resemble old barn doors.
Once the shell of Juneberry cabin was
complete, Bob and Pat contacted Cornish-based
holiday letting company, Unique Home Stays,
to discuss whether they would be interested in
collaborating on the interior finishes, with the aim
of being added to their portfolio of
holiday homes.
“A friend recommended the company and we
were put in touch with interior stylist Tabitha
Barker, who worked with us and was able to
visualise exactly how the rooms would look – right
down to the fine details,” explains Bob, who
admits he would probably have decorated the
interior with simple white paint if left to his own
devices, rather than the sumptuous deep teal
shade which has been used throughout.
“One of the major changes we made was to
increase the size of the Douglas fir deck, so that it
wraps around the outside, with sets of steps
leading up on two sides, whereas originally it was
just going to run along the front,” he says.
With space at a premium, clever internal
planning was key to the cabin’s success, and most
of the interior has been left open plan
as a living/dining/kitchen beneath a high
sloping roof. The ceiling was clad with quirky
corrugated iron sheets, salvaged from a
dilapidated old barn on the farm and fitted
onto plasterboard with a half-hour fire rating to
meet Building Regulations.
“Where possible we’ve used recycled items,
and like a lot of farmers, I don’t tend to throwanything away, so we had timber and other
materials already on the farm,” says Bob.
“Bedside lights were reused from the old touring
caravan which previously stood on the site, light
shades in the living room were taken from a grain
store, and the kitchen was made by Stuart from
wood panels, which we reclaimed from an old
factory and kiln dried.”
A woodburner was fitted in the open plan
sitting room, and the dining table and other
furniture was rescued from the old caravan and
given a new lease of life.
A spacious king-size bedroom has been
positioned to one end of the cabin and benefits
from a side window and glass doors straight out
onto the deck – affording fantastic views from the
bed over a rolling patchwork of fields. Teal walls
contrast with the engineered oak wooden
flooring, which was laid over electric underfloor
heating throughout.
“I was wary of having a wet underfloor heating
system, in case of leaks, and the electric pads are
also quite slim,” says Bob. “A solar thermal panel
on the cabin roof heats our water, and we may
also add a photovoltaic panel in future to
generate electricity.”
Copper accents, a bathtub for two and a
walk-in rainfall shower were chosen for the
spacious bathroom, which was positioned to the
other end of the cabin beside the kitchen. The
ceiling is clad in corrugated steel, and walls are
covered in a combination of teal-painted timber
planks and convincing timber-effect porcelainHIGH POINT
ABOVE: SIMPLE & RUSTIC
A simple rail and a handmade
unit made from reclaimed
timber provide storage in the
rustic bedroom“I didn’t know what to
expect from the build,
but overall it was a really
enjoyable project.”
–Bob Coad
july/august 2019 http://www.sbhonline.co.uk 85