The housing crisis a few years ago taught us all something: buying a house we can afford is going to make us much happier and better-off than buying a dream home that we can barely swing. When Carolyn Hanisch and Justin Long were searching for a home three years ago in Kintnersville, PA, they found a perfect small house on the right amount of land. The problem was the $40,000 price difference from the top of their budget to the asking price of this home. They moved on and looked elsewhere, but months later, the same home was reduced in price and was still on the market. They made an offer they could afford and because the owners were motivated to sell, Carolyn and Justin ended up with a home they loved that was in their budget.

What first sold Carolyn, a freelance architectural designer, and Justin, a sculptor and metal fabricator, on this home was the land it was sitting on. “We knew we wanted a property with some land, and when we first saw this place we fell in love with the 8-acre wooded lot and big boulders that punctuated the landscape,” Carolyn shares. “We never imagined we’d live in a log cabin, but we found that this small house had the perfect layout for us and wonderful natural light that flooded through a wall of windows, with an amazing view of the woods.” The rustic lodge feel of the cabin was transformed with a Scandinavian influence to fit Carolyn and Justin’s design tastes.

The redesign hasn’t been fast or easy, but it has been a labor of love. “Our home is a work in progress, and I imagine it will be for quite some time! We’ve done all the work on the house ourselves, which can save money, but can also be quite a test of patience, perseverance and sheer determination,” Carolyn admits. The couple redesigned the kitchen, built an out-building for their studio, painted the walls and the cathedral ceiling, replaced carpeting, built a spiral staircase, renovated the guest bathroom, and built a pantry in the kitchen. The small space now functions in the ways they need it to, but with the preserved charm and views that they fell in love with in the first place. –Lauren

Photography by Carolyn Hanisch

1/14 Carolyn and Justin at the top of the stairs that Justin designed and fabricated for their home in Kintnersville, PA.

2/14 The kitchen was the first room inside the house to get designed. "With our tight budget we opted for IKEA cabinets and wood counters, but added custom touches to give it some more character. These included using the counter material as end panels and making open shelving out of marble with blackened steel brackets that Justin made," Carolyn says.

3/14 "I think the most unusual aspect of our house is that it is a log cabin," Carolyn says. "This has its pros and cons -- adding or moving electrical devices on the exterior walls is near impossible, but on the plus side mounting anything on the solid wood walls is super easy -- no drywall anchors needed here!"

4/14 "We installed the wood stove in place of a gas stove, since our property provides plenty of firewood. We considered replacing the stone backdrop with another material, but then decided as a quick fix to just paint it to match the wall color."

5/14 The office is tucked in a nook behind the living room area. Their mix of antiques and Scandinavian clean lines are perfectly paired together in this space.

6/14 Justin and Carolyn have their own creative touches displayed everywhere. In the dining room, Justin made the metal table legs, a friend gave them the walnut top, and Carolyn decorated with mid-century Wegner wishbone chairs she inherited from a relative.

7/14 The cathedral ceiling and full wall of windows is a breathtaking sight. The land they love isn't hidden behind walls, but instead seen from almost any place in the house. "What we are most thankful for in this house is how comfortable and cozy the house is while also feeling open and spacious. We love the surrounding woods and enjoy watching the changing season out of the large wall of windows. Living here truly feels like we’re living in a vacation home year-round," Carolyn shares.

8/14 Carolyn designed and made the headboard in their master bedroom. "We’re still looking for the perfect big piece of art to hang over the bed," she notes.

9/14 Another place Carolyn and Justin have combined different aesthetics and eras into beautiful motifs is where they styled this shelving unit, artwork and textile together. "We love mixing patterns like the mud cloth and the basket," Carolyn says. Her grandmother is the artist behind the paintings on the wall.

10/14 This is the main bathroom in the house. Carolyn and Justin have it next on their list to be renovated but for now, it functions well for the couple.

11/14 In the guest bedroom, plants and vintage pieces thrive in this bright and beautiful space.

12/14 "The guest bedroom was renovated last year -- it used to have baby blue walls and carpet on the floor. Justin installed the new pine flooring and I experimented with a white wash finish to lighten it up. The steel and wood bench was made by Justin," Carolyn says.

13/14 Carolyn has designed and made several of the lamps and sconces throughout the home, including this table lamp in the guest bedroom.