Our little cabin is 384 square feet in total, and includes a bedroom/living area with closet, little 'dining' area, small kitchen with pantry, and a bathroom. I'm not calling it a tiny home, because it isn't.  

When I first started the design of our little cabin back in 2013/2014,  I hadn't even heard of the tiny house movement.  If I had, we might have done a few things differently in terms of the layout of the different spaces and incorporating various organization features, based on all the innovative things I've seen on various tiny house blogs and the DIY channel. But the final outcome would have been the same: the construction of what will initially serve as a little vacation cabin and will ultimately become one of several bedrooms in a larger residence, once we get around to building it.  



I talk about the design process of the cabin here and here.  For an summary of the whole construction process (which I was sure would never end), click here.


So...here is an overview of the entire cabin with its various spaces.  I will, over time, share more about the many projects that were encompassed by the larger cabin project, i.e.: furniture make-overs, kitchen sink conversion, bathroom vanity conversion, pillows, wall art...

I had a huge amount of fun selecting the furnishings and decor items for the entire cabin.  The overall guiding vision for the cabin looked to the character of this gorgeous, scenic part of Utah, whether it be elements from the surrounding mountains and mesas, the Romance of the West that saturates every nook and cranny of this part of the U.S. (after all, we drive by Butch Cassidy's birthplace when traveling too/from the cabin), rough and ready mining camps, or the pioneers that rattled their way west and settled and farmed wherever there was water.  




I also did my best to give a nod to nearby national parks, the breathtaking scenery visible from every window, the joys of camping, hiking, exploring, roasting marshmallows and making s'mores, drinking hot chocolate by the campfire... (but the best part is that we don't have to sleep on the ground or use a smelly outhouse, since we have a comfy bed and a nice bathroom-- I am very much over tent camping).




All this went into the selection of furniture, wall art, decor, bed linens, fabric, fixtures... I wanted something fun, quirky, and rustic, but at the same time completely comfortable for both of us. 

Living/Bedroom/Dining Room


All of the furniture here is either an antique or vintage piece that I purchased, or something we already had on hand (the bed and dining chairs).  




Except for the two bedside tables, everything was a 'project' that required some work, from a few layers of  new paint to full deconstruction (the armchairs).  I wanted a balance between unpainted, stained wood and painted furniture.




Too much unpainted, stained furniture would result in an overly 'brown', dark space; too much painted furniture might be too 'cottagy' and feminine. 




The fabrics I chose for the many pillows that I sewed (I went a little crazy with the pillows, it's quite a process to de-pillow the bed every evening before bedtime and then put it all together again the next morning) consisted of mostly simple checks and black ticking-- all reminiscent of cowboy camps and frontier homesteads and adventuring into rugged areas by horseback.  






I also used painter's drop cloth for several pillows as well as the cushions for the deconstructed armchairs  and shower curtain because (1) it's cheap, (2) it's paintable, and (3) it reminds me of the canvas saddlebags that were used on the pack burros my mom used to rent to carry camping gear on our family backpacking trips.  



Elk and stag ornaments, other miscellaneous woodland creatures, and botanical prints and motifs, make an appearance throughout, because, after all, we are surrounded by hundreds of acres of pinon/juniper woodland, pine forests, scrubby mesas... 








It may have been less fun for my husband to implement some of them, but he is ingenious Mr. Fix It who was able to turn a galvanized metal feed tub into a functioning, fully plumbed kitchen sink with a custom-made, salvage wood base. 

The polished chrome faucet adds a bit of vintage charm while making it feel like a real kitchen.


These are my mom's blue and white dishes-- the simple pattern is a perfect touch, and I think of her every time I use them.




Ditto the bathroom...so much fun to design, and so much fun to use!  Again, my husband's excellent skills made it possible for this to come together the way it did.  




The shower curtains are another drop cloth project. I highly recommend using pebble tile for a shower floor-- nothing beats standing on those pebbles in your bare feet.

Building the custom shower pan and working with sheets of corrugated metal was not easy, but my husband pulled it off and we both couldn't be more pleased with the results.








I need to thank my husband for figuring out how make all my ideas, no matter how crazy, a reality.  Thanks to his ingenuity and fabulous DIY skills, we have a wonderful, unique cabin to enjoy and escape to.

I've only been able to decorate the family room this year, since the rest of the house is completely discombobulated  by the ongoing renovation project.  It made it a little easier this year (I kept telling myself that)-- only one room to decorate. 

So...here is Christmas in our family room.  I wasn't able to share anything about Christmas last year, so I was especially determined to post something this year, even if it was just a little bit... 





This is my chance to really break out all the red.  So cheery and Christmasy!  I don't think I could ever go with a 'blue' or 'green' color scheme. 













I went with a small Christmas tree this year.   And even at only about one week old, it's already dried out and drooping, thanks to the heat and winds that have plagued southern California over the past few weeks.  

Since we are so fortunate that we were not affected by the terrible fires that have raged (and still are as I write this) across the southern half of the state, I certainly won't complain about this very minor and inconsequential side effect of the horrible Santa Ana winds that just won't go away.



This year it was all about nostalgia and things that spoke to the little kid inside.  All my favorite little Christmas creatures and whimsical ornaments remind me of that magical, excited feeling I got every Christmas morning when I was little.  That feeling that impelled me to jump out of bed at around 5 am and wake everyone up!  (I'm happy to sleep in these days, no need to get up that early to open presents). 







Update:  Is this a Blogging No-No?  I don't care-- I was in such a hurry when I wrote this post that I forgot to include my favorite Christmas doggy (after, of course, my real, live doggies). So here he is...






I always bring out Teddy Bear Angel from his box every year, no matter what.  My mom gave him to me, so he is especially dear to me.




Mr. Foxy demanded that I take him home last year, and I agreed wholeheartedly.  I can never resist a cute animal of any sort and I loved this little guy's dapper outfit.  

Although it is risky to put him within reach of the dogs.  Especially right now: I had to hide their chew toys since Rosie must not play and romp about because of recent surgery, and she may be tempted by Mr. Foxy.  Sometimes they have a hard time distinguishing between their toys and mine ;-)

I'm slowly working my way through all the photos I took at the cabin over Thanksgiving, however this effort has been hijacked by major renovation efforts currently happening in my office.  In fact, I have no office right now: my desk and bookshelves are scattered in pieces across several rooms upstairs, and my computer is hiding under a dropcloth, along with the WiFi, so neither gets covered with all the dust from the sanding going on in my office... so it's a little hard for me to make any headway on photo editing.

So in the meantime, I thought I would give you a recap of the cabin journey from start to finish.

Water and Power

Our property had no water or power, so we had to bring it in from the main road a half mile away.  I'm still amazed that we managed to dig a half-mile long trench, get all the pipe and utility lines in place, get it inspected and approved, bury everything, and actually end up with running water on our property in one week.  

For more information on the first step of what has been an incredible journey for my husband and I, click here (this is also the very first post of this blog).





Weather-Tight Cabin

Originally my husband had wanted to build the cabin structure himself, but luckily the voice of reason prevailed and we hired a contractor to build the finished shell.  

For more on foundation building and framing fun (courtesy of our contractor), click here. 





Septic and Water System and Starting on the Interior

Once the weather-tight cabin was finished, it was our turn to step in and get to work on finishing the interior and installing the septic system and water tank and pump.  This was two years ago-- I can't believe I actually thought we were 'almost done'!

For more on this, click here.  





More Work on the Interior

We had to go back several more times to get the interior finished (my husband made several more trips than I did).  Finish work not only included installing the 'salvaged' wood ceilings and floors, but also installing and painting the tongue and groove ('shiplap') walls, staining and installing the window and door trim, installing the custom shower and converted vanity sink, the galvanized feed tub kitchen sink...

 Click here to see more on this.



Passing the Final Inpsection


Last September we passed the final inspection.  The week before we took care of some final details (including installing the kitchen cabinets, butcher block counter tops, open shelves, finish painting, among many others...).  We were beyond elated; we celebrated by going out to dinner with my brother. The whole evening was a blur, I was so tired and relieved that we finally did it.

Click here for more on this.   




Finally We Move in the Furniture

I can't believe it's taken us an entire year to get back to the cabin and furnish it, but we did it... here are a few photos of us getting stuff put in place.  More photos of the finished cabin to arrive soon...

I've added another horse to my walls. It's just taken a long time for him to get there since this project has been cooking along in the back of my head for several years while other projects took priority.

I was initially inspired to embark on a project like this by all the architectural-salvage-as-art and vintage signs that you see everywhere, as well as by frequent visits to Lowe's when we were adding crown moulding and baseboards to the house. After spending countless hours standing in the moulding aisle and staring at the wide selection of crown mouldings, window casings, chair railings, etc. it dawned on me that I could create my own architectural-salvage style wall art. I just needed a piece of art or a graphic for the focal point.

About the same time that I was wandering around in Home Depot and Lowe's most weekends, obsessing about crown moulding, I found this wonderful little horse at a local antique mall. After that, everything clicked...




A couple of crown mouldings and chair railings + a piece of plywood + the horse + some paint= highly personalized and unique wall art. At a fraction of what you would pay in a store or online (have you seen this wonderful vintage style by Ethan Allen? When it was still available, it sold for $262. This was also another source of inspiration for me).

So, with all that...here is how I brought to life the child of my latest brainwave.