Early log homes, and pioneer post & beam and stone homes

EARLY LOG HOMES? CLASSIC POST & BEAM? STONE?

We create beautiful restored early log homes from salvaged, vintage log buildings, for our clients across North America. As well as early log homes, we also deal in early post & beam frame, and stone buildings. We remove them from their original locations. Classics are ready to rebuild on your site. Anywhere! Some of the best early log buildings come from Ontario! READ MORE.

ALL OF OUR PRICES ARE IN CANADIAN DOLLARS!

Here’s what our Early Log Home clients say about us:

“Truly one of the masters of his craft in the arena of log home building. None better. Honest, efficient, trustworthy, exceptionally competent, and genuinely a nice guy, Mel Shakespeare has become a friend who always delivers the very best results, consistently on time and on target. If we could rate him on a 10 star scale, we’d give him a 20. He’s that good.”

John Fenzel

“We purchased 2 log cabins from Mel Shakespeare. He is a delight to work with and has a wealth of knowledge. He designed our cabins, making suggestions along the way to improve what we wanted. He also custom-made the window and french doors to flow through the cabins. I would definitely recommend Mel for all your needs.”

Cindy Lynam

“Master at historic renovation — or better I should say ‘historic restoration’. Mel knows his historic periods well — not only from a design standpoint, but also from a furnishings standpoint. He has materials, supplies and furnishings — or can find all of the above — that are right for the period home he designs for you. I actually hired him twice in 12 years.”

Don Procter

“I hired Tradition Home to build windows for a heritage home in Oakville. The Town of Oakville has strict requirements regarding the style of window and materials that can be used with these types of homes. Mel Shakespeare (a gentleman in every sense of the word), owner of Tradition Home, was a pleasure to work with from beginning to end. He has expert knowledge and knew exactly what was required. I believe he is a bit of a legend in the field. Mel went above and beyond, even hand-painting the windows himself (and did not charge for his extra time) to ensure the job was done right, on time and on budget! The windows turned out beautifully. They are solidly built and of superior craftsmanship and quality. I’ll have no hesitation in recommending Tradition Home and Mel Shakespeare in the future.”

D.K.

“I was involved with a crew of restoration and builders for Tradition Home Designs. I enjoyed working for Mel Shakespeare. He is a one of a kind and genuine experienced traditional home designer. The historic homes I worked on were fascinating and fun. I did complete restoration work and fine detail of removing the old paint in a very precise manner as not to harm the details. Mel Shakespeare is certainly the nicest and most imaginative person. He is a calm and well-centered man and knows how to treat his crew with utmost pride.”

Rick Breau

“I had the pleasure of working with Mel on the High Park Zoo Log Cabins conservation project. The scope of work included the preparation of a conservation/replacement strategy report to describe the condition of the structures, recommended scope of repairs/rehabilitation and replacement, and associated costing for six structures. Due to the specialized nature of the work, we consulted with Mel Shakespeare, a log cabin conservation specialist who was very knowledgeable and helpful throughout the scope of work. He also provided a costing allowance for the log cabins. I would definitely work with Mel again.”

Janice Q

“I have known Mel Shakespeare for about 12 years, since I moved to Port Hope, and have come to greatly respect Mel and his professionalism. We have consulted on a number of projects together, and I have experienced Mel’s incredible knowledge, not just of heritage architectural form, but of heritage construction technique. His personal building skills and his craftsmanship are outstanding.

As well as projects that I have been personally involved with, I am quite familiar with a number of Mel’s other projects, both in Port Hope and in other heritage communities. They are, without exception, exquisite examples of heritage construction. Whether they are reconstructed original buildings, sensitive new construction, or a combination of both, I’m quite sure their owners are proud to have worked with Mel Shakespeare.”

Christopher Wallace, Chris Wallace, Architect

“I bought an old painted pine floor from Mel to use on our addition to our cottage in the Laurentians. His price was good, and the planks were 7 to 10″ wide, which we love. The floor was dry, but we let it dry for a couple of months in the basement before installation. We sanded off the old green paint and we removed some nails. Because the cottage is far from Tradition Home Designs, our contractor installed it. The floor is spectacular! Nothing new could compare to the rich deep colour. Worth the effort!”

C. S. Marsh

“With the purchase of some acreage in the Trent Hills region, east of Toronto, some seven years ago, my wife and I were eager to put shovels in the ground to create the weekend painting/music studio retreat of our dreams. Our interest in converted barns, and reconstructed log homes, led us to Mel and his long established Tradition Home Designs. His excellent reputation in Ontario came to us by word of mouth. I would like to say here that we did not (yet) hire Tradition Home Designs, nor have we as yet put shovels in the ground. Some things just seem to take more time than expected!

That all said, we have remained in contact with Mel, who for seven years has remained in touch to suggest vintage barns and log homes new on the market, bounce around design ideas and even take us to projects he was justifiably proud of. Never any pressure and always a commitment to our interests and dreams. Besides all that, he is a very interesting person whose experience, passion and skill should place him very high on the list of candidates for partnership in a traditional home building project.”

O. Dawson

“Mel is a very creative designer. The plans he drew up for us were even better than expected. His attention to detail is admirable. Our house was in Century Home Magazine, the local paper and a book on Architectural Design. I would definitely recommend Mel highly.” See it here.

Robin Thibodeau
Plans for early log homes