By Seth Boyes,
A number of features in the Dahlen family’s new home, such as cabinets and trim, were crafted using wood Aaron Dahlen had harvested and stockpiled himself.
For the Dahlen family, constructing a home is nothing new — Aaron Dahlen is the owner of Decorah Builders, but he and his wife Kerbie have also constructed or remodeled a handful of homes for themselves. Their family most recently moved into a new build in northern Decorah.
“You build homes for other people, so it’s kind of fun to either borrow their ideas or try new ideas that inspire you,” Kerbie said.
She went on to say their most recent home build was something of a family project. She and their four children could walk to the work site from their previous home and sometimes take part in the process — in some cases cleaning and sometimes, in the case of their then 3-year-old son, getting up close and personal with some heavy equipment.
“He got to ride in the excavator and help dig the basement,” Aaron said. “He was pretty jacked about that.”
Aaron said he and his family completed most of the work during the build, aside from the electrical and plumbing installation. And he said he was able to supply most of the materials as well.
“Almost all of our trim, I cut the trees down,” he said.
He went on to say he owns a sawmill and had been stockpiling the wood for a number of years before he decided to have a good portion of it made into cabinets, trim and shiplap for the new home.
And while Aaron’s fingerprints were literally on many of the house’s materials, he said most of the actual design choices were left to his wife.
“We kind of know what we want at this point,” Aaron said.
Kerbie said she, like many homebuilders in the internet age, cruised websites and social media apps looking for inspiration. And she indicated, even if her family doesn’t necessarily live in their new house for the rest of their lives, she feels a majority of its features can easily suit another family.
“People can replace these handles, but the cabinets are still really good quality,” Kerbie said. “It lasts a long time. We like to build with good materials, and Aaron takes pride in the contractors that he uses. They do a good job the first time.”
She went on to say Ridgeway Lumber helped with the home design as well, creating a layout based on the Dahlens’ plans. Kerbie said her goal for the home was to strike a balance between trendy designs and those which will stand the test of time.
“It’s fun to see what other people have done and kind of go off of theirs,” Kerbie said. “And then it’s nice because then, when Aaron has someone that’s building, we can also bring them here and show them some of the choices we’ve made.”
One of those choices was a large mud room entry with easy access to a shower — a must in the home’s design, Kerbie said, given her her husband’s work and their active children.
She said the home’s final design grew from that initial feature, as more spaces for the family of six to live and play were added.
“We wanted a workout space and space for the kids in the basement,” Kerbie said. “They like to play pingpong and shuffle board.”
The house also includes a large screened-in porch on its east side, providing what the Dahlens called a beautiful view of the sloping hillside on which the budding neighborhood is built — both Aaron and Kerbie said they seemingly live on the porch.
The family moved into their new home over Memorial Day weekend, after a build period of about six months. Kerbie said she has yet to find a feature she regrets.
“We would use this layout again,” Kerbie said.
More photos in the free October 29 Driftless.
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