Welcome Family to the July 2013 issue of The Oak Leaf! For new readers, this is a monthly newsletter that is sent by e-mail to those that have expressed an interest in Gastineau Log Homes. We use this as a way of communicating technical, design and industry information. For more information, check out our web site at www.oakloghome.com.
Please “Like” Gastineau Log Homes on Facebook!
Trivia Question: Each king in a deck of playing cards represents a great King from history. Who are they? (See the answer below.)
Log Raising in Shamrock, MO on July 27th. See below for details!
Wouldn’t you like to drive up to this house each day and call it home?
GLH Office and Shipping will be closed July 4 and 5th. The model home center will be closed July 4th only.
Do you like to look at floor plans?: Did you know that GLH has a “Home of the Month” feature on our website? Each month, we add a custom design that we have drawn. We have years of plans archived on the site! Click here. to go the the Home of the Month page on the GLH web site.
Where will this recently completed Log Cabin 2 Go go? To your vacation spot or to our model home center on I 70? Rarely do we have a cabin available for sale; usually they are all built to order. But this one is available for immediate delivery! Call for options and pricing. 800-654-9253. It is headed to the model home center if it isn’t sold in two weeks!
The Kitchen of 2013: The kitchen is the most obsessed-about room in the house. Kitchen designers say that today’s kitchens are not stark modern designs. It has natural materials, textures and layering, with lots of whites and grays. Although stainless appliances are still the most popular, there is a growing interest in white ranges and refrigerators in a new glossy finish, as well as soapstone countertops and floating shelves. People want to make the most of their space. They want practical and functional. Want to see some top Kitchen pictures for 2013? Click here. For today’s top style choices in kitchens from the National Kitchen & Bath Association members, see the article below.
GLH featured 3 times onLiving the Country Life’s Website: Go here to see the article.
If you came to see the Log Cabin 2 Go at the KC Home Show this spring, here is the cabin set on the foundation and finished at the site. They added a deck off the side and did a very nice job of under skirting the cabin. The customer said “Lynn, I wanted to give you some customer feedback. The cabin is perfect for me. It is an ideal living space with all I need and more. Everyone that has seen it has fallen in love with it.”
Webinar on How to Build an Energy-Efficient Log Home July 31st: Industry expert and ENERGY Star Certified inspector Paul Pebbles will show how to develop a construction plan for energy efficiency early in the process and carry that plan through completion. Click to register.
The materials to build a porch cost about $12 per square foot. That includes the floor, posts, girders and roof. Plus labor. It will appraise for much more.
Tips from the GLH Maintenance Dept: A porch will greatly reduce your maintenance for the exterior of your home. Not only will it double or triple the years between staining, but it also makes it easier to stain when the time comes. Working from a porch is much easier than working from a ladder on uneven ground.
This past month I traveled to India to establish a relationship with a distributor for that country. This is a spot in the Himalaya’s that we visited where our first home may be built as a model for a development. During the trip I learned that the people from India love wood as much as we do here in the US. They are very gracious and hospitable people who we will soon be enjoying beautiful Oak log homes from Missouri!
Results of 2013 Member Survey by the National Kitchen and Bath Association: Top 1. Gray is the new neutral. Gray color schemes in both kitchens and baths have had a dramatic escalation since 2010. Designers report that more than half of kitchen and bath designs use shades of gray. It is still #3 behind white and off white however! 2. White painted cabinets have stayed on top of the chart since last year. Growing from 47% in 2011 to 59% in 2012 to 67% this year. 3. “Transitional” kitchen and bath designs lead the way in 2013. NKBA defines Transitional as a seamless blend of traditional and contemporary. 4. Granite remains the most popular countertop but quarts is narrowing the gap. 5. Preference for glass backsplashes has grown dramatically in the last 3 years. Ceramic and porcelain tile are still the top option but their overall use has fallen. 6. LED Lighting is being used significantly more than in the past. 7. Faucets: Touch activated faucets are becoming more popular but pull out faucets are the clear leader. Pot fillers are becoming more popular also. 8. Satin nickel is still the most used finish for kitchen fixtures. Bronze and oil rubbed bronze finishes are becoming more popular while polished nickel and chrome lose market share each year. 9. Ceramic and porcelain flooring is still the most popular in bathrooms with natural stone tile second.
Here is a basement ready for the subfloor and then the logs. Note the bolts in the top of the foundation wall. This is to bolt down the first row of logs to the foundation. This is a far superior method of construction than stacking the logs on top of the subfloor.
Construction Seminar Schedule for 2013:
Here is our schedule for 2013!
August 3rd
Sept 28th
The one day construction seminars are held at our model home center on I70 on the southwest outer road of Exit 144 in Central Missouri. Call or email to register as class size is limited!
Upcoming Log Raising:
Shamrock, MO on July 27, 2013 from 9AM to 2PM. (Shamrock is east of Auxvasse, MO) Call for directions and to RSVP. 800-654-9253 Bring a lawn chair and stay an hour or all day! We will have coffee and donuts in the morning and hot dogs for lunch. This is a really fun and educational event; join us if you can!
Answer to the Trivia Question: Spades is King David; Hearts is Charlemagne; Clubs is Alexander the Great and Diamonds is Julius Caesar.
Quote of the Month: “Youth would be an ideal state if it came a little later in life.” – Herbert Henry Asquith
