November 2024 Log Home Living is Now Online

 November 2024 issue

Log Home Living is Now Online

https://www.honestabe.com/honest-abe-living/honest-abe-living-november-2024/

Features include:

[] A Timeless Christmas – galleries of customers' homes decorated for the holidays

[] Christmas Tree Design Tips – a video with Molly Cooper, interior designer, discussing Christmas trees for log homes

[] Coatings – a video interview with Paul Peebles from Sashco about wood coatings

[] Nice & Quiet – download info about sound transmission in log homes

[] Happy Veteran's Day – take a video tour of a house festooned for a patriotic holiday

[] HAL in the Kitchen – April Patterson makes hot chocolate in the crockpot

[] Algood Model Home Tour – take a video tour of Honest Abe's Algood Model at Cookeville

Floor Plan – download the Algood Floor Plan

[] Events – mark your calendars for 2025

• • •

The Blog for LogHomesByJack is called News From Jack. It can be found at LogHomesByJack.com by clicking on the upper left corner. News from Jack contains many posts related to log and timber frame homes, stains, suggestions and Q&As. Also posted are all of our monthly e-magazines from Honest Abe Living as well as photos, floor plans and stain info. Contact Jack with your comments, questions or to set up a meeting. HutslarJack@gmail.com or 336-407-2157.

Honest Abe Living . October 2024

October 2024 issue of Honest Abe Living 

Now available online

https://www.honestabe.com/honest-abe-living/honest-abe-living-october-2024 and includes the following content:

Harbor Rest – see photos of a new SIP and Timber Frame home and read an interview with the owners.

What does an Honest Abe dealer do? A video interview with longtime dealer Dallas Powers and VP of Sales Jeff Clements

Get decorating and interior design advice from Molly Cooper of Cooper & Co.

Rick Webb of Perma-Chink Systems discusses their offerings and the company’s longterm relationship with Honest Abe in a new video

Honest Abe’s first president, Rick Denton, talks to videographer Allison Deckard about the early years

Take the ultimate Cloud 9 video tour of a Gatlinburg log mansion available to rent for fall vacations

Get ready for Thanksgiving with Honest Abe owners Janie Smith and April Smith Patterson as they demonstrate how to make Southern Cornbread Dressing

Download the custom Pleacher Plan and read a story and see photos of a home one couple waiting a lifetime to design

= = = = =

Jack - Your Authorized Honest Abe Dealer

The Blog for LogHomesByJack is News From Jack. It can be found at LogHomesByJack.com by clicking on the upper left corner. News from Jack contains many posts related to log and timber frame homes, stains, suggestions and Q&As. Also posted are all of our monthly e-magazines from Honest Abe Living as well as photos, floor plans and stain info. 

Contact Jack with your comments, questions or to set up a meeting. HutslarJack@gmail.com or 336-407-2157.

Sansin.com Enviro Stains is what we offer

 Sansin.com Enviro Stains is what we offer

These water based wood stains allow the wood to breathe. Used for hundreds of years in old Northern Europe. Will not blister~peal~scratch. 100 colors. No fillers that turn dark. Safe. No dangerous or harsh odors. Water clean up. Nationwide service. Free shipping on large orders.

SDF for exteriors.

Purity for interiors.

SDF Floors.

DEC for porches and decks.

Firestop flame retardant.

*** See LogHomesByJack on Facebook and on line. 336-407-2157

Your Log Home Profile

Your Log Home Profile

We can assist you in the process of selecting your log, eco-panel or timber frame home to meet your specifications. 

Copy and paste this information into an email and send it to Jack@LogHomesByJack.com

Your Name:
Street Address:
City - State - Zip Code:

Your preferred email address:

Best telephone number:
Best time and day of the week to contact you:

Where do you plan to build:
When do you wish to begin: Month / Day / Year

Approximate square footage _____________ Budget Range ________________ 

1/1.5/2 story home ___ Log ___ Timber frame __ Eco-Panel ___ Log Siding __

Number of bedrooms ___ Number of bathrooms ____ 

Open KI-DR-LR ___ Distinct rooms ___ Porches ___

WICs ___ Pantry ___ Mud room ___

Cathedral / Heavy Timber ceiling ___ Loft ___ Prow  ___  Window wall ___

Basement ___ Walk out basement ___ Crawl space ___ Slab ___ Garage ____

Garage under ____ Garage attached ____ Carport ____ FROG Garage with apartment over ___

Have land ____ Have financing ____ DIY Self-builder ____ 

Shell dry in only needed ____ Turnkey needed ____

We are full time Independent Dealers for Honest Abe Log Homes based in Virginia and serving NC and any underserved area. 

Always available by appointment.

Just call Jack at 336-407-2157 [m] or 800-767-4916 to set up an appointment. Let me know when it is convenient to talk or meet, review your property situation, and go over your questions, ideas, floor plans and timetable.

We can meet with you anywhere, at the Lake, restaurant, on your property or in-between. I prefer any sit down place. By phone. On computer.

There is an extensive Photo Gallery here on this blog. See also the Floor Plan catalog.

See LogHomesByJack.com and also on Facebook as well as Jack Hutslar.

Independent Dealers for Honest Abe Log Homes = http://www.HonestAbe.com

September 2024 Honest Abe Living [with LogHomesByJack]

The September 2024 Honest Abe Living [with LogHomesByJack] Now Available online and contains the following stories:

[ ] Inspired by Childhood – HALH VP of Sales, Jeff Clements, shares his log home

[ ]How to Decorate a Rec Room That Appeals to All Ages and Interests - advice from designer Molly Cooper

[ ] Home Construction – learn more about our in-house construction options

[ ] Shavings Transformation – watch a video about Honest Abe's commitment to the environment

[ ] Register for the last log raising of 2024

[ ] Take a video tour of Settler's View Lodge

[ ] Honest Abe Living in the Kitchen –Lil’ Piggies in a Blanket

[ ] The Rivergate Floor Plan – a medium-sized plan with timeless appeal

Find the magazine here

https://www.honestabe.com/honest-abe-living/honest-abe-living-september-2024/

Brought to you by Jack Hutslar, your Virginia and North Carolina log home dealer for Honest Abe Log Homes. We also assist people in underserved areas. I have been a log home dealer since 2001. It would be good to meet with you and go over your plans, ideas, questions, budget and timetable plus construction needs.

Find the most up to date information on Facebook at LogHomesByJack.com and at Jack Hutslar.

Contact Jack@LogHomesByJack.com at 800-767-4916 or 336-407-2157 [m]

Random DIY Cabinet Color Tip from Jack

 Random DIY Cabinet Color Tip from Jack

It is common to see an eventual need to brighten your kitchen cabinets. It/They tend to darken over time. This “look” might also extend to interior doors, windows and trim.

When the wood or metal has been painted one or more times, just select a lighter color of paint and have at it. Easy done if you like that look.

Staining wood cabinets is a slightly different situation. Generally cabinets cannot be made lighter by applying a lighter color of stain over a darker stain. However, they can be made darker. Ditto for the outside. 

Note: this is big: Water based stains will not penetrate oil based stains. It will lay on the surface like water on a nice tabletop.

Sanding down the top coats of stain or paint to make your cabinets lighter is likely to be the necessary step. There are companies that do this. Be aware that interior cabinet stains can be oil based or water based. Not so much with water based stains.

To lighten your cabins, doors, windows and trim, a water based stain like Sansin provides comes in 100 colors. It will allow the wood to breathe. It will not be as shiny as the oil based stains. No heavy odors. Low VOCs. Easy to do touch ups. Water clean up. Safe.

Purity is the indoor stain that Sansin offers for log walls, cabinets, trim and other exposed beam roofing materials found inside new construction.

To learn more about this, go to Sansin.com. Look at the color and data sheets for Purity for interiors, DEC for porches and SDF for exteriors.

See LogHomesByJack or Jack Hutslar on Facebook.

Questions? Contact Jack@LogHomesByJack.com at 336-407-2157

You are welcome . . . jack

Sansin Enviro Stains

Jack Hutslar, Authorized Dealer

Ask Jack about Sansin Enviro Stains for your wood projects. 

Water based. Low VOCs. Breathable. Many colors. Nationwide service. 

SDF for exteriors. Purity for interiors. Floors. DEC for porches and decks. Firestop flame retardant. Sansin.com

LogHomesByJack on Facebook. 336-407-2157. Jack@LogHomesByJack.com

Floor Plan Catalog by Honest Abe Log Homes

 Honest Abe Log Home

Floor Plans Catalog 2021

+ + +

Floor Plans

Go to => LogHomesByJack.com

Upper Left Link to Floor Plans

Click on that

Our floor plans are suitable for all of our "very green" Log, Eco-Panel and Timber Frame homes.

Easily Modified ... Too big? We can usually make it smaller. Too small? We can always make it larger. Want to blend in two different models? Piece of cake for us. Not possible for some other companies!

+ + +

To set up a meeting, contact: 

HutslarJack@gmail.com at 336-407-2157 [m]

Authorized Log Home Dealer since 2001**

Photo Gallery of Log Homes by Honest Abe Log Homes

Photo Gallery 

Westport Model

https://www.honestabe.com/honest-abe-log-homes-photo-collection/

Photo Gallery of Log Homes by Honest Abe Log Homes with LogHomesByJack

100+ photo files. Many options. Log or Eco-Panel. 

LogHomesByJack on Facebook

Serving VA NC plus any underserved area

Always available by appointment

HutslarJack@gmail.com. 336-407-2157 [m]

Honest Abe Living with LogHomesByJack, August 2024 issue

Honest Abe Living . August 2024

Jack sez: Yep! I double checked. 

Summer is Definitely Here!

Honest Abe Living with LogHomesByJack . . .  Live, Learn & Enjoy the latest issue of the Honest Abe Living Online Magazine. Share it with your family and friends.

The August 2024 issue of Honest Abe Living is a free interactive online magazine published monthly by Honest Abe Log Homes with LogHomesByJack.

+ + + + +

Click below for the August 2024 issue to see it online with many more pictures

https://www.honestabe.com/honest-abe-living/honest-abe-living-august-2024/)

+ + + + +

Included this month in our free, interactive magazine are the following stories plus loads of photos and videos:

[ ] Pagano Home – New Life in the Blue Ridge

[ ] Cooper  & Co – Transitioning from Summer Fun to School-Time

[ ] Children's Activity Book –Order your copy of Three Honest Little Pigs

[ ] Staining a Log Home – Watch a video of restaining in progress

[ ] Embracing Minimalism – Sometimes less is better

[ ] Video tour of the Southern Grace home

[ ] Honest Abe Living In The Kitchen: Nannie’s Chicken & Rice

[ ] Hood Family’s Mountain Home Dream Plan

[ ] Plan to attend the October 12th log raising & mill tour.

Follow this link to the interactive magazine: 

https://www.honestabe.com/honest-abe-living/honest-abe-living-august-2024/

+ + + + +

Jack Hutslar has been serving the Virginia and North Carolina area since 2001 and is the log home dealer for Honest Abe Log Homes. We also assist people in any underserved areas. ... It has always been important for me to meet with our clients  to answer questions and go over the process, plans, ideas, budget and timetable plus construction needs. ... I help guide my clients through the process and the weeds.

Find the most up to date log home information on FACEBOOK at Jack Hutslar or LogHomesByJack or at  LogHomesByJack.com.

Contact Jack@LogHomesByJack.com at 

336.407.2157 [m] or 800.767.4916 [USA only].

Jack is a Has Been!

Jack, a former teacher and coach, has been a log home dealer since July 5th 2001. He knows how this log home material industry operates as well as  job-critical people. It is important for us to meet and go over plans, ideas, questions, budget and timetable plus construction needs.

We are prepared to work with people in any underserved area.

NEWS from JACK

This is My blog found at LogHomesByJack.com

Random DIY Tip About Staining Log Homes from Jack

Random DIY Tip About Staining Log Homes from Jack

Ooops . Cautions!

Jack sez: Do not stain HOT log walls and decks. Work on those hot sides in the cool shady times of the day.

Generally when painting, we “trim” over and around the corners, windows and ceiling with our brushes. Then we come back and fill in the unpainted sections with rollers. Ditto pipes and other metal and plastic features. 

That is exactly the WRONG thing to do with stain. Why is that?

Well, stain is usually not as thick as paint. Think water and you will get the right idea. Unlike paint, we are usually applying stain to logs, wood siding, T&G [tongue and groove] and other wood products, not sheetrock, metal, plastics or glass.

By the way, we do have a semi-transparent stain product that will go over wood, metal, plastic, glass, stone and cement. It will also go over oil based stains. It is called ENS and was developed by Sansin.com. Available from LogHomesByJack. End of commercial.

In working with stain there are some rules.

1. Do not even think about staining wood that is hot.

2. Do not edge. Absolutely do not trim around the corners, windows and doors.

3. Begin staining log homes from the bottom and go up 1-2-3 rows at a time.

4. Do not stain five to nine vertical feet at a time and work you way up the wall. Then move over to the next five to ten foot section. WRONG.

5. Why Not? Do not overlap dry stain with wet stain. This happens when trimming as noted in No 2, 3 and 4. This overlap creates two layers of stain while the newest stain is just one layer thick. The overlap shows when dry.

6. Stain can drip from brushes as it is applied. When working from the bottom rows upward, drips can be brushed out to avoid overlap drop marks.

About Bug Juice? 

If you add this product to your top coat of Sansin stains, you have 3 hours to apply that stain. Do not add an 8 oz bottle of Bug Juice to a five gallon pail of paint or stain - unless you have enough helpers to use up one five gallon pail of stain in one hours.

You are welcome . . . jack

Honest Abe Living online for August 2024 to be released soon

The August 2024 online issue of Honest Abe Living will be emailed and posted this coming Tuesday. 

Learn more about this home and others with a large serving of photos. We offer attractive highly energy efficient log homes, timber frame homes and eco-panel homes. We offer options. ... 

See LogHomesByJack.com and on Facebook. 

Contact Jack@LogHomesByJack.com at 336-407-2157

Honest Abe Living . July 2024

 The July 2024 issue of Honest Abe Living online

Included in this month’s free, interactive magazine are the following stories plus loads of photos and videos:

[] Smoky Mountain Views, the home of Matthew & Ashley Cox

[] Selecting Exterior Log Home Colors by Molly Cooper, designer, Cooper & Co.

[] Log Cabin Month celebrated with invitations to Honest Abe’s Model Homes

[] Honest Abe’s Place in Log Cabin History

[] The Future is Now – Log home design embraces technology for convenience

[] Video tour of The Ocampo Residence overlooking Dale Hollow Lake

[] “Honest Abe Living in The Kitchen” YouTube Series – April Smith Patterson creates Tater Tot Casserole

[] The Shaneyfelt Plan Perfect for Log Cabin Month – see the video tour of this historic reproduction log cabin.

[] Plan to attend the July 20 log raising & mill tour.

Follow this link to the interactive magazine:

https://www.honestabe.com/honest-abe-living/honest-abe-living-july-2024/

Honest Abe Living . June 2024 Issue

The June in Honest Abe Living where you can enjoy the following:

[] Our First Zero Energy Ready Home – a video tour

[] Exploring the Vibrancy of Contrasting Colors in Log Home Design with Molly Cooper, designer

[] Reading Retreats – A cozy log home offers the place for an even cozier library

[] to Honest Abe's Murfreesboro Model – a video tour

[] Summer Log Raising Set for July 20

[] Revisiting a Favorite – the Joyce home in Virginia remains a 

classic

[] Join April Patterson and Molly Cooper in a home by Honest Abe as they create a summer multi layered salad – YouTube series

[] Tour Mountain Moksha and see how a customer combined two floor plans to create a mountain retreat – video tour

Follow this link to our interactive magazine:

https://www.honestabe.com/honest-abe-living/honest-abe-living-june-2024/

All Material Packages Are Not Created Equal

The Honest Abe log home material package 

Call Jack when you have questions about our material package. We present an itemized list of materials for our buyers when we send you our estimated pricing.

It is customary for log home companies to leave items out of their packages to make their prices lower and seemly more attractive. However, buyers and the builders still need to purchase those items that we include for the dry-in. It is for this reason that we offer an itemized price list that shows what is being purchased.

Items that are commonly NOT provided in other material packages are ...

• the subfloor

• stains for outside and inside

• internal framing and doors

• basement framing when needed

• matching windows and doors for basements 

These are some of the usual omissions by other manufacturers. That reduces their costs. This is exactly why buyers need to see what they are buying. 

By the way, I have also prepared a "NOT List" for my clients. It reveals what is not in our packages like the foundation, HVAC, shingles, flooring, fixtures, support posts for decks and porches and more.

Understand and compare what you are buying from us and our competitors. 

Thanks for caring enough to compare offerings ... Jack

= = = = =

LogHomesByJack ... est 2001

P O Box 2424

Forest VA 24551

= = = = =

Jack@LogHomesByJack.com

HutslarJack@gmail.com

336-407-2157 [m]

800 767-4916 [US only]

= = = = =

Info Center

County Line Cafe & Mini Mall

Rt 460 Near Turkeyfoot Road

[1 mile East of Sheetz]

Forest VA 24551

=====

Authorized Dealer:

Honest Abe Log Homes

Southern TimberCraft Eco-Panel Homes

Sansin Enviro Stains

Random DIY tip about interior color selections

Random DIY tip about interior color selections

Some of our clients want the wood grain look throughout the interior of their log homes. Log siding 1x6, 1x8, 1x10 or 1x12 is what we offer to complete that dream. Even 1/2 of our 10 inch round-round log. Sansin Purity Interior Stain is the coating product offered in our material packages.

Other clients want to see more color throughout the interior. That usually means sheetrock or some type of paneling, even stone, or all of the above.

When deciding on interior colors, drop in the paint section of your local warehouse or hardware store. They have displays of paint colors. Find the section where they have chips that show two or three color combinations. Pick the combinations that blend well with your wood walls and trim. This solves your questions about what colors work best together. 

You are welcome … Jack at LogHomesByJack

2024’s Best ROI Home Projects for Builders

2024’s Best ROI Home Projects for Builders

The construction industry is continually evolving, influenced by economic shifts, homeowner preferences, and technological advancements. The 37th annual Cost vs. Value Report by Zonda offers invaluable insights into which home improvement projects are yielding the highest returns on investment(ROI), especially critical for home sellers and industry professionals aiming to maximize value. 

Source: Texas Association of Builders 5/3/24

Project	Job Cost	Resale   Value	Cost Recouped (%)
Garage Door Replacement	$4,513	$8,751	193.9%
Entry Door Replacement | Steel	$2,355	$4,430	188.1
Manufactured Stone Veneer	$111,287	$171,291	153.2
Grand Entrance | Fiberglass	$11,353	$11,054	97.4
Minor Kitchen Remodel | Midrange	$27,492	$26,406	96.1
Siding Replacement | Fiber-Cement	$20,619	$18,230	88.4
Deck Addition | Wood	$17,615	$14,596	82.9
Siding Replacement | Vinyl	$17,410	$13,957	80.2
Bath Remodel | Midrange	$25,251	$18,613	73.7
Deck Addition | Composite	$24,206	$16,498	68.2
Window Replacement | Vinyl	$21,264	$14,270	67.1
HVAC Conversion | Electrification	$18,000	$12,242	66.1
Window Replacement | Wood	$25,799	$16,222	62.9
Roofing Replacement | Asphalt Shingles	$30,680	$17,461	56.9
Major Kitchen Remodel | Midrange	$79,798	$39,587	49.5
Bath Remodel | Universal Design	$40,750	$20,148	49.4
Roofing Replacement | Metal	$49,928	$24,034	48.1
Bath Remodel | Upscale	$78,840	$35,591	45.1
Major Kitchen Remodel | Upscale	$158,530	$60,176	38.0
Bathroom Addition | Midrange	$58,649	$20,334	34.7
Bathroom Addition | Upscale	$107,477	$34,997	32.6
Primary Suite Addition | Upscale	$339,513	$81,042	23.9