Cabin Fever

The open plan kitchen and living room, and the staircase found at a salvage yard which leads to a double bedroom

Cabin fever TRAVELS TO AMERICA INSPIRED MARK HOLDEN-HINDLEY TO BUILD AN AUTHENTIC LOG CABIN ON HIS FAMILY’S EDENHALL ESTATE NEAR PENRITH, WHERE VISITORS GO TO UNWIND DURING IDYLLIC RIVERSIDE HOLIDAYS WORDS MICHAELA ROBINSON-TATE PHOTOGRAPHY PHIL RIGBY

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HOMe Interior The bed was made using old fruit crates

I wanted to keep the traditional, rustic element but with elements of modernity

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rowing up on his family’s Edenhall Estate, Mark HoldenHindley would spend hours exploring the countryside. His favourite spot was an area of woodland close to the banks of the River Eamont, where kingfishers would swoop low over the water and deer came to graze.

Fast forward a few years and when it came to choosing a location to site a log cabin for guests, Mark, 43, knew exactly the spot.

The Lodge is a traditionally built cabin made with larch logs from trees planted on the estate by Mark’s dad, Airlie, up to 60 years ago. In demand for holiday lettings, it can accommodate parties of six people in three double bedrooms.

Kingfishers and deer still visit the spot, as do otters and red squirrels. Guests can take a dip in the river or catch a trout to barbecue for dinner. A porch and wooden decking and an inviting hot tub mean that they can enjoy being outside whatever the weather.

The Lodge is one of six holiday homes which Mark has developed on his family’s estate near Penrith. It’s his personal favourite and was inspired by the years he spent working in North America.

“I lived in America for some time and I remember visiting Montana and Wyoming and seeing these incredible log buildings, some dating back hundreds of years. I think that, coupled with my boyish desire to be a cowboy, might have had something to do with it.

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The wet room has a vintage sink salvaged from elsewhere on the estate

TOP: The lodge is sited on the banks of the River Eamont, where it’s possible to see kingfishers and otters ABOVE: The striped corner sofa is from Andrew Martin and the velvet patchwork sofa from Peter Jones

“I’ve always loved traditional cabins, as much for their aesthetic as the craftsmanship and skill required to build them.”

Mark was keen to learn how log cabins are made and brought a team together, including a carpenter who had already worked on a similar, albeit smaller cabin and a green wood worker.

Marks says they all learned a lot during the year-long construction, using traditional techniques to hand scribe - or cut - the logs and peeling the bark by hand. To avoid disturbing the landscape the cabin was first built off-site and was then taken apart piece by piece and reassembled in its place by the river.

The Lodge originally had one double room but after it was flooded during the storms of December 2015, Mark took the opportunity to extend the cabin, adding two more double rooms.

Mark designed the interior himself, using some upcycled and salvaged pieces to give it the simple but comfortable style he wanted.

He didn’t want it to look twee or to feel like a ski chalet: “I wanted to keep the traditional, rustic element but with elements of modernity.”

The Lodge has good WiFi connection but no television - although a TV can be supplied if someone really can’t manage without one – which adds to the sense of tranquillity.

The heart of the cabin is a large, open plan kitchen, dining room and sitting area.

The kitchen is fitted with wooden units from Benchmarx finished with a marble top from Stoneworld in Kendal. Patterned tiles are from MC Ferguson in Penrith and there is a top-of-the-range Smeg stove and fridge.

Mark bought a striped corner sofa from Andrew Martin and a velvet patchwork sofa from Peter Jones, both in London. A chair has been reupholstered using hessian coffee sacks and a coffee table and dining table are from Coach House in Lancashire.

Most of the lighting throughout The Lodge is from Urban Cottage Industries in Yorkshire and flooring was supplied by Havwoods at Carnforth.

The curtains were made by Catherine Atkinson of Tithe Cottage Furnishings at Langwathby.

The metal staircase was a salvage yard find and leads to a double bedroom tucked into the eaves, where the bed was constructed using old fruit crates.

“One of the things I love doing is upcycling things, as it’s called now, and the slightly industrial look to things,” says Mark. “I like the fact something might have reached the end of its life and the role it was designed for, then it can carry on and be given a new life.”

The wet room has a vintage sink salvaged from elsewhere on the estate and renovated, a WC and CUMBRIA LIFE HOME / AUTUMN 2018 / 65

Interior HOMe Mark Holden-Hindley took inspiration from the log cabins in Wyoming and Montana for The Lodge

shower from MC Ferguson and wood-effect ceramic wall tiles and patterned floor tiles from Topps Tiles.

Mark says his eclectic style is inspired by his travels and accommodation that he’s enjoyed. His aim is to create a sense of place and make somewhere inviting for guests: “It’s all about creating places that I would like to stay in.”

He says the work that his dad, Airlie, carried out when the family first moved to Edenhall in the Seventies has provided him with a benchmark: “My father always did things properly, when you look at the quality and workmanship in the home and buildings here you can see his eye for detail and that’s something I’ve inherited.

“I’m very lucky to have some incredible tradespeople around me who help to uphold my ideals when it comes to finishes and quality of what we offer.”

Mark loves hearing guests’ reactions to The Lodge. The parking area is a short distance away and guests are met by a member of staff who guides them through the trees for their first glimpse of the cabin: “One of the nice things about it, especially when you’re walking through the woods, is hearing people’s reactions. It’s that sense of pride.”

Mark still loves the riverside setting as much as he did when he was a youngster and enjoys staying there, as does his six-year-old daughter Ella-Jean.

But demand for holiday bookings means that Mark’s dream of regularly escaping to his own private cabin hasn’t quite materialised: “Its success has meant that I can’t stay in it as much as I want to.”

I’ve always loved traditional cabins, as much for their aesthetic as the craftsmanship and skill required to build them The dining table is from Coach House in Lancashire

TOP: High-gloss cupboards in the contemporary kitchen ABOVE: The barbecue house

www.edenhallestate.com

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