Rustic charm, rural luxury

For their house, the Navarolis picked a spot in the town of Douglas (population 5,400), less than an hour's drive from Boston; Providence, R.I.; and Worcester, Mass. The location is convenient for Tom Navaroli, a computer consultant, and ideal for his outdoors-minded family.

Hundred-year-old apple trees dot the lot's perimeter, a clump of shade trees grows at the back edge, and a pond - where the family canoes and fishes - lies just beyond.

To Mrs. Navaroli, a former merchandising executive who's now a stay-at-home mom to the couple's daughters, ages 5 and 8, the setting is calming.

That feeling is not surprising, says Stephen Biggs, president of Town & Country Cedar Homes of Petoskey, Mich. Log homes are a "shelter for the spirit," he says, particularly in the post-9/11 world. They are an emotional investment. Often the seeds of the romance are planted years before purchase.

Jeff Arnold of Heritage Log Homes in Sevierville, Tenn., says most customers have some previous experience with log homes, possibly through a friend or from a vacation or summer-camp experience. This, he believes, overcomes the biggest challenge to selling log homes, a lack of awareness.

"For most people, the thought of building with logs doesn't even cross their mind," he observes.

The Navarolis became captivated while visiting home shows and spending family vacations in a rented log home in Maine.

For inspiration, they subscribed to specialty log-home magazines, which are the dream generators for "log-o-philes."

"I've talked to people who own these homes, and they say the logs actually become like friends," says Charles Bevier, editor of Building Systems Magazine. "Their eyes start to memorize the grain and where certain branches were on the log."

The homes become friends, too. Quite often they are the last ones people plan to live in. That is why owners want their design to reflect their values and tastes.

For years, Carl Reid and his wife debated what to build on lakefront property they owned in Michigan. At first, they wanted to go with a New England seaside look, but it didn't fit the surroundings. A few years ago, in driving by Town & Country's offices, Mr. Reid spied an alluring model that convinced him the search was over.

The interior, which combines white cedar and conventional drywall, seemed the perfect antidote to the heavy-log look the couple wanted to avoid. "It's airy, a little bit rustic, but really refined," says Reid.

Tom Bingham, who runs a family lumber business in Brookline, N.H., built his own log home and recently became a dealer. "I had no idea how much people have left the musty log cabin behind and gotten into nice, bright log homes with a lot of natural light."

More and more, people seem to be mixing logs with other building materials. Wilbur Bontrager calls his northern Indiana luxury home a hybrid of stick-frame and log construction. From the outside, the 5,000-square-foot beauty is clad mostly in wooden shingles. Inside, it uses logs split lengthwise and framed conventionally.

"Using conventional construction for the walls allows you to use conventional methods for wiring, plumbing, and so forth," Mr. Bontrager says.

Many of these upscale homes have the feel of inviting lodges. One homeowner says guests find the atmosphere so appealing, they are reluctant to leave.

Some are on sprawling lots (Bontrager's sits on 85 acres), but even the smaller properties usually are surrounded by enough trees to "frame the picture," Mr. Arnold observes. "When you look at these houses, it seems like the owners want you to look at the whole thing and just go, 'Wow.' "

The Navarolis' 2,800-square-foot home cost roughly $375,000. They built it to look simple from the front, partly to avoid attracting attention. Even so, log-home fans stop to chat. Across the back of the house, the architecture is more dynamic, with lots of glass.

Page: 1 | 2 | 3