What started out as little more than a dark box is now a light-filled cabin in a remote area of Maine after a brilliant renovation. Local building codes prevented the new owners from expanding its footprint, which is just 540 square feet on the first floor, so they had to get creative to make the two-story barn wood structure livable. Designer George Gekas cut floor-to-ceiling windows to give the cabin the feel of a ship.
Located on a tidal lake called Goose Marsh Pond on Mount Desert Island, the cabin offered a relaxing, secluded home for a couple from New York working in the oncology field. Gekas, who had previously built 70 houses on the island, knew just what to do to make it feel like a welcoming retreat for the entire extended family, including small grandchildren.
Many of the solutions are multi-purpose to make the most of the small space, and the interior was redesigned to make the view top priority. Gekas replaced the roof over the sitting area with translucent corrugated polycarbonate panels to let in more light, and used Eastern White Pine throughout the interior to give it an airy feel.
Read the whole story and see more photos, including before-and-afters, at The New York Times.
