- [Charlotte] We're playing the question game, Mom. - Question game.
[Jenny Marrs] We're hanging out.
My parents are over which is awesome
and we are playing our favorite game.
[Sylvie] Charlotte, what would you like to change about your school?
[Charlotte] No dress code.
- [Jenny] Oh. - Ooh.
So you'd just wear your underwear to school?
- [Charlotte] No! - [all laughing]
Literally, it's just a stack of questions.
- Any question you can think of. - Like, all sorts, yeah.
- Cookies and cream. - [Dave Marrs] Good one.
[Jenny] It's just a nice conversation starter and just gets them talking...
- Yep. - ...and gets them thinking about different things.
How was your grandparents' childhood different from yours?
Well, I don't think my grandparents
really had a lot of electricity and stuff.
It's like an icebreaker, almost.
You know, it gets everybody talking and feeling comfortable.
- All right, we gotta go. - All right.
- You guys keep going. - We gotta go meet the Elleman's, guys.
We'll see you in a little bit.
Be good for Nan and Papa.
We're heading to Allyn and Aaron's, right?
Yeah, this is interesting up here.
- We're like in the woods. - [Dave] In the mountains.
So, they're right... I think they're right on the lake.
We'll see what they want,
but I think it'd be really fun to make it more like a cabin in the woods
- 'cause they're... - [Dave] Like a lodge?
Yeah, kind of lodgy.
But not overly lodgy. Not cheesy, but...
Not... not lodgy lodgy, just lodgy.
Yeah.
All right, here they are.
[Dave] Oh, this is it.
- [Jenny] Doesn't feel like a lake house, you know? - [Dave] No, it doesn't.
- [Jenny] Yeah. - [Dave] It feels like it should be in a subdivision.
[Jenny] Yeah. I think we should change it.
Hi!
- Hello! - [Jenny] Hello!
- It's good to see you. - You too.
- How are you? - Hey, good to see you.
- Good to see you too. - All right.
- Come on in. - [Jenny] This is so cool, you guys.
All right. Oh, we can see the lake over there.
- So, we're super excited about the location. - [Jenny laughs] Yes, yes.
But we would like to maybe spruce it up a little bit
- and make it fit more to our personality. - Yeah.
- Yeah, okay. - Okay.
We bought this house to be a, like, house for us for fun
with our family and our friends.
However, the space is just oddly shaped for us
and we don't really know how to set it up to be our forever house.
[Aaron Elleman] But what I do love,
you walk in and the first thing you see is the lake and the trees,
so you feel like you're in a treehouse
and you feel like you're secluded and away from a neighborhood.
And that's why we love coming out here.
It's a great place to recharge, reconnect
and relax, and have a lot of fun too.
[Aaron] So, we have three kids.
Davis is 18.
Carly is 17.
And Lleyton is 13.
This house is a place to create memories for us and for our kids.
They're gonna be leaving the nest pretty soon,
and so we wanna create a place where our kids can come back and join us,
whether they're in college with their friends,
or once they, you know, go off and start families of their own
and... and bring our grandkids back.
So, we look forward to this space as a destination.
So, you guys just bought this recently, right?
- Yep, we did. - We did. We bought it recently.
But when we came and saw this property,
we were taking a tour of the backyard
and these two huge pileated woodpeckers
came to a tree that we were standing under.
[tapping]
It's black and white with this beautiful red head.
- [Jenny] Okay. - [Allyn Elleman] And it's about the size of a hawk.
And that was really special to us
because my mom passed away just a couple of years ago,
and it was her favorite creature in the whole world.
- [Jenny] And now two of them. - And so, it was just kind of a sign
that maybe this was where we were supposed to spend our forever.
- Oh, my gosh. - Create memories.
- Love that. I love that. Wow. - Wow.
Okay. So, what do you guys have to spend on this renovation?
- Uh, we've set aside $180,000... - Okay.
- ...um, for the renovation. - That's a lot, yeah.
Okay. Well, let's talk about outside.
[Aaron] We want it to blend in, feel very natural...
- [Jenny] Mmm-hmm. - [Aaron] ...feel like the nature around the trees...
- [Jenny] Mmm-hmm. - [Aaron] ...the lake.
And then, the exterior I think just needs
an updating from 1990.
Like, being here in the woods, up in the mountains,
we should really lean into that
and try to make it look like it really belongs.
It's never gonna be a log cabin,
- but if you can get some wood columns. - [Jenny] Yeah.
[Aaron] And some... maybe some cedar accents,
kind of makes it feel like it's in the woods.
- Yeah. - We love that.
[Jenny] Okay, So, plan for the exterior,
first of all, we've gotta fix up this landscaping.
We'll paint. We'll figure out what to do with the brick.
Add some cedar posts.
And really just create kind of a modern lodge in the woods.
- I love it. - Sounds great.
- Okay. All right Let's go in. - Let's go inside.
- All right. - All right. We'll follow you guys.
[Allyn] Okay. Try not to trip.
- Sorry. - [Dave] It is kind of a treacherous walkway here.
- [Allyn] Yes. - [Aaron] It is.
[Jenny chuckles] We'll create a better pathway to the house.
Well, speaking of treacherous,
- be careful when you walk in the front door. - [chuckles] Okay.
- [door squeaks] - [Jenny] Oh, wow, there's a hole.
[Dave] That is. You almost have to just go down a little bit
- to get the door closed. - [Jenny] Wow, that's crazy.
- [Dave] Okay. - Okay. So, let's just talk about this entry.
[Allyn] We love natural wood elements.
- [Jenny] Uh-huh. - [Aaron] Okay.
[Allyn] But as far as, like, the door and the bannister
- might be able to... - [Aaron] Take it all out.
- [Allyn] It's dark. - [Jenny] Mmm-hmm.
You like it, but take it all out.
- Yeah. - [laughs] We like natural, but maybe updated.
Okay. Well, we'll deal with this.
But what do we have out here?
- This is where all the fun happens. - [Jenny] Okay.
Oh, this is cool. How cute.
[Dave] It's a big room. [Jenny] Wow!
- [Allyn] It is a big room. - Oh, my gosh, it's a huge room.
- It's almost too big 'cause we don't... - [Jenny] Yeah.
...even really know what to do with it.
- And we're afraid for wasting. - [Jenny] Right.
- [Dave] You have Skee-ball. - [Aaron] We have Skee-ball.
- Oh, that's fun. - I don't know if you've ever had a Skee-ball in your house.
- I like it. - What? That's awesome.
Wait, this is, like, legit Skee-ball.
Now go for it.
- Oh! - That's pretty good.
Okay, you do one. See if you can beat me.
Come on.
- Oh! - [Aaron] I think Jenny wins.
[Jenny] Winner. Winner, winner.
So, yeah, it's an odd space
- that we've never really... - [laughs] Sorry. Back to it.
- ...figured out what to do with. - [laughs]
Yeah. And what about the fireplace?
Let's go check this out.
- [Allyn] So, we love fire. - [Jenny] Okay.
- We love lighting fire here. - Okay. Ooh! I love fire too.
- [Allyn] We're not afraid of rustic, or masculine, or... - [Jenny] Yeah.
- This is cute. - [Allyn] Like, we love wood.
[Aaron] Does it work?
- Oh, yeah. - Works really well.
- Okay. - Okay, great.
What about flooring?
[Allyn] We do not love the carpet.
[Jenny] Yeah, especially 'cause you're at the lake.
- We would be fine with even, like, a nice LVP. - Engineered or something?
- Yeah, oh yeah. - Yeah.
I think if we just make this really cozy.
'Cause I see this, like, little space here and the fire.
I don't know. I just think that we can do something
- nice in here, so... - Okay.
[Jenny] The plan for the living room is to start with new flooring,
and then paint, new lighting,
and then, really the biggest thing
is to update this fireplace and built-in wall
to give it a more modern cabin feel.
- All right, what's next? - [Aaron] I love it.
I think we'll take you to the dining room next.
- [Aaron] Okay. - [Jenny] Dining room, okay, let's go.
So, we do plan to have large gatherings
- with our friends and family. - [Aaron] Okay.
[Allyn] So we like the idea of having a longer table.
This room is just really strange to me.
- Okay. - I think it'd be great if we could
- see into the living room where everyone's gathering... - [Jenny] Yes.
...and kind of come and go.
So, what if we opened up this wall out to the living room,
and then I think that could help it feel...
- Yeah. - ...a little more open as well.
- All right. - Okay. So, this is a giant room.
- What is... What is this? - [Jenny] What is this?
This is our oversized laundry room.
[Jenny] Wow, it's huge.
- [Allyn] There's the two... - [Jenny] Is that a little bathroom too?
[Allyn] It is. A little half bath back there.
And this is, like, the best view.
It really is the best view of the lake from the whole house.
- [Jenny] Right. - So it's a shame that it's in the laundry room.
- Yeah, seems like a waste of space. - So where is the main bedroom?
[Allyn] Our main bedroom is downstairs.
- [Jenny] Okay. - [Allyn] And there is no view of the lake.
Okay. Should we go back into the dining room?
- Sure. - Okay.
What if we took some of this, like, we open all this up,
took this dining room space,
and created the bedroom from all of that,
and then moved your dining room out
- where the Skee ball is? - [Aaron] Skee-ball?
Uh, we love that idea.
- I mean, a way to open up, you know, that space. - [Jenny] Okay.
Make this more functional.
Okay. So with that in mind,
let's look at the kitchen, and then we can figure all this out, this puzzle.
Find a cohesive plan for it.
- Yeah, all right. - The kitchen is actually a large space.
[Jenny] Oh, wow, this is.
- It's really nice. - [Dave] Yeah, really.
[Allyn] But there really is no view here.
[Jenny] Can we open this up?
It could open all the way up to here, right?
Over here.
Yeah. So, we've got basically
- like, seven feet. - The span of my arms.
- ...Oh, that's what I was just... - [Dave] Six to seven feet.
I was just coming to do that.
- Dave, it's like we're thinking alike. - Thinking alike.
- Are you hugging me? - No, but I was just gonna say
I measured it over there.
So open it up to here and you can see out there.
- That would help. - We love that idea.
- [Dave] What do you guys think? - We would love that, mmm-hmm.
- So, what do you need in your kitchen? - Yeah.
Like, tell us your ideal kitchen.
[Allyn] We love to cook together as a family,
so ideally we would have new appliances.
- [Jenny] Okay. - [Dave] Okay.
[Allyn] If we're getting rid of our pantry,
- we would need some food storage. - [Jenny] Storage.
- Yep. - We'll bring the cabinets up to the ceiling.
'Cause that's wasted space right now.
- Yep. - Put some lighting in other than just one light.
The biggest thing out of all of these spaces
is just gonna be giving it a personality
and taking the... our inspiration from outside.
So making it feel like when you come here,
you're not just at any house.
You're specifically at a lake house surrounded by trees.
Yeah, so the plan in here, I think we open this wall up as much as we can,
and then really just reconfigure the whole space.
So we have new cabinetry, new appliances,
new countertops,
really giving it a modern cabin in the woods feel.
- Just making it up. - [chuckles] You're going to do architectural design.
- I do. I keep making things up. [laughs] - Right.
Okay. I gotta see outside.
We haven't even seen the outside yet.
- [Aaron] That's our favorite part. - Yes, let's do that. Okay.
[Aaron] So, you know, thinking about what we need to do,
- um, we love the space. - [Jenny] Oh, you guys, this is amazing.
Okay. Let's talk about the deck, though.
[Aaron] So, yeah, it just needs to be updated.
I mean, really. So I think when they put the railing in
- it wasn't to code. - [Jenny chuckles] No.
[Dave] I could even fall through that. It's not to code.
Whatever we can do to get rid of the lattice
- would be amazing. - [Jenny] Yes, we'll get rid of the lattice.
[Dave] It blocks the view too.
This is amazing.
This, like, firepit area and this flat piece of ground,
this part of your property is so cool.
- Look at this, you can sit here and look out at the lake. - Watch the lake.
- Yeah, it just needs a total overhaul, a fire pit. - [Jenny] Yeah.
- [Aaron] Um, Hammocks. - [Allyn] And we'd like a place to sit.
[Aaron] A swing.
Inside, I didn't see you light up at all.
- But we get out here, this is your space. - This is my space.
- [Dave] This is your space. - This is my space.
Yep, you can see, I like to collect driftwood.
This is a great one. It's like a very straight piece.
My kids would say this is a perfect walking stick.
[Aaron] Yeah, we, we can't go on the lake, though,
without me seeing a piece of driftwood on the shore...
- Yes. - ...and taking the whole family over
and loading the boat up with a...
- with a big piece of driftwood. - That's awesome.
Okay. We'll clean up this backyard.
We'll give you a nice new fire pit.
Create a space for hammocks and a dining area.
And then we'll replace this lattice railing
with something to really maximize the view.
We just really need to take what's already here
- and just kind of elevate it a little bit... - [Allyn] Yeah.
...'cause when you're here, you wanna be outside.
That's the beauty of this place.
Probably kitchen or fire pit are the two places
- that we'll spend the most time. - Spend the most time.
- Okay. - Okay.
This backyard that looks into the trees...
- [Jenny] Mmm-hmm. - ...down to the lake.
- Amazing fire pit. - [Jenny] Yeah.
[Dave] I can tell, like, Aaron is excited about this.
Yeah, Allyn and Aaron really wanna get here before summer starts.
- [Dave] Yeah. - They're kids are getting older,
and the oldest is about to go to college.
They wanna have summer here together,
which means it'll be here before we know it,
and we have a lot of work to do.
All right. Well, thank you so much for showing us around.
- Yeah, cheers man. - It's exciting. Thank you.
- [Jenny chuckling] Pressure's on, Dave, let's go. - [Dave] Pressure's on.
[Jenny] All right. Bye, guys.
All right.
Oh, my gosh. So, everybody's here. Wow.
[Dave] Jenny Marrs.
- Oh, you... Oh, you gotta be kidding me. - All right.
- So, I'm ready. - [all laughing]
I'm ready for the first demo.
I really need to get everybody pumped up.
So, how do you do that, Jenny?
- I don't know, Dave. I've got a few idea. - [laughs]
- Get to work. - [all laugh]
[Jenny] For my birthday, my friend Cindy gave me
one of my favorite gifts I've ever received quite possibly,
tiny hands.
So, it's demo day. It's a lot of work.
- I need to get the team ready, fired up. - Pumped up.
Jazz hands, let's do it.
- We gotta get going. - I know, but everybody's in a better mood, right?
All right, should we go inside?
- Right. - Please.
[Dave] So, really out here, we're gonna change the door,
but watch your step when you come in...
- [Jenny] Yeah. - ...because there is a staircase.
All right. So, in here...
- Carpet is gone. - ...all the flooring,
the mantel, the built-in.
Yeah, I wanna talk about this fireplace.
So, I want to give them a stone fireplace
with, like, round, smooth stones,
so it kind of looks like an old lodge.
But the question is, can this brick come down?
I want to create a more natural-looking fireplace
that fits in better with the surroundings out here in the woods.
So I would love to get this brick taken off.
Jenny, this is the same brick as outside,
you can see from the color.
I'm worried if we take this down,
all that brick that goes up out through the chimney,
you're gonna lose that whole structure
- that goes out through the roof. - [Jenny] Yeah.
We're gonna have to cover it in something.
[Dave] Jenny, this is the same brick as outside.
- We're gonna have to cover it in something. - Okay.
So, I was really hoping that the brick on this fireplace
was just a facade.
It's not.
It is integrated in the entire fireplace
from basement all the way through the roof.
So in order to take the brick down,
we're gonna have to start at the chimney, work our way down.
- Mmm-hmm. - And we don't have the budget for it.
We don't have the time for it.
What do you think?
Well, if you cover it with stone,
what happens to these edges here?
Well, so if you do a sticky stone,
they make corners.
All right. I'll just have to go look
'cause I don't want them to look fake.
All right. So, let's get the rest of these cabinets out.
[material shatters]
It's terrifying in there.
- That's... That's why we're in here. - Oh, my gosh.
First day of demolition for the Elleman family.
- Cabinets are coming out really easily. - [Jenny] Mmm-hmm.
[Dave] Appliances have all been salvaged
and are going to go to a new home.
- We are just clipping along. - Yep.
Crazy! Whoo!
You guys!
- Yeah, I'm telling you. - Way to knock it out.
Well, I wish I had my tiny hands.
- Where'd they go? - I don't know.
- This is where we leave you... - This is good.
...and move onto another section.
Well, we also need to open this little wall up.
[Chase] About seven foot of it.
Yeah, let's open it and then I'll be able to...
be able to get creative.
Right now, it's just too tight in here.
[man] She needs the tiny hands so you can reach through there.
- Where's my tiny hammer and my tiny hands? - [man laughing]
- I got the appropriate tools. - Okay, thanks.
Oh, much better, much better.
[Dave chuckles]
Chase, I'm gonna let you take over this job.
Yeah. Oh, look at that! So much light.
- So much better. - Yeah.
OK, now... But look at this.
So, this guy... I mean, what do we think is happening here?
Well, I'm sure it's a header, Jen.
[Jenny] I know, but can it be a little shorter?
I don't know. I gotta go up in the attic and look.
We're really trying to open up the kitchen to the living room,
- but that beam is right in your face. - [Jenny] Yeah.
[Dave] I think the only way we're gonna fix this
is hopefully we have trusses upstairs where we can remove the beam.
Jenny, it's not really looking that good for losing that beam.
- So it is all open rafters as you can see. - [Jenny] This is pretty.
[Dave] Hey, what if we did this, though?
- The beam has to stay below the wall, unless... - [Jenny] Okay.
Like, if you look up here, I'm... I've got tons of room.
- Yeah. - I wonder if we could just take and vault
that whole living room.
Then we could set the beam up here
and then just do a vault.
[Jenny] Oh, my gosh. It would be amazing.
- [Dave] It'd give the whole cabin look. - [Jenny] Mmm-hmm.
We got nothing but good news.
- Nothing but good news. - No, nothing. It's good. Really good.
- And that never happens. - Never.
[Dave] So, we have rafters.
We have a stick-built roof.
And what can we do with this roof?
- Raise it. Raise the roof. - [chuckles]
- Is that good? - [worker] Yeah, perfect.
So, the easiest way to take down a ceiling is from up above.
[Jenny] Whoa! Wow!
Whoa!
[laughing] That was a good one, man.
The Elleman's have no idea that this is happening.
[Jenny] Whoa! Oh, my gosh.
[Dave] It's like a foam party out there.
[Jenny] Oh!
It's gonna make a huge difference.
This entire space is going to feel so much bigger.
[Dave] Yeah, it's gonna be like 15 feet.
- It's gonna be sweet. - [Jenny] It's gonna be awesome.
And we're gonna have a nice, smooth transition...
- Yes. - ...from kitchen to living.
You can look right out to the lake.
A little winter wonderland down here.
Ah!
[Jenny] It's a new day and things are looking great at the Elleman house.
The living room ceiling is exposed and ready for a hidden header beam.
The new main bedroom and bathroom have been framed out,
which both look out to an incredible view.
And to capture those views,
we're replacing all of the windows in the house,
in the back and in the front.
Chris, what are you doing?
- [Chris Latham] Just about to pull this front door. - [Dave] I love it.
I wanna see if we can get this outta here
and really, we gotta change the swing on this.
That's what I was thinking too.
Good.
[Chris] I like it.
Hey, Chris, do you know what I'm noticing here?
- This is fiberboard siding. - [Chris] Oh, no.
Like, it's literally...
- [Chris] I can see it. - [Dave] It just kind of falls apart.
Look at it. We're gonna have to fix this.
And fixing it is not using this stuff anymore.
I think at this point,
- we know we're not gonna be able to salvage this. - Mmm-hmm.
- We start pulling it off. - Yeah.
It'll make it easier to break the news to Jenny if it's all off of here.
Can literally break it in two.
Last piece.
Dave?
Where's the siding? What are you doing?
Okay. So, we ran into a small problem.
Wait. Like, there's no siding.
- I know. - We don't have it in the budget
to replace the siding.
I know. We're gonna have to find it somewhere.
This was rotten.
Look, this was the siding that was on the house.
- So... - Is it like this on the whole house?
'Cause this is a lot of siding.
No. Just under the covered porch where it never got sunlight.
I knew we had to remove the front door.
I knew we were replacing it.
But I also thought we were just gonna be able to patch the siding.
So I didn't know all of the siding was going to come off.
- Of course, neither of us knew that. - No.
But it has to come off 'cause it's damaged.
- We can't look at this in a totally negative light... - No.
...because I don't think you ever really loved that.
But if I see if we can find like a split log siding.
Okay. I mean, I like that,
but is it gonna look weird just having it in this one spot?
'Cause it's not consistent.
So you wanna replace that as well?
We don't' have any money.
- Can't replace that. - [Dave] We're gonna figure that out.
- Okay. - But I know we have to replace that.
- We don't have to do anything with that right now. - [Jenny] Okay.
So, let's just do this section,
see how it looks,
and then I'll have to make a choice.
Oh, good, they got the boat out.
- Okay. So, we should be fueled up and ready to go. - [Jenny] All right.
Aaron Elleman was so passionate
when he was telling us about driftwood.
I really want the Elleman's house
to feel like a cabin in the woods.
And bringing elements from the lake into the house
is really gonna help give us that feel.
I'm thinking we try to make the handrail on the new staircase,
and create it out of driftwood.
- That'd be kind of cool. - We've just gotta find the right pieces.
Is that legal?
[Dave] Yeah, it's all... It's all public shore.
Okay.
Babe, look at this. You could...
We could use this, or we could cut it.
Any of those. I like that. Grab that.
- Ooh, that one's perfect. - Oh, this one is perfect.
- Oh, yeah, that's nice. That's perfect. - That's like five posts.
Yeah, nice.
This is a good one.
'Cause you could cut this one in half.
This could be the top and bottom.
- I think this is a really good one. - Oh, I like that a lot.
[Jenny] What about something like this for the mantel?
[Dave] Oh, that might actually work for a mantel.
I didn't know we were talking about a mantel.
[Jenny] Well, I'm just thinking.
So, I gotta say the mantel was never on my radar
until Jenny Marrs spotted this perfectly round log.
- Yeah. - I guess I could cut it.
I just don't know how we'd mount it,
- you know, take it and cut it in half. - Yeah.
- Yeah, I think it's gonna be really, really cool. - [Dave] I do too.
It's gonna be the perfect finishing touch on this new fireplace.
[chainsaw whirring]
[Jenny] Whoa! Yes!
I think we're done for the day, Jenny Marrs.
[exhales] I'm tired.
- Jenny, are you in here? - [Jenny] Yeah.
- Oh. - This handrail idea.
- I got all these cut to 34. - Mmm-hmm.
Here's the original,
and so I planed the bottom side of this cedar
so it's flat.
So... [tapping]
I don't know.
So, I think...
I mean, I really still really like this
'cause I think it's really fun.
But I feel like, maybe we should save the idea
for, like, a playhouse, or something.
- I've literally been... - I know. I know.
...planing and cutting wood.
[Jenny] I know, Dave.
It's okay.
I mean, I really still really like this,
'cause I think it's really fun.
But now seeing it,
and now the way the rest of the house is coming together,
I don't know.
And also the fact that we did find
that really cool driftwood mantel,
- I think we're giving him the driftwood that he wants. - [Dave] Yeah.
It's subtle.
This feels a little...
- Much. - ...much.
- Well, here's the thing. Aaron loves driftwood. - Yeah.
- He made that abundantly clear to us. - Yes.
So, if there's a way that we can figure out
how to implement it in this entry handrail,
I think it'd be really cool.
So, what would you like?
You think we just do horizontal iron.
- Go with the same idea, but just do iron. - I think that'd be cool.
Okay.
[saw whirring]
Let's place these in here like so,
and then we'll weld them up.
This'll go pretty fast.
Let's do this.
[welder buzzing]
All right. And that...
is all there is to it.
And we've got a really cool handrail.
I mean, Aaron's gonna love it.
And holy cow, that's hot!
I'm gonna let that cool for a minute. [exhales]
[Jenny] Back at the Elleman's, crews are finishing the light wood vinyl flooring
to really brighten up the entire house.
And electric and insulation have been completed in the vaulted living room.
A full trailer from you usually means good things.
[Daryl speaking]
- Oh! - Oh! You're kidding me!
[gasps]
It's real log siding.
Look at this.
So, basically, it'll stand up,
and then the little flat piece where it looks like chinked logs.
We'll stack some up right now and show you how amazing it's gonna look.
Like, you'll start to see the dimension as we get more of them.
- Yeah. - Let's stack three or four up.
It's so much better than the siding that was there.
[Jenny] Oh, I know, I agree.
So, I'm thinking of doing the brick...
painting the brick a dark green
to give it that, like, cabin feel,
- kind of a moody, dramatic... - I love that.
- Love you. - Love you.
Oh, this worked out well. It's almost all unloaded.
Thanks, Daryl.
Oh, there is quite a bit more. Ooh.
So, Chris, I'm looking at this,
we have four pieces and we were...
- Yeah. - ...a third of the way up that wall.
- We've got way more than we need here. - [Chris] Yeah.
Do you think we've got enough to do the gable?
I mean, I'm really thinking that we might have enough.
That would make Jenny Marrs so happy.
If we could start the log here
and then go up. I've got a cedar gable vent.
Make a real big statement piece up here
on the front side of the house.
Uh, the great part is we've already got the material.
- It's here. [chuckles] - Let's go for it. Let's go for it.
What do you think?
[Jenny] Oh, my gosh. Look!
- Look at the living room. It looks so good! - [Dave] Right!
[Jenny] I love it.
Oh, look at the floor!
Okay. You wanna see the kitchen real quick?
Yeah. Do you know what I like about this kitchen?
I can see the lake.
I know. And now, look how open it is now.
It really is nice.
Built-in fridge. A little counter space.
- Pantry. - [Jenny] Pizza oven.
- Pizza oven? - Pizza oven.
The Elleman's really wanted a special kitchen here.
They love to have friends and family up here at the lake.
They love to cook.
I also know they love fire.
They love the fireplace. They love the fire pit out back.
- So we're gonna give them a wood-burning... - More fire.
Yeah, pizza oven in their kitchen.
They are going to love it.
[Dave] Crews get to work setting block in the kitchen for the new pizza oven.
Drywall's going up in all the reconfigured spaces.
And a calming water-like tile goes up in the new main bathroom.
Back outside, we're putting up the split log siding
with plenty to spare for the garage.
[Jenny] Hey, buddy, did you see the new baby?
We've been working hard on the Elleman's house,
but that doesn't mean everything back home just... just stops, right?
So, um, this morning, we had a very exciting event.
It always is exciting when we have a baby sheep born.
And we've never had a baby born that's solid black without any spotting.
So, she is a solid baby doll black sheep.
And it's also so teeny-tiny.
- So cute. - Mmm-hmm, cute.
[bleating]
And just when... Mom, whenever you're coming we're like, "Maa!"
- [Jenny] I know. - It said, "Maa."
Oh, she's so cute.
I got to get her in the barn to dry off, babe.
- [bleating] - She's saying "Maa"!
Charlotte, what are we gonna name her?
[sheep bleating]
It's a girl, right? Did you check?
- [Charlotte] Layla. Mmm-hmm. - [Jenny] Oh, Layla. Okay.
- Aw. - Because she likes to lay down a lot.
- [Jenny] Whoa! - [Dave] Yeah! Are you excited?
- I love it. - We had enough.
I had that vent in the shop.
And, look, you squared off the garage.
- [Dave hums] - I love the cedar posts.
Pulling up to the surprise of the split log siding on the garage was amazing,
and it's just the start.
The cabinets have arrived,
giving the Elleman's plenty of storage and a classic Shaker style.
We're also covering the newly vaulted ceiling with pine planks
for that lodgy feel...
[nail gun fires]
...with similar wood planks on the kitchen walls and the vent hood.
And I have an idea to make the new bedroom feel like a treehouse escape.
Look out here.
What do you see out these windows?
Tons of green.
- Trees. It's beautiful. - Mmm-hmm.
Like, you're just in the treehouse now, right?
So, I thought this room needs something cool.
We need to make it feel
- like it's the treehouse, right? - Okay.
- So I got some wallpaper. - Fun.
It's gonna look like trees are growing in the room.
All right. So, here's my other idea.
Remember when we did the walkthrough at the house with Allyn and Aaron...
- Yeah. - ...and Allyn was telling us the story about
- her mom's love of pileated woodpeckers. - [Dave] Yeah.
So, what if I have a local artist come in
and add just small details.
We draw in a little woodpecker, hidden in there.
[Dave] I think it needs to be really subtle.
I mean, I probably don't need the artist.
I could do it myself.
Why not just find wallpaper with a woodpecker on it?
- Because I don't really know if that's available. - That's a little too, like,
- five-year-old kid. [chuckles] - Yeah. [chuckles]
- Okay. [chuckles] - So, we need a really nice,
kind of sophisticated, calming, soothing scene.
And then I'm gonna have a local artist come in,
and it's gonna match the colors of the wallpaper.
Yeah, it could be cool.
- Yeah, it's just basically... - It's a big risk because...
- It is. - ...because if it goes wrong,
- you have to rip the wallpaper off. - I know.
Can you tell that's a woodpecker?
No, not at all. [chuckles]
[Jenny] See, that's the woodpecker's hair, right there.
[Dave] Okay.
- All right, Chase. - What's happening?
- Got the posts. - [Chase Looney] Okay.
I have all this prep.
We have got to make this deck safe.
We gotta get the glass handrailing in.
Look at this. You're gonna have this view.
Don't look at me. Look out there.
This is definitely the better view of the two, but...
[drill whirring]
- Dude. - All right. Get those put on,
and then I'll go grab the glass panels.
It's like we know what we're doing.
Come on, man,
this isn't our first rodeo.
Oh.
Argh.
May have screwed that one up.
- [Chase] Did you? - Oh, the bottom rail was inside of it. [chuckles]
[Chase] What did you do to this?
If it's the last thing we do, we're gonna get this.
Phew. Measured that one.
- [Dave] Let's go. - [Chase] Oh, my glasses!
- [laughing] - Oh, we're so dumb.
[Dave] All right, get me the rail. Let's do this thing.
[grunting] Right.
- Wait a minute. - That is wrong.
What size is that one? Is that 42?
It said 35 and seven-eighths, I thought.
Hold, please.
Must be 35 and seven-eighths tall.
- Okay. What happened here? - I don't know.
Well, this is tempered glass so there is no cutting this glass.
All right, I got to go see if we have the right stuff.
If we've got to reorder all this glass... No bueno.
[Chase] There's no way it will get done in time.
I really do love this house.
This charming, cozy cabin in the woods is a win.
- Oh, my gosh. - Oh, my God.
[Allyn] It's going to make me cry.
- What happened here? - I don't know.
All right, I got to go see if we have the right stuff.
If we've got to reorder all this glass, no bueno.
[Dave] Whoo, all right, Chase. They're all different sizes
and the one we needed was in the back.
Hopefully we need a bunch more 42 inch panels.
I did see the 35 and seven-eighths,
- I just did not-- - You didn't read past that.
- You got it? - Yep.
- It's good? - Yep, I'm in.
- [grunts] You good? - Yeah.
- You in? You like it? - Yeah, I like it.
Now we just got to get the rest of the materials and finish.
[drill whirring]
[Dave] I got the rubber blocks, we'll set those in.
- [Jenny] Ooh, look at this. - Making magic.
It looks good.
I love the cedar, too. Look at this, how pretty it is right now.
It's so bright and green. I love it.
And it's safe. That's the most important thing.
Yeah. It's really like we're in a treehouse now.
Dave and Chase have a busy afternoon
installing the driftwood handrail.
Look at that! That is pretty cool.
[Jenny] and putting together the new pizza oven.
My gosh, this is awesome. Look at this thing.
So then there should be a door.
- This is it. Wait for it. - I'm waiting.
- [Jenny] Oh, it's so cute. - What do you think of that?
I just really think Allyn and Aaron are going to love this.
What is more fun than pizza night?
- Make your own pizzas-- - At the lake.
...at the lake. They have teenagers
and you know teenagers don't like to hang out with their parents...
- No. - ...historically.
However, they now have a pizza oven
so they're going to want to hang out with their parents.
- We're buying the kids over. - We're buying the kids.
- We're buying their love. - We're buying their love.
- I respect that. - I'm not above it.
Jenny, you got to get in here and lay some of this.
[Jenny] I will.
- I love this stone fireplace. - Me too.
- It's so cool. - So cool.
And it's just going to get better.
I was worried about it 'cause it's just half the stone.
I was worried if it would look real.
No, it's amazing. It looks so good,
how these kind of cover up the brick so you can't even see it.
I think we just leave this open.
- I agree. It looks so good. - You know? Yeah.
When we get that mantel on there, Jenny. It's going to be perfect.
- Yeah, I think like that, yeah. - Mmm-hmm.
- [groans, sighs] - There we go.
All right, so this driftwood is going to be the mantel for the Elleman's fireplace.
I'm going to have to take just a little bit of the bottom off
so I can then flip it over and get the top side,
which is going to be this right here, flat.
[machine whirring]
Run this through the rest of the way, take off just that edge.
[machine whirring]
Man, look at that grain. It's going to be beautiful.
All right, so this will then become my back.
Front is rounded and at the end of the day,
this right here is what they're going to see
when they walk into their home.
If that is not bringing the outside in, I don't know what is.
Aaron's going to love it.
[Jenny] The driftwood mantel is finished
and it looks perfect against the new fireplace.
Dark, honed granite countertops
compliment the hunter green cabinets.
Landscaping crews have started to level out the backyard
and we're building a relaxation corner where we can hang hammocks.
The muted tree wallpaper is going up in the bedroom,
while I meet with someone who's a little better
at painting woodpeckers than I am.
- Hi. - Hi. How's it going?
- Okay, you must be Michelle. - Yes. Nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you.
So, I'm here to meet with a local artist
that I've been emailing with, that I've shared the story of the pileated woodpecker,
I've shared a sample of the wallpaper
and I'm hoping that she can kind of take this idea
and make it come to life because I am actually kind of worried
about having this really beautiful,
muted, sepia-toned wallpaper and then having a woodpecker painted onto it
because a woodpecker has bright red hair.
- Yeah, so I've got a few paintings I made. - Okay.
[Michelle] This is obviously the original color of the woodpecker,
but because of this palette, I really wanted to go with more muted tones.
- [Jenny] Yes. - [Michelle] So we still have the same structure
- but it's sepia tone. - So, that's another one.
- That's another option. - Love that.
- Obviously, I think the red might be a little too much. - [Jenny] Yeah.
I mean... How can we mute it with the red? I don't know.
So, we've got some, like, burnt sienna, instead.
- [Jenny] Mmm-hmm. - So, we've got, like, this color
- and we mix some of these-- - [Jenny] Oh, that's nice. Yeah, that's better.
- [Michelle] ...these together. - [Jenny] and you'll still be able to tell
- that it's a woodpecker. - [Michelle] Yeah, exactly.
[Jenny] ...it's just in the glow of dusk.
Are you thinking you'll come after this is installed
and just paint right on the wallpaper?
Yeah, acrylic will be good for that
and I will do dry brush so it won't be any water--
- Okay, yes. Perfect. - So that we don't have to worry.
- I'm looking forward to it. - Yeah, me too. Thank you.
And I know this is going to be really special for Aaron and Allyn
so that's what's important.
Do you want to keep this and that way you can practice?
That would be great and I'd love to have some of your artwork.
[Jenny] Well, yes, thank you. let me know if you need me to sign it.
- Okay. [laughs] - Okay. [laughs]
[Jenny] The Elleman's house has been transformed
with forest green paint on the brick
and light stain on the split log siding.
Michelle is painting the woodpeckers on the wallpaper,
while finishing touches take place in the kitchen,
bathroom, and especially the yard,
back and front.
- Jen? - [Jenny] Yeah?
- How goes it? - Look. Look at the mantel.
- [Dave] It looks so cool. - Doesn't it look so good?
- I really do love this house. - I do, too.
[Jenny] This is one that I was really excited about.
I loved being able to take a house
that really didn't have much of an identity.
What do you think of this last piece of driftwood?
- We definitely have a driftwood theme going on. - Yes we do.
But we just really gave it this charming, cozy
cabin in the woods feel and it's very serene in there...
- [Dave] Yeah. - [Jenny] ...and very warm
and then, of course, outside is just this amazing space
that they can use, the can invite friends over,
they can have their family here. It's a win.
- All right, we got to go. - Okay, all right, did you hang the flag?
- No, I got to put that up. - Oh, gosh. Let's go.
[Aaron] Let's go, baby.
Stomach is, like, in my throat.
Really going to be when you turn the corner up here.
Forever house, here we come.
- Oh, my gosh. - That's amazing.
- Oh! - Oh, my gosh. That's them.
- Wow. - Oh, my gosh.
[Jenny] Oh, my gosh. That's them.
- Wow. - Oh, my gosh.
- [Dave] Hello. - Hello, how are you?
- [Jenny] So good. - [Allyn] Oh, that wood!
- [Dave] You like it? - [Allyn] I love it.
- [Jenny] A little different. - [Aaron] Wow, I love the color of the brick and the wood.
- [Allyn] Oh, the wood is just perfect. - [Jenny] Oh, yay.
[Jenny] So, we talked about making this feel like
a cabin and treehouse in the woods and--
- [Aaron] Yeah. - ...and we replaced the old siding,
which actually needed replacing
and really, it just feels like it belongs.
- We're going to be front porch sitters. - Yay.
- Yes, I love it. - Until we see the back porch,
then we'll probably change our mind.
- Yeah, you actually might. - [laughs]
- [Dave] You actually might. - I think it's time.
- Let's go, come on. - We got to go show you your house.
[Jenny] Let's go, go, go.
- [together] Wow. - Oh, my gosh.
- [gasps] - Oh, my gosh.
- [Allyn] Look how cool. - [Aaron] That is amazing.
Did you guys notice this? Look at this.
- Wow. - Oh, the door--
- To protect you from... - It's like self-protective measure.
- Yes! - That's so great.
- Look how cool this is. - I love the driftwood, that is amazing.
- [Jenny] Yes, you noticed. - [Aaron] I love it.
[Jenny] Well, we went out on the lake
and found a bunch of driftwood
- 'cause we know how much you love driftwood. - Oh, yeah.
So, Dave actually made this handrail
out of driftwood that we found out on the lake.
So, let's go into the living room.
Go to the living room and turn right.
- This ceiling, Al. - Oh, my goodness.
- No. - [Allyn laughs]
[Aaron] Look at the fireplace.
[Allyn] This is insane.
[Aaron] I love it. Oh, my goodness.
- [laughs] - [Allyn] The ceiling is amazing.
It makes it feel so much lighter and airier.
- I know. - And bigger.
- [Jenny] Yes. - [Aaron] It does.
- [Allyn] But still cozy. - [Aaron] It's like a different house.
I love the rock. That's amazing.
[Jenny] Isn't it beautiful? And we really wanted this to just feel like a cozy cabin
and have some identity like that and I think this fireplace
set the tone for the entire space
and we actually found this. It was a big...
- [Dave] Log. - [Jenny] Just a log
that we found washed up on the shore.
- Are you serious? - Isn't it cool how you can find amazing pieces of wood?
Yes!
I think you're going to see, like, wood and fire and...
- it's a theme. - Trees.
We have a dining space here that is functional
and it makes the... It breaks this room up
so that you have, you know, living and dining.
- [Allyn] We love the round table. - [Aaron] Ah, it's perfect.
So, we took out this giant wall
so then you could see out to the lake and go check out your kitchen.
- You got to take a look at it. - The kitchen, awesome. Oh!
- [Jenny] A little different. - [Allyn] Oh, my goodness.
- I... Oh, my. Look at this! What is that? - Wow!
- [laughing] It's a pizza oven. - [Dave] A wood-burning pizza oven!
- [Aaron] No way! - Look at this.
- More fire! - How fun is that?
- [Aaron] More fire. No way! - [Allyn] More fire.
So, you build a fire in there. It's got nits own chimney up through the roof,
- all concrete around it. - Oh, my gosh.
What other lake house has a pizza oven?
- Not many. Not any. I don't know. - Not many.
- I've never seen one. - I know!
And the stone ties in with your stone fireplace.
Oh, my gosh! Now that is definitely cozy cabin in the woods.
- Right? - Yes!
I love that.
[Allyn] The color is perfect. It's what I had envisioned in my head,
but I don't know how you've gotten in my head so well
- but you're doing a great job. - Oh, good.
- Look at how many drawers and cabinets. - Oh, my gosh. So much storage.
[Jenny] And we did the walls with the wood
and the green, again, like we did outside,
where it just really feels like a cabin in the woods.
It's reflective of what's going on outside,
like the stone, all of these natural elements.
We haven't even talked about the floors,
but I love the color of the floors.
- Yes, oh, yes! - Oh, I know. I do, too.
- [Dave] Didn't they turn out cool? - [Allyn] Absolutely perfect.
And I love that we can be in the kitchen but still see everybody
- in the living room. - Right.
- You can even see outside. - I know.
We took your old dining room, but we gave you something way better.
Go ahead, yes.
[gasps] Oh. Oh.
- Oh. It's the bird in the tree. - Wow.
- That is so cool. - [Allyn] That is really special, you guys.
[laughs] That's going to make me cry.
- It is the bird in the tree. - It's looking over us.
- Oh, thank you. - You're welcome.
- That is amazing. - [Allyn] This is gorgeous.
- I'm so glad you noticed it. - [Aaron] She saw it right when we walked in.
- I know, I'm so glad. - I think my mom would love this.
- Thank you. - Oh, I'm so glad. You're welcome.
I love this and I hope you like it
because it feels like, really, an escape.
- Like a true retreat. - [Allyn] It does. It does.
- Because you have this-- - [Aaron] It's a bird's nest,
- it really is like a little bird's nest. - I know.
- [Allyn] Colors are muted enough-- - [Jenny] Yes.
[Allyn] ...and it just makes it, like, soothing.
[Jenny] Yes, yes! Good.
All right. Go check out your bathroom.
- Wow. - Okay.
Oh, my gosh. Oh, this is cool.
[Aaron] Look at the big shower.
That's amazing.
- I love it. - That's gorgeous.
I love how the little rocks tie in with the...
- [Aaron] I know, I know. - [Jenny] Yes.
Think what this was, a random--
- [Allyn] Laundry room. - [Aaron] ...laundry room. Wasted space.
- [Allyn] Yep. - All right. Get out of there.
- We got a final space. - Come on, let's go out back.
- You guys go on. - [Dave] Go ahead.
- I'm super excited. - Wow.
- [gasps] Oh, my gosh. - [Aaron] I love the glass. You can see through.
- [Allyn] That firepit is amazing. - [Aaron] Wow.
- Isn't that so cool? - It's so cool!
- [Allyn] This is fantastic. - [Dave] We were struggling with, like,
something that blocks your view and now...
- Such an improvement. - How open it is.
I mean, well, you can see through while you're sitting down.
- That was a big deal. - [Jenny] Yes, yes!
[Aaron] You can even see people hanging out down below.
- That is amazing. - [gasps] Look at these huge pavers.
- Those are awesome. - Aren't these beautiful?
I love these. All very, just, natural.
- That's cool. - That's really cool.
I love how it just, like, blends in right into the hill.
Take a step back and look at that house.
- That is amazing. - It's absolutely incredible.
- All right, I have to say I think we nailed it. - I agree.
This house is exactly what Allyn and Aaron wanted.
- I mean, this is the life. - [groans]
[Jenny] This is the life right there.
- This is it. - [Allyn] The mantel, the fireplace, the stone,
the ceiling... I just saying everything I like about this house.
I love this house. It really is just such a really warm house.
- It is. - I want to live here. I love it.
- Hey, hey! - Oh, my goodness.
- This is crazy. - What?
It's literally a dream come true,
like, we knew that it had a lot of potential,
but just to see the new flow
and different people can hang out at the same time
in different locations, it's absolutely perfect.
- [together] Woah! - We have a pizza oven.
I'm ready to make some memories here and some pizza. [laughs]
- I'm ready to eat some pizza. - [laughs]
- Think you could sleep out here? - Yes.
I could spend the night out here.