CABIN for FOUR in HIGH SIERRA
Here is a big, comfortable cabin of no particular period of design—just a grand place to while away one’s leisure time in some secluded spot where the only sound is the music of the wind in the pines. The broad flagstone porch is just the spot to spend lazy afternoons, and the living room is large enough for entertaining but not so large that it would be hard to heat.
According to the original design, this cabin might be built with a board and batten exterior, finished with a preparation of linseed oil and rotten stone—or it would be beautiful covered, roof and all, with silver-weathered shakes or shingles. In either case, the trim should be in a bright color for contrast, and the chimney would be best if built of rough field stones.
Inside, the living room might be finished in knotty Western cedar vertical-channel boards, sanded until they feel like satin and rubbed with linseed oil. Here again, for contrast, the trim and doors might be painted some bright color. The designer suggested waxed vermillion lacquer for the floor, but if this sounds too bright, it could be left natural color, or perhaps covered with one of the tile patterns of inlaid linoleum.
The two bedrooms, just for variety, could be panelled in knotty pine, while the bathroom and kitchen would be nice in some gay color such as canary yellow.
The arrangement of the fireplace at the back of the house allows construction of a feature which is especially popular in southern California—an outdoor fireplace. A single chimney carries both flues. The inner fireplace may be used for heating purposes, while the outside one is ideal for barbecues on the terrace.