Wooden Houses: From Log Cabins to Beach Houses by Judith Miller (photography by James Merrell). Published by Ryland, Peters & Small Ltd
Wooden houses range from rustic log cabins and timbered country cottages to traditional alpine chalets and elegant clapboard houses with shaded verandas. Wood has always played an invaluable part in construction, architecture and interior decoration and has long been valued for its practical benefits. Indoors, wood surrounds us in so many different ways. Structural elements such as beams and vaulted ceilings become features in their own right. Wood can be used as further embellishment in the form of beautiful panelling or carved and turned banisters and staircases, and in original furniture designs. Whether it’s left in its natural state to show the variety of grains and depths of colours, or used as a bare canvas for paint techniques, wood is a beautiful and timeless resource.
The Battery, built to house sailors on the Kent coast, was clapboarded at the time of construction in 1873. The majority of English clapboard houses are painted white, but The Battery has always been blue because of its association with the navy.
The bathroom of a log-dominated lodge in Aspen. The designer Holly Lueders has used natural elements in addition to all the bare wood. The tiles on the bath surround are of local slate. Even the tissue holder on the twig table (above) is in the shape of a log cabin.
When this early Georgian house in Spitalfields, London, was first built, the wall panelling would have been painted either a single colour or in lighter and darker shades of one colour. The current owner has emphasised the molded and carved relief on the panelling by applying gold leaf to it.
The squared-log walls and planked doors in this combined bedroom and bathroom in a restored 18th century farmhouse in Megève in France, have been pickled and then given additional protection with a clear varnish. The log farmhouse was originally located in the Grand-Bornand region, and was moved to its present site by interior designer Michele Rédélé.
A stunning example of folk art in the guest room of a farmhouse in the Heddal Valley, Telemark, Norway, painted mainly by Olav Hansson in 1782. Hansson was well known for his religious and secular painting.
Wooden Houses: From Log Cabins to Beach Houses by Judith Miller (photography by James Merrell)
This book places the wooden house into a historical, social and decorative context, explores the decorative potential of wood in our homes and provides inspiration for anyone who appreciates the beauty of this wonderful natural material.
Published by Ryland, Peters & Small Ltd (£30)
ISBN: 9781849758017