If you are going to keep the pioneer atmosphere in your log cabin, don’t
spoil it by buying millwork doors. Good, honest plank doors—made of any
dressed timber, with cross pieces firmly nailed and clinched—are more in
the spirit of things. A little ingenuity will go a long way toward
making a beautiful door out of humble materials. Have some country
blacksmith make a set of strap hinges and an old fashioned latch. You’ll
be well pleased with the effect. A good, strong snap lock is a necessity
to keep out intruders in your absence, of course.
If you want a good floor with a cabin “look” to it, get a supply of
planks in widths varying from 6 to 12 inches—and have them
tongue-and-grooved at the mill. Instead of nailing them, bore ¾-inch
holes half way through and fasten them down with screws. Into each hole
drive a hardwood plug, gluing it for tightness; then cut it off and
smooth it down flush with the floor with sandpaper. This gives the
effect of a “pinned” floor, which was very popular with the pioneer
cabin builders.
Tongue-and-grooved flooring in narrow widths should be
“blind-nailed”—the nails driven in at a slant from the sides and set
with a punch, but for wide planks it is perfectly all right, if you
wish, to nail through the boards and let the heads show.