A dream COME TRUE
What else would you call such a spectacular cabin beside a lake?
The prospect of owning, or building, a log cabin next to a quiet lake is a dream shared by many people.
For Éric Paquette, his dream started to become reality on Labour Day in 2005 when his wife's cousin — who owned a chalet at Lac Taureau in Saint-michel-desSaints — invited him and his wife, Stéphanie Laplante, along with their three kids to come over and go swimming.
It was a beautiful sunny day and, while out swimming, Paquette noticed a Land For Sale sign on the water's edge on the other side of the bay.
Paquette later contacted the seller and, after some hard negotiations, made a final offer — splitting the difference between the asking price and the amount he wanted to pay. Paquette did not have the financial means at the time to buy a piece of land and build a second home because his family had recently purchased a residence in Boisbriand, 30 minutes north of Montreal. So he approached one of his friends and told him he had a golden opportunity and a safe investment for him.
“My friend jumped at the chance to purchase half of the three acres, giving him 76 metres (250 feet) of lake frontage and co-own the land with me” Paquette recalled.
Paquette then bought a chainsaw. Whenever he had time off work, Paquette would make the almost two-hour drive to SaintMichel-des-saints to clear some trees on his side of the lot, while his wife stayed home with the kids.
In 2009, Paquette decided he wanted to divide the lot into two parcels to be totally independent. He consulted the municipality and, according to the bylaw in place, the lot was missing seven feet in order to be partitioned into two equal parcels without having to make a formal request to be exempted from the bylaw. Since neither neighbour was interested in selling a piece of their land, Paquette applied for an exemption.
The request was accepted a few months later, but with a condition. Paquette and his friend had three years to build a home on their respective lots, otherwise the exemption would no longer be valid.
“My dream for a second home has always been to build a log cabin” Paquette said.
Paquette got started by watching several videos on the internet and his sister gave him some DVDS one Christmas that showed how to build a log cabin. In January 2012, Paquette drove to MontSaint-hilaire in the Montérégie region to meet with Robin Phaneuf of Maisons Scandinave. Paquette explained to Phaneuf that he had drawn up a plan for a cabin and that he wanted it to be built with big trees.
In the same month, Phaneuf cut down 42 white pines on a farm in Saint-david in the Montérégie and hauled them to his work site. Winter is the preferred time of the year to cut down trees, for the level of sap present is at its lowest, reducing cracking and splitting in the logs. The smallest tree was 18 inches in diameter and the largest ones up to 31 inches. Adhering to the traditional Scandinavian construction method, the bark was removed using hand tools.
Phaneuf finished building and assembling the cabin on his work site in the spring. Unlike a regular home, most log home builders assemble the shell on their work site before delivering it to the client's lot. This way, they can correct any problems and make sure all the numbered logs will fit perfectly according to the assembly plan once the kit is delivered.
By September 2012, Paquette had finally finished clearing the trees from the spot on his land where he wanted to build the cabin. Soon afterwards the concrete foundation was erected and the floor poured. Then he and a family friend got to work making the wall divisions in the basement and building the ground floor with red pinewood planks. With no electricity available yet on the site, Paquette had to rely on the use of a generator. He often worked late into the night alone and slept in his truck to keep warm when he needed to be on site at first light for scheduled deliveries and to start work. It took Phaneuf and his team two-and-a-half days for the installation of the wooden structure.
A quote from a roofing contractor to build a roof over the 25-foot high structure came to $40,000.
“Prices are much higher in remote areas than in the suburbs” Paquette explained.
So Paquette ordered the wood, and other materials required, and built the roof structure himself with the help of two students he hired, saving half the cost. It was now December, and with winter approaching Paquette — with three of his buddies — started nailing down the brown nuanced asphalt shingles to cover the roof. It took 92 bundles of shingles and he finished the roof alone using heat from the generator's muffler to warm up the shingles that needed to be cut.
Paquette also saved money on the panoramic windows and patio doors for the living room.
“For the same windows and doors, the price was cheaper in Lac Saint-jean, a six-hour drive from my cottage, than what a local dealer could sell them to me for,” said Paquette, who added it's a must to be resourceful and shop around when you need or want to save money.
The windows were so heavy, it took a crew of five men to install them. It was now the end of December, and at last the cabin (30 feet by 34 feet) was protected from the elements. Two weeks later, Hydro-québec came to install the electricity. It was an expensive option, but Paquette asked for the power cables to be buried underground, fearing damage from ice storms, falling trees, high winds and other unpredictable weather. It's also aesthetically more pleasing when you look at the cabin and don't see wires in the air.
A certified electrician was hired to complete the installation of the wiring inside. The first time the heat was turned on, the house felt like a sauna with the windows full of condensation because of the humidity that had been absorbed by the logs.
Everything went smoothly with the installation of the plumbing, done by a professional from StJérôme who was the husband of Paquette's cousin. The cabin's facade is most unusual looking with its small, single-entrance door dominated by a large portico with flared logs. To truly appreciate the architectural design of this cabin, one must go around to the side that faces the lake.
Most of the furniture in the cabin was either made by Paquette, given to him, or found abandoned by the roadside. The wooden frame for the king-sized bed and bedside tables in the master bedroom, which takes up the whole mezzanine, were made from leftover pieces of white pine from the construction. To further save on cost, Paquette ordered Grade B pinewood planks (measuring two inches by six inches) with slight imperfections to make the ceiling and mezzanine floor. The results look impeccable, but he had to sand 80 per cent of the edges of the boards in order to fit them properly and says the effort and trouble was not really worth it for the amount of money he saved.
The main bathroom is located on the ground floor. Here, again, Paquette used leftover pieces of pinewood to make the single-drawer, open-face cabinet on which a natural-sculptured stone, bowl-shaped vessel sink sits. The dark grey and earth-toned ceramic tiles on the walls of the walk-in shower are the same as those used for the flooring. The almost new looking antique-reproduction, four-poster bed in the guest bedroom was given to Paquette by his wife's cousin. The bedside tables he made look as if they came with the bed.
The focal point of the staircase in the living room, when viewed from the mezzanine, is the half-log steps with saddle-notch ends cut from 31-inch trees. Phaneuf had never built steps like this before, but was delighted to take up the challenge at Paquette's request. Paquette installed the same ceramic tiles used for the bathroom to cover the floor in front of the patio doors and windows. The fireplace was finished with manufactured stone panels, which are less expensive than real stone but still look genuine. The small main entrance door to the cabin is only a couple of feet away to the left of the fireplace. The two sofas with flowery motifs were a gift from Laplante's aunt.
Paquette partially built the dining-room set from discarded chairs and table legs his wife saw abandoned by the roadside while driving their daughter to a friend's house. He only needed to purchase several thick planks of pinewood to finish the tabletop and stained it to match the bench he inherited from his late grandfather. Exposed log ends define a pioneer sentiment in the kitchen.
During the winter, Paquette shopped around for a company to custom-build the island and cabinets. The refrigerator was given to him by his mother-in-law and he purchased a dishwasher for $65 from his boss at work, who was moving.
The large and heavy logs above the mezzanine and living room were assembled with mortisejoints and are held in place with wooden pegs. These architectural elements are the star attractions of a Scandinavian log cabin, conveying a sense of rustic beauty that showcases engineering skills and high-quality craftsmanship. It took three men to lift and attach the impressive $3,000 deer-antler chandelier to the central log beam of the 25-foot high cathedral ceiling. While Paquette was building the roof, he had the foresight to pre-drill the holes in the log beams and pass the wiring.
During the construction of his cabin, Paquette had to improvise as an engineer and architect, contend with lots of unforeseen problems and manage the logistics. He and those who helped him often worked in harsh weather conditions. Also, he didn't get much sleep when he spent nights on the site because he was always thinking about the next day's tasks.
But finally, after going through all of that, he says: “I am very happy and satisfied with all the sacrifices and hardships I had to make and endure to make my dream come true. What's even more satisfying is that my wife and three children, our friends and family members, absolutely love to come over to relax and have fun at the cottage.”