The issue of kitchen cupboards that work visually in a log home - particularly when the ceiling is vaulted or cathedral ceilings is an onging concern for me. This week I will be visiting with a local kitchen designer - who offers ideas and advice for free - and will report back on what an expert has to say about the matter.

If you’ve just landed here, and are interested in seeing many other photos of log home kitchens, use the search feature at right to retrieve a list of all posts on the subject.

Today, I have two photos to share with you of kitchens that do not have upper cupboards, that do work visually and are not an eyesore from every other room in the house.

The first is similar to my current vision for our kitchen. Windows above the counters at left and right, no upper cupboards, vaulted (angled ceiling) on the left and straight up at the back. I likely will not have a table within the kitchen workspace, but to the right will be another set of lower cupboards (perhaps a river rock covered kitchen island) containing a small produce or wash up sink.

From Country Home Magazine (April 2003), “Trading Places” Written by Jill Connors, styled by Joetta Moulden, and photographed by Brad Simmons

The next kitchen photo is provided for reference only. I wish I could show you more about this kitchen as it also doesn’t have upper cupboards, but to the left and right of the sink are open shelves. A pretty and tidy kitchen all in white.

Country Home (April 2003), “Signature Style” Written by Mike Butler, and photographed by Reed Davis

I’ve been battling the kitchen design ideas for the last month, for our log home.

I like the idea of a backspash - I’m thinking copper colored tin, perhaps a little burnished to look vintage or antique. However, I just ran across this photo, below.

Attribution: Country Home, Februray 2003. Article: Cabin Bliss, written by Helen Thompson, photographed by Brad Simmons

This is definitely not for sloppy cooks, but if you’ve sealed and stained well and you take care to keep your kitchen clean, this is a beautiful look. Note the lack of upper cupboards in the log home kitchen. This is an important consideration if your kitchen is open concept and/or has cathedral ceilings.

Another Kitchen Look for High Ceilings

Although this isn’t to my taste, I do see some clever ideas and products at play in this photo scanned in from “Country Decorating Ideas”, Fall 2005 Edition. “Into the Woods”, written by Gladys Montgomery and photo by Bill Mathews.

White cupboards in a log home kitchen are not easily ‘pulled off’ but this works well with the yellow walls behind. However, the workspace between the upper cupboards and the counter top, is very limiting. And there is that annoying, stark line of where the cupboard stop and the long wall expanse continues. Just doesn’t flow.

Notes of imagination and interest. I love the wood post protruding from the wall. This is a great idea (if it wasn’t over the lunch counter) for a pot rack, or (over the counter) for lighting. Some lighting - dropping down from 20+ foot high ceilings - looks very wrong, this may be a viable and interesting alternative to bring the log look into your kitchen - even if you don’t own a log home.

Be sure to note the lunch counter bar stools! Perfect for a log home on the lake or a cabin by a stream.

Be sure to leave a note or comment on what you like or don’t like in either of these styles of decorating a log home or cabin.

Here’s a worry I’ve had ever since Eric decided we should have a log home and that the decorating would all be up to me.

Cathedral ceilings. Vaulted ceilings. Wood walls. Open concept.

We’ve got them all in our kitchen and each one comes with its own set of design challenges to people left to kitchen design (pro or amateur) the world over.

Log Home Kitchens - Upper Cupboards

The trouble with cathedral ceilings and vaulted walls in your kitchen happens when you’re choosing cupboard styles. Upper cupboards specifically. I’ve seen this done poorly too many times to mention and when it is done poorly, it sticks out like a sore thumb and ruins the visual for the entire open concept. I’ll post some pictures shortly of upper cupboards gone wrong so stay tuned to this post to see what I mean.

As our layout dictates, the great room, dining room and kitchen are open concept. Only the living room and kitchen area are vaulted ceilings.

The lower cupboards will wrap around on three sides of the kitchen, leaving the remaining area open. The area leads to the dining room and double doors (walk out to the grilling deck).

Bad Log Home Kitchen Design

Here are a few samples of bad log home kitchen design and the reasons why…

Above: Upper cupboards in this cathedral ceiling kitchen stick out like a sore thumb. No design was factored into this layout and application. The uppers look like they were just ’stuck’ onto the walls - more about function than style.

Although the wood tones are similar, your eye just gets stuck on the protrusions (ugly cupboards of the walls). A home should ‘flow’ both to the feet and to the eye. This does not. Remember that this home has an adjoining room (open concept) which means no matter where you are, this atrocity will be in plain view.

Above: The white washed cupboards and the pecan stained wood are clashing horribly! Whoever designed this mess had a serious lack of understanding of tones and was quite likely color blind. Another case in point for requiring gifted kitchen designers to look carefully at the space (and pitch of ceilings) before they hand over plans to home owners.

This too is an open-concept kitchen (flowing into another room) and shows nothing but clutter and pain to the observing eye.

Above: This kitchen nearly has it. An understanding of the space, vaulted ceilings and tone. But it is seriously lacking in imagination (which is troublesome considering the imagined high cost). The island is too confining, the refrigerator is sticking out 6″ into the work space (and looks like the owner either didn’t measure before he bought the fridge or the designer didn’t measure for modern living).

Apart from the above annoyances, all the dark clutter on the tops of the cupboards is the only other setback. This kitchen is closer to being decent than the others, but still lacks in imagination.

With the help of primitive and rustic decorating specialist Dagny Musclow (The Old Tin Shed in Bird’s Creek) we’re pulling together the ‘look’ for every room in the log home.

To whet our whistle and get us thinking about original and themed room designs, Dagny had us sit down with a stack of magazines and imagine what it would be like living in those rooms.

Barnboard for the Bathroom

Veronica found this and we all adore the look…

Attribution: Canadian House and Home - August 2004 “Summer Places”, Article: Urban Idyll, Written by Elizabeth Kelly, Photographed by Stacey Brandford (page 52)

It is only fitting, after all, that Dagny introduced us to this style of decorating - her home office is floor to ceiling barnboard and she sells many barnboard home decor items at her shop (Check out The Old Tin Shed - Rustic Decorating Catalog to get some great rustic ideas for home decor.)

Salvage Shopping Anyone?

Having decorated a few houses of my own in rustic style, I know full well what this means for us and I just love the idea. We need to hit the salvage shops - now in nearly every town, as well as online - to find some antique sinks, mirrors, and plumbing hardware. As I buy pieces, reproduction or actual antique, I will show you the deals I find and the prices we paid.