Here is the final Wilsonia winter cabin drawing. This two-story cabin looks to be only one story high in the deep snow of whichever winter this was. As with the other two snow drawings, the photo was provided by the cabin owner because there weren’t any real winters while I was working on the book.
I found it to be quite interesting that all three cabins in snow are next to each other.
This cabin is on Mason, and is next to the cabin on Lilac.
This is the second of three Wilsonia cabins in winter drawings. This cabin is across the road from the previous drawing of a cabin in snow. I admit to a strong bias in favor of shingle siding, and this cabin captures the morning light so beautifully that I may have gotten carried away in my photos and drawings that represent this delightful mountain cottage-look cabin.
Yes, I am gushing.
Thank you, Dick and Mel, for having such a beautiful little place, providing the photo and commissioning me to draw it for you.
When I started the book The Cabins of Wilsonia, the winters turned dry. I had planned to take a few trips in during winter to photograph some cabins in snow, but there wasn’t any, not in any of the three winters while I was designing and drawing.
Three different cabin folks offered me photos of their cabins in the winter. The strange thing about those cabins is that all three are in a row in Wilsonia, although each one is on a different road.
Here is the first one.
Hillcrest cabin in winter
Cabins and doors are 2 of my favorite subjects to draw. The cabin doors in Wilsonia perfectly combine that interest. Here are a few more for you to enjoy:
Do you recognize any of these?
While working on the book The Cabins of Wilsonia, sometimes people would ask why I was doing a book on Wilsonia iwhenI have a cabin in Mineral King. These are the top three reasons: 1. cabin communities matter; 2. I call my business Cabinart; 3. I like to document and portray the good things of Tulare County. *
But did you know that Wilsonia and Mineral King are tied together by the cabin that I married into?
In the spring of 1983, (2 years before I met my husband Michael), his family cabin in Mineral King blew up and burned down. It was next door to the Mixter cabin, whose permit had expired and was ordered by the Park to be torn down.
Over the course of the next 2 years, my husband pursued rebuilding his cabin and also the possibility of buying the Mixter’s cabin and turning his empty lot over to the Park to satisfy the law. Lots of red tape, lots of bureaucrats saying no, and then someone knew Someone who knew SOMEONE, and permission was granted to exchange his bare lot for the Mixter’s cabin with its expired permit.
While I was working on the book, Neal Mixter and I became friends. I gave him all the paperwork from Michael’s cabin exchange so he could study it and learn if there was a way to apply this experience to Wilsonia. He and other hard-working cabin folks went to endless meetings, and eventually they made a plan.
Maybe this is the reason that the Park has made its offer to exchange their unused cabins for private vacant lots. Maybe it isn’t, but I like to think that Michael’s experience with the Mineral King Mixter cabin and the Park got the ball rolling.
The Botkin cabin, formerly the Mixter cabin, Mineral King
*4. I already did a book on the cabins of Mineral King, called The Cabins of Mineral King; 5. I love to draw; 6. Several cabin folks in Wilsonia asked me to do a book on Wilsonia
Not one-story.
I looked up “cabin” on my Mac. The dictionary on my computer has fairly useless definitions as far as our discussion is concerned.
Cabin may refer to:
- Beach cabin, a small wooden hut on a beach
- Log cabin, a house built from logs
- Chalet, a wooden mountain house with a sloping roof
- Small remote mansion (Western Canada)
- Small, free-standing structures that serve as individual lodging spaces of a motel
- Cottage, a small house
Forget that. Where’s my real Webster’s dictionary?? Mine was published in 2004 rather than 1935. Oh good grief, look at this: “A small, simple, one-story house.”
That’s it? Au contraire! (Is that how you say “You are wrong” in French?)
Too stylish to be considered “simple”.
A few folks checked in on my other blog with their thoughts on what a cabin is. One suggested “primitive”; another said a place to get away from every day life; someone else put forth the idea that a cabin is a state of mind. “Non-fancy” is a good description, and another added gave a description of an ideal cabin. She used the word “spare”, which could mean an extra home or it could mean without clutter. (I’ve seen some pretty cluttered cabins, and I have lived in a cabin when it was my only place of residence.)
To be continued next week (and feel free to share your thoughts on what makes a cabin in the comments, under “Leave a Reply”!)
This pencil drawing probably fits most common ideas of what a cabin is.
On my other blog, Cabinart.net, I have been writing occasionally about what makes a cabin. Of course you are invited to go there to read the posts, (Cabin Thoughts, Part 2, Part 3, Few More, Final) but I thought I’d refine the thoughts a bit directly for Wilsonia cabin folks. (Over there I post 5 days a week, as opposed to the weekly posts here.)
It began with a discussion with my friend (the one who taught me how to use InDesign so I could make The Cabins of Wilsonia) about what it is that makes a cabin. My art business is called “Cabin Art”, so one would think that I would know how to define the word “cabin”. Alas, one would be wrong about that!
We had an old dictionary at the cabin, so I looked up “cabin”. The 3rd definition said, “A small, rude hut”.
Clearly the word “rude” has changed in meaning since the dictionary was published in 1935. I looked up “rude” and saw “Poorly constructed”.
Alrighty, then. A cabin is a small, poorly constructed hut.
But is it?
Nothing small or poorly constructed here!
I’d love to hear your ideas about what a cabin is – email me at cabinart@cabinart.net or better yet, comment (use “Leave a Reply”) on this post so others can join in the discussion!
A few weeks ago, I received an order from someone I’ve never met for several copies of The Cabins of Wilsonia.
It is always good to know how people find the book, so I asked this customer. Here is what she said:
I had been reading about your book project for awhile in the Wilsonia Times newsletter. We hadn’t been able to get to the cabin for a few years, but we were finally able to go last week. Someone bought a copy of your book to keep at the cabin and that is where I read it, which was perfect.
I love the writing and the sketches are exquisite. I like how you combined sketches of cabins with architectural details and elements of the natural surroundings. It really captures the essence of Wilsonia. I ordered a copy for myself and some for my daughters and for friends who enjoy going up there with us. Thank you so much for taking on that project and executing it so beautifully.
Aw shucks. Thank you, Lisa! Thank you for appreciating the variety in the drawings, all the efforts I put into showing details and backgrounds and getting people to tell me about their cabin experiences. My goal was to “capture the essence of Wilsonia”, and it means a ton to me that the book does that for you!
Publishing The Cabins of Wilsonia filled my life with new skills, experiences, people, and places.
Look at this list of skills:
Next time, you’ll see a list of what these skills led me to.
The book The Cabins of Wilsonia is completed, published and for sale.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch (where did that saying come from?), I still draw cabins in pencil. (I oil paint too, but that’s a different subject on a different blog, cabinart.net, a blog that covers all aspects of my art business).
Some folks liked my work in the book, but it only contained a drawing of their chimney. They asked me to draw their entire cabin.
It took us over a year to work out the details of what they wanted, We began with a few sketches, which then needed to be discussed and revised.
There were details they wanted to be sure appeared in the drawing that were just too small to appear in the sketches. When they were convinced that I knew all the little things that mattered to them, I was able to begin.
I work from left to right, top to bottom, to avoid smearing.
And finally, finished!
We were all very pleased with the outcome!