heaven on earth!

Okay, back to the subject at hand…. I wish I had “before” pictures to show but I could not find them. Here is the cabin from the outside. The reason it is over the water is because it used to be an open gazebo ( I guess you could call it that ) that my dad built back when I was still in grade school. Later on, he made a cabin out of it, which we enjoyed for a place to hang out.

It’s nothing fancy – in fact, it is in dire need of a reroof and new siding… another future project.

When I started working on this project, I had major cleaning and painting to do. In the last years it was used basically for a place to store fishing rods, tackle boxes, etc. The boys would play in there and never clean up afterwards. It was really a disaster. The walls were brown paneling and all the trim was dark brown. The floor had old, curled up linoleum on it. There was a large cabinet that I needed John’s help to tear out. I used up any old paint I had around here to paint everything. (I probably have anything from flat to glossy sheen on the walls and ceiling) I wanted to be as thrifty as possible. The only major cost was the piece of carpeting I got. I checked  at different places to find the best possible deal but still ended up spending $120.( that was pretty well all I spent to give this lil’ house a makeover)

The sofa bed I made out of wood I had laying around here. I used an old twin sized metal spring/frame that I dug out of storage which holds the air mattress that’s on there now. ( I want to replace with a real mattress someday) The little drop leaf table I got last year at a sale for a few dollars. My sister didn’t want the nightstand anymore so I claimed it. The folding chairs are my parents’ that they weren’t using. (I thought about asking them if I can paint em’ but thought, no, I’m just pleased that I get to use them.)

The curtain “rods” were of course free – thanks to the woods! The curtain fabric came from a bolt that I had gotten for a cheap price at a discount fabric outlet store. I basically hung the fabric over the twig and made dark brown ties to tie it up.

 

The net behind the pictures I found in our shop attic. It was used to net fish at one time. After cleaning it I thought it would make a good background for beach photos.

The view from the loft…

 

Letting the outside in…

 

We all sometimes need a place to get away…and I consider myself extremely blessed to have a little escape so close by – yet so away from it all. Down here one can relax peacefully with only the sounds of nature to reflect upon. The grandfatherly croak of a large bullfrog will often break the silence, followed by the chorus of young frogs working hard to imitate their elders…the splash of a fish or Mr. & Mrs. wood duck gliding along will create gentle ripples on the water. The Eastern wood Phoebe’s song can be heard clearly nearby. She has once again claimed the cabin eave to raise her young. I like to think it’s the same Phoebe year after year that finds a home here. I hope she enjoys this little piece of paradise as much as I do!