The Cabin

Where do I start? Okay, let me just jump in…

In December of 2023, we purchased a cabin that we knew would require a major remodel. Since starting Seventh Day Design, this was my first personal project, so I was full of enthusiasm to share something on a more personal level. I was excited to dive in and document the process. What I didn’t expect was the hurdle after hurdle that would completely take the joy out of sharing the experience, which eventually led to me, well… not sharing at all. Even being someone in the industry, as a design professional, I got to walk through the process with a different lens—and I learned a lot of lessons along the way. Some of them were hard lessons to learn.

Now that we’ve completed the remodel, I’m finally in a place where I’m excited to share more about this project!

Let’s start with a little backstory. When we first saw the listing, we immediately called to schedule a showing. Upon calling, we were told the seller had already accepted an offer, but the realtor encouraged us to come look “just in case.” We did, and as we drove through heavily wooded areas and up to a pasture, we saw a log cabin sitting atop a hill. Logan and I both looked at each other, feeling as though we had missed our chance. We both knew this was something rare for our area— a log cabin on a hill with 25 acres. It was Logan’s dream down to every detail, and we were literally looking at it.

Feeling discouraged, we left and provided our information as a backup to the backup offer. But I couldn’t get the cabin off my mind. After some time had passed, I followed up with the realtor. She let me know that the original offer had fallen through, the backup offer had also fallen through, and that there was now a cash offer that had been accepted. I told her that, if by chance another offer fell through, to please let us know.

Not thinking there was much of a chance with a cash offer having been accepted, we pretty much wrote it off. But then we got another call. I’ll skip some details—you know how this ends—but we got to make an offer, and it was accepted! No counteroffer, no negotiations—just accepted.

In Logan’s wisdom, he prays for God to open and close doors according to His will. He’s much better than me at maintaining trust in the process. God chose to keep this door open and it seems this cabin was truly set aside just for us. Logan’s dream was finally a reality, and we had a big remodel ahead of us. I’m finally at a place of gaining back joy and excitement to share this project with you. Maybe we will leave out all the frustrations or maybe that’s something we can all learn from together sometime. For now let’s take a look at this cutie cabin and the land she sits on. It really is a dream!

The land is absolutely beautiful. No picture or video has done it justice. It was so exciting to start with such an incredible property but as mentioned, the interior was a big remodel job. Let’s take a look at some before and afters!

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I really am proud of how things turned out after a very long, hard process. I can’t wait to take a deep dive into all the details of each space with you! I also had some incredible partnerships along the way and I’m excited to share them with ya’ll! Stay tuned my friends!

Until next time!

-Brittany

Grace House

Grace House Texarkana

When I received a phone call telling me that a local ministry that served women and children in need purchased a new building that they planned to remodel, I immediately knew I wanted to be a part of it. I wasn’t sure to what scale we would be able to do things as it was a non profit but, I knew I was in! This was the beginning of our Grace House project.

Grace House is a transitional home that provides support to “expectant mothers/or mothers within the age range of 17-27 who have been displaced, homeless, at-risk for homelessness, and agree to participate in the programs to reach self-sufficiency”. It’s a ministry that I know first hand is being the hands and feet of Jesus and rescuing women and children off of the street and out of crisis. Having previously occupied a 1700 sqft residential home, they now had 5000 sqft of space to make a safe haven.

The building that was purchased was previously an inpatient special needs facility. Many things about the layout were a perfect fit but the big task was taking things from hospital to home. We met with Grace House to dream up all the things we’d love to do and the amount of those dreams we saw gifted with the labor volunteered is something I’m so thankful I got to be a part of!

The facility has ten bedrooms, five bathrooms, offices and a large living space including a full kitchen. There is also an emergency wing for those needing immediate assistance. One of the first things we knew when planning the remodel is that paint was going to make such an impact. We wanted the space to feel bright as there’s not a ton of natural light so we used Benjamin Moore White Dove throughout. We also updated the commercial doors with Sherwin Williams Tricorn Black paint. The fluorescent lighting was removed and updated with recessed lights and chandeliers in the main area to bring in some charm and ambient lighting. The green carpet was removed and flooring throughout the bedrooms and hallways was updated with donated material. To make the living area cozy and inviting, we created a stone fireplace to anchor the space. The kitchen received the most love utilizing the existing cabinets but updating with shaker style doors and brightening things up with paint. It also received new appliances, gifted Black Pearl Leathered quartz countertops, gifted Marrakesh Berber Black 4x4 backsplash tile and a new sink. Detail and charm were added in the kitchen with a brass faucet, brass hardware and brass accent lighting.

Each room was sponsored for us to purchase furnishing and because there was such a response and a rallying around Grace House to get their facility remodeled and new doors open, we were able to purchase new furnishings not second hand. The goal was to make this space serve as many as possible and allow everyone that entered to be and feel comfortable. We chose a large leather sectional for durability and to warm up the space. The dining space fit 2 large tables with bench seating so all the mommas and kiddos can pile in and have meals together. The bedrooms were completed with trundle and bunk bedding so moms and kids have their own bed and a couple of rooms have a sweet nursery corner. There is also offices, a play room, a work station, a prayer room and counseling rooms that were furnished and staged.

This space was transformed from a sterile inpatient facility to a warm inviting home. At the time of writing this, they are housing 7 women with 5 kids and 4 kids on the way. They serve women in the Ark-La-Tex area and continue to make an impact on women and children in crisis. As always the goal was to create a refreshing place of rest and peace and this time for a group of ladies and kids that were recused from just the opposite. What an honor!