Renovation of a Modern Cabin Deck -Part 1- The Vision

This spring and summer we are embarking on a full deck renovation at Pine Daisy House. The season for projects is nearly upon us and after hours upon hours of research, selecting a contractor, and getting approval with our neighborhood HOA, we’re nearly ready to start!

With over 1,000 sq. feet of deck this will be the largest renovation we have ever embarked on. We are so thankful to be working with an incredible local contractor. It is going to be beautiful!

Let me cast and share the vision with you and give some context.

The Deck’s Story

We’ve owned this modern cabin since 2015. Throughout the past handful of years we have maintained our entirely wooden deck ourselves. Toward the end of the summer in 2020 we knew it was time to prioritize a new deck. For no other reason than it is simply unsafe for us not to do so. Our cabin was built in 1979 and we believe much of the 1000+ sq feet and frame are original to the house.

The deck is one of the reasons we fell in love with this property in the first place. As naive, first-time home buyers, we had no clue what the maintenance would entail. After spending weeks on end each summer for the past few years on maintaining with paint, replacement boards here and there, sanding, more paint, and more replacing…we realized it’s time to make the long-term investment with a full renovation.

Deck Inspiration

We spent months determining the style, colors, and direction we wanted to take the deck visually. We are ultimately going to be keeping the deck layout virtually the same with a few changes here and there. I’m incredibly grateful to Allie from Proverbs 31 Girl for giving me permission to share images of her outdoor living spaces with you. Her deck designs and easy styling have been a major source of long term inspiration for me.

Currently our deck has a very classic craftsman look. With a few images that pack a huge inspirational punch in hand, we were able to cast a very clear vision to our contractor.

The above beautiful lakeside cabin strikes a perfect balance with its colors. We love the touch of black railing and know we want to achieve a similar, cohesive, look.

We also want a fair amount of visual impact as well. In addition, we love the look of natural wood on a deck. The below image shows the striking power of contrast in an exterior living space. We hope to emulate the same beautiful impact with our finished project.

Finally, our home is very much a modern cabin or timber home in its exterior. It embodies the essence of a cedar home visually. We want to continue to honor and celebrate its rustic heart and modern lines.

Town + Country Cedar Homes has created a beautiful lakeside cabin and its given us another source of immense inspiration. We did our best to choose decking and colors that will evoke a similar palette as to what is seen above.

The Renovation Plan

We plan to completely replace the deck with a manufactured wood product (Fiberon Decking). Currently in our area standard wood and manufactured are practically the same price. Our season of life makes deck maintenance a chore we simply don’t want. Along with other cabin chores, projects, and a busy family schedule we opted for products that will require as little maintenance as possible.

We will be mirroring the existing footprint in nearly the exact way, albeit for a few areas. The color will also stay nearly the same. Accenting with natural wood tones and deep reds throughout will brighten up the exterior space and help us achieve a similar look to our inspiration.

We’re looking forward to the modernizing effect of metal railing and balusters throughout the entire deck. The railing alone will elevate the entire visual experience of the deck that surrounds our home.

The Renovation Timeline

We are currently in the final stages of getting the appropriate permits and construction elements scheduled. We’re immensely grateful to a highly equipped and trusted contractor for coordinating all of the specifics. His skilled craftsmanship will bring our vision into reality. I can’t stress enough the importance of slowly and carefully selecting a trusted contractor.

The initial estimate is that the project should take approximately six weeks to complete. Since our cabin is nearly completely surrounded by decking, every entry point to our home, except the garage, will not be accessible for a time.

We hope the project can begin sometime in the next month but also know there are still several moving parts to consider. The weather also continues to be a major factor, we currently have inches of snow on the ground.

It’s going to be exciting bringing you along throughout the process. I’ll be documenting the journey often on Instagram and will give highlights here. I can’t wait for the adventure!

Check out Part 2- The Demo, here!

With hope for you and your intentional home,