Maine Cabin Masters - General Discussion

[Meredith Quill]

Your Lance Topic!

[Meredith Quill]

Discuss Here!

[Meredith Quill]

Discuss Here!

[TVJunkee]

The MCM gang was at the August civic center recently for the Maine Outdoors show.  They have a FB video of them roaming around and chatting casually.  Lance wasn't there.

And thank you SilverStormm for creating this forum.  I wasn't sure I followed the instructions but was so excited to see it open up.  Now I just need to recruit somebody to discuss.

[TVJunkee]

In high school in Maine, I couldn't WAIT to get out of there.   Now I fight like crazy to get back for the summers.  The very air, water and atmosphere is special.  However, I like my cabin the way it is.    Have since raked the leaves, trimmed the trees and added an antique granite front step, new picnic table and a fire pit.

[chessiegal]

I love this show. I'll be happy to discuss.

[TVJunkee]

I just wonder if sometimes they do things that the owners really didn't want done.   And if Chase has any architectural or structural design training for these times when he moves or constructs walls. I do like the craft-y type projects they do like the tree slice countertop and the reusing of existing old materials lying around (Maine has lots of that).   That canoe light in the front sun porch of one cabin was great.  I would like to know how much they had to pay the 'famous' chainsaw sculptor to make that bear.   The show made it seem like they rolled up, hung out while he did it and then said Ok, bye, thanks!

But this is worth watching just for the scenery as they go all over central, midcoast and western parts of the State it looks like.

[laredhead]

Found it!  What a beautiful picture.  I love the red color on the cabin.  What's that old saying, you don't know what you have until it's gone.  Glad you are able to visit.

[laredhead]

I enjoyed the few episode that have aired, and I wish they would film more.  Maine is not a state that is featured in many TV shows, and I have been interested in hearing about construction methods and environmental challenges with renovating these cabins.

[Dervish]

LOVE LOVE LOVE MCM! I grew up in Maine, fairly near where Chase and Ashley did, and watching this show makes me wicked homesick. I can sit and watch the shows over and over, just because the show feels like home, and like these are my peeps. I love when Ashley and Chase go to Mom's to do crafts.

[Dervish]

I think we need the backstory on why Lance hates birds! The episode where the crew did that little cabin for Lance & Lily was hilarious, with the emus.

[Dervish]

On 4/5/2017 at 11:45 AM, TVJunkee said:

In high school in Maine, I couldn't WAIT to get out of there.  

You and me both. All my family is gone or have moved away, so I haven't been back in a long time. Watching MCM has me really wanting to buy a camp on a lake or pond somewhere.

[MarkHB]

Nice cabin.  I'm still here in Maine, albeit in Portland and not in a cabin :) .

[TVJunkee]

So the crew was at some bar again last night with a live stream on FB.  It looked pretty chaotic and was hard to tell who was talking in the bar din and there are these constant subtitle-like comments coming up on the screen that are very distracting.  I wish I could figure out a way to get some of those fans/friends who are commenting to come over here and chat.

I think I also saw some MCM episodes recording on my DVR last night and am hoping that at least one of them will be one I haven't seen. 

[TVJunkee]

Finally got to see the one where they have rented a crane and are discussing lifting a wall of the cabin to insert a jack underneath (as opposed to trying to jack it up).  Lance is standing right there as they discuss how to do this and Chase asks him how much the crane can lift and he says 5,632 pounds like he was reading it from the instruction manual.  They tease him about such an exact number.   Next day it comes time to lift the wall, they have it all ready to go and Lance says "I don't know if it has that kind of lift load".  Chase and Ryan are stunned and keep saying "Lance you were right there when we discussed this".  He states that no one discussed it with him.  And then in the episode he recites Maine law on breaks and how he just does what he wants. 

I am SO amused by Lance.  I swear I am going to track him down this summer and talk to him to see if he is as odd as he is portrayed!  I'll report back

[annzeepark914]

I love this show.  The first episode I saw was that cabin on a lake that they painted red with some white and blue trim.  I think it was a former politician's cabin and now her daughter owns it.  It reminded me of a family friend's old cabin on Long Lake. 

[annzeepark914]

Is anyone else watching this show?  I feel lonely here!  Watched the season 2 opener last night and was absolutely stunned at how they transformed a total wreck of a bldg to a weekend getaway.

[chessiegal]

I watch it when they run marathons during the day. I like it. I was glad to see they got renewed.

[TVJunkee]

The Cabin Masters gang is back with a vengeance. 

The new season opener was great and what a transformation!  I liked how they kept the look of a worn out building and didn't add some garish paint that Ashley is so fond of.  The deck was great in size and function but the new materials really stood out.   I was surprised they were allowed to construct it as Maine has so many laws about construction close to the water, but perhaps it was grandfathered in since there had been a deck there previously.  I was with Jedi and Ryan though about being concerned with flooding of the whole property which looked like it would just disintegrate in a big storm.   The swimming session and jumping out of windows into the cold--and how deep?--water was horrifying.

We got to see the skills of people working with their hands and not on a keyboard.  They get along and do beautiful work.  And Ashley even has an assistant.

I am SO SICK of Chip and Joanna Gaines that this is just so refreshing--bring on the new season!

[laredhead]

I love this show.  Their ideas are refreshing and the scenery is gorgeous.  Did not know it was back.  My old DVR gave up the ghost and when the new one was installed, all of my scheduled series recordings were lost.  Going to go program this right now.

[annzeepark914]

My only concern about this wonderful gang of friends/workers is that no one wears work gloves.  Maybe they do when they're not on camera??  I wonder how long that bldg will last (with all the nasty storms we've had in the recent past).

[Mondrianyone]

If the unbuttressed version survived the ice storm of '98 and that crazy windstorm we had a few weeks ago, I'm gonna guess that the new and improved version is good for at least another decade.

Didn't Ashley (and maybe her brother as well) occasionally show up to work in flip-flops?  So gloves are the least of it!

I Googled the wife in that couple, who said she was an artist.  Her work is quite beautiful--some of it very different from the pieces they hung in the house.  A friend of mine who's into fiber arts lives nearby and probably knows her.  I'll have to ask.  Maybe take a spin by the house next time I'm in her neck of the woods.  I loved the fish, too.

[TVJunkee]

21 hours ago, annzeepark914 said:

My only concern about this wonderful gang of friends/workers is that no one wears work gloves.

The Maine guys I know would say that work gloves are for sissies.  Knicks, cuts, blood and touching nasty stuff are just part of the job.  I have the same problem getting my Florida guy to ever wear gloves so maybe it's just be a Man Thing.    I think Ryan, Jedi, Dixie and even Lance have enough sense to wear work boots.

[annzeepark914]

Good thing Dixie was wearing work boots when he stepped on that nail.  

[TVJunkee]

Another great new episode with a beautiful camp.  The cedar siding looked great on that place and unifying the roof line helped a lot.  I just hope they got ALL the wood rot on the foundation because it looked like there might have been some corner cutting due to budget.  I wish they could have saved the old fireplace but it did open the room up not to have it and the roof looked better without a chimney.  THAT improvement I could stand on my camp which has both a chimney to nothing and side steps to nowhere. 

I appreciated when they talked about the fireplace being made from rocks they lugged up from the lake.  I built a nice rock wall around a garden with rocks from the lake bottom in front of the camp (that I paid the kids next door to collect and carry up the bank for me).  Gotta love those glaciers that left the state of Maine covered with rocks and dug out all the lakes.  I heard the rocks close to shore get replenished every year when the ice goes out and drops rocks from the lake bottom on the shores.   I've asked neighbors to send me pictures of the ice going out this year.

[annzeepark914]

Still love this show (and continue to watch the re-runs) but last night, while watching another new Season 2 episode, I thought there was a bit of goofing around (OTT for these Mainers, IMO).  I hope the producers of this show aren't trying to turn Chase et al into a bunch of Chip Gaines.  These are such high quality people, so professional, nice and naturally funny, that it would be terrible if they were told to act up for the cameras.

[Mondrianyone]

Maybe it was because there wasn't a whole lot to do with this particular camp, so they thought they needed the clowning for filler.  If one or all of this crew turn into Chip Gaineses, I'm heading for the hills.  One is more than enough (and I used to like that show).

They keep getting closer to my house.  There's an abandoned hunting cabin just on the other side of our property.  My latest dream is that I wake up one morning and find the MCM cameras setting up where I can go rubberneck.

[annzeepark914]

Thanks, Mondrianyone.  That's a good point.  I think they sort of regretted taking on the job as it wasn't a huge challenge (compared with the previous week's dark green, shaky, scary hovel!!)

[annzeepark914]

On 1/16/2018 at 8:28 PM, Mondrianyone said:

They keep getting closer to my house.  There's an abandoned hunting cabin just on the other side of our property.  My latest dream is that I wake up one morning and find the MCM cameras setting up where I can go rubberneck.

@Mondrianyone:  I hope they find your place and you can help them as they perform their magic on your place (like they had their whole family working with them on the "Bullpen").  That would be fun!

[annzeepark914]

I must say, watching last night's new episode, that I sure was nervous at the sight of all those aunt, uncles, grandmas, etc, helping to rebuild that little summer annex.  Hopefully, most of what we saw of them were just photo-ops. Still drives me nuts that no one wears work gloves. Glad no one stepped on a nail while wearing their sneakers (I worked for a state worker's comp agency for several years a while back).  Chase's kids are cute and nice.  Really love this show.

[annzeepark914]

Last night's summer camp was not my favorite nor was the younger sis (I wonder how embarrassed she is about that, especially after her older sister got choked up about her finally coming home to enjoy the camp w/ family?)  I was glad to see that the property would be worked on prior to the Morrill folks arriving.  I've been to Maine lake summer camps where you park up on top, then work your way down to the house on the lake--not good! But I identified with the little house for some reason...maybe because my family built a summer cottage on a lake in the late 50's, around the same time as their grandparents.  I wonder how much they had to spend for the work done before the Morrills got there--must've been quite a bit.  The Morrills did a great job on that place and turned it into a real summer house (er...camp).

[Mondrianyone]

I had the same feeling, @annzeepark914.  It made me wonder if she only came back (after twenty years!  jeez, was she in a North Korean prison camp?) for the chance to be on TV.  The story behind the story, as is often the case, is probably more interesting than what we're actually told.

Plus, I still thought it wasn't going to be a picnic for their 70+-year-old-parents to get down to that camp, even with the steps.  Maybe they should've jacked up the building till it was level with the road!

[annzeepark914]

18 hours ago, Mondrianyone said:

I had the same feeling, @annzeepark914.  It made me wonder if she only came back (after twenty years!  jeez, was she in a North Korean prison camp?) for the chance to be on TV.  The story behind the story, as is often the case, is probably more interesting than what we're actually told.

Plus, I still thought it wasn't going to be a picnic for their 70+-year-old-parents to get down to that camp, even with the steps.  Maybe they should've jacked up the building till it was level with the road!

Yup.  I thought Lance and his crew did the best that they could but that is a very steep grade, complete with very broad steps.  Not a good property (but maybe a deal financially for their parents back in the early 60's).  Your NK prison camp theory made me laugh out loud.  Thanks!!

[Mondrianyone]

Odd that they didn't even put a handrail on at least one side of that stone stairway.  Probably would help a lot.

[3outta5]

On 2/7/2018 at 6:30 PM, Mondrianyone said:

Odd that they didn't even put a handrail on at least one side of that stone stairway.  Probably would help a lot.

I just saw that episode last night and I do not understand all the 'porcupine chewing up the wood' hand-wringing but not what they were doing to prevent it on all that new, delicious lumber for the expansions?? It drove me crazy they never mentioned it again after showing all of the damage.

[annzeepark914]

I missed Monday night's episode because I was watching the Olympics.  Did anyone else see it?  Anything interesting happen?  I went to their website and saw something about an interview on Maine NPR so I clicked on it.  Chase, Ashley and Ryan were interviewed.  Such nice folks!  I can't get over how genuine they are...no hokeyness for the camera when they're filming their show.

[3outta5]

I watch them when they're repeated but I think you missed the rafting cabin one, which was cute. This week's had a mom who is a writer and they created a screen for her to have a little privacy to write (it was tiny, but nice).

[annzeepark914]

I saw the rerun on Monday night just before the new episode.  They sure can turn a sow's ear into a silk purse with these ancient cabins (or actual shacks).

[friendperidot]

I've got DIY for the very first time today! And the first thing I discovered while exploring Philo was this show. I binge watched. I haven't had any home renovation/decorating shows in such a long time. I tried Sling last year, but didn't care for it and I don't think DIY was part of their package and when I had Directv a few years ago, it wasn't part of my package.

I enjoyed this a lot. They seemed like a fun group and like they pretty much know what they're doing. I've never been to Maine (but I've been to Oklahoma...) Those cabins look a lot like cabins at the Lake of the Ozarks when I was a kid, haven't been there in quite a while, but the last time it was either mobile homes or McMansions. 

[chessiegal]

31 minutes ago, friendperidot said:

I've got DIY for the very first time today! And the first thing I discovered while exploring Philo was this show. I binge watched. I haven't had any home renovation/decorating shows in such a long time. I tried Sling last year, but didn't care for it and I don't think DIY was part of their package and when I had Directv a few years ago, it wasn't part of my package.

I enjoyed this a lot. They seemed like a fun group and like they pretty much know what they're doing. I've never been to Maine (but I've been to Oklahoma...) Those cabins look a lot like cabins at the Lake of the Ozarks when I was a kid, haven't been there in quite a while, but the last time it was either mobile homes or McMansions. 

It's a great show, I think you will enjoy it. They do good work and are fun people.

[annzeepark914]

39 minutes ago, friendperidot said:

I enjoyed this a lot. They seemed like a fun group and like they pretty much know what they're doing. I've never been to Maine (but I've been to Oklahoma...) Those cabins look a lot like cabins at the Lake of the Ozarks when I was a kid, haven't been there in quite a while, but the last time it was either mobile homes or McMansions. 

This is  my favorite show on TV now.  It's peaceful, they're such nice people and very creative, especially when they're given small budgets (some of those "camps" are in pretty bad shape!)

[MsChicklet]

Aw, man. We're saying goodbye to Lance. I did feel like he was backing away more this season. I hope he enjoys his soon-to-be son, his farming, and his emus. 

That was a brilliant idea to add that small elevator to move stuff up to the top floor. 

[annzeepark914]

No more Lance-scaping.  What a piece of work he is.  I always laugh when they show him throwing an ax through that window (at least I think it's an ax).

[annzeepark914]

Oh no...Season two is over. Monday nights won't be the same (until Season 3 starts!)  These are such nice people and the success of the show sure hasn't gone to their heads.  I watched a video of them celebrating the last episode.  Ashley said she's older than any of the guys and watched them grow up.  It's amazing to see such good-hearted people on TV today.

[BckpckFullaNinjas]

Anybody here? I love the show but just today am seeing the rerun of the home fit for a king — the redo for the Phish drummer & family. How did they do all that for $50k? My frickin’ kitchen cost half that!!!!! LOL

(And they just mentioned it twice, so sure enough, they stuck to the $50k estimate!)

Edited September 20, 2018 by BckpckFullaNinjas

[Mondrianyone]

It feels like years since last season, so my memory may be off, but I think they showed the store that the wife in the Phish couple was opening?  (If not, this is OT.)  We drove by about a month ago, and my husband ran in and got us each a slice of pizza--they have a brick oven, or wood-fired.  It was fabulous.  And then friends stopped by and brought dinner from there, and the first time wasn't a fluke.  They may be selling the best pizza in this part of Maine.  I don't know if MCM had anything to do with renovating the house the store is in, but if so, they did a great job.  It's adorable on the outside.  Their site should have a photo of the updated version, but for some reason they don't seem to.

[annzeepark914]

12 hours ago, BckpckFullaNinjas said:

Anybody here? I love the show but just today am seeing the rerun of the home fit for a king — the redo for the Phish drummer & family. How did they do all that for $50k? My frickin’ kitchen cost half that!!!!! LOL

(And they just mentioned it twice, so sure enough, they stuck to the $50k estimate!)

I'm amazed at all they can do for the usual $30,000 that folks give them to renovate some very crummy looking summer homes--esp when they find all the rot and termites, carpenter ants, leaks, etc.  But they always do a great job and Ashley is a whiz at creating unique artworks that mean a lot to the clients.  I've gone to their Facebook page. These are the nicest people. Hurry up MCM and return!!!!!

[laredhead]

There might be some building supply discounts given similar to HH Renovation shows, and that can decrease the cost.  Maybe labor costs are cheaper in Maine? 

[annzeepark914]

On 9/20/2018 at 2:00 PM, laredhead said:

There might be some building supply discounts given similar to HH Renovation shows, and that can decrease the cost.  Maybe labor costs are cheaper in Maine? 

That's the only reason I've been able to come up with--cheaper labor & discounts from those businesses & artisans they frequent (and visit on camera which is great advertising).  And, of course, the owners who have piles of old lumber in their yards or barns that the crew is told they can use.  I've been thinking of them lately, wondering if they're now scurrying to finish up the camps before it starts snowing (we've certainly seen that happen!)

[Mondrianyone]

Anyone else watching the new season?

One thing I've wondered about since a few episodes into the first season is whether someone else is really responsible for the design.  I started checking back then to see if there was a credit for designing, and there never was, till this season--there's a design consultant credited, last name Hannan, I think (Amanda Hannan?  I can't remember, but I'll look again next episode).  I also noticed that they did a speeded-up segment showing people putting in and arranging the furnishings, and there were three women, none of them Ashley, doing the work, and then a normal-speed couple of shots of her fluffing a throw pillow and hanging a little sign.  It does tend to confirm what I've always had a feeling was the case.  Just me?