Below is an article that just popped up on Houzz today that may be helpful. Do a search on Houzz and Pinterest for "great room log cabin" to get some ideas on how to bring out the warmth in a large panelled room with furnishings, rugs, art. You have such a big space, consider having two zones--conversational near fireplace and another for media and maybe even exercise area. It's understandable you're concerned about painting unfinished, rough wood--no advice there. Here's a room from the link that shows a panelled large room like yours: Below is a basement room showing a comfortable layout to media. You could float your sofa at one end of the space for TV and gaming, then set up a second space with lighter, unholstered seating in, say, reds, for conversation, exercise. Also notice how much the huge art adds to this one-window room. Oversized framed posters in subjects that would appeal to your family--travel, sports, etc.--would add interest and light to the space. [https://www.houzz.com/magazine/midcentury-living-room-and-kitchen-get-a-stylish-comfy-update-stsetivw-vs~115016681[(https://www.houzz.com/magazine/midcentury-living-room-and-kitchen-get-a-stylish-comfy-update-stsetivw-vs~115016681)

Just discovered this topic, but weighing in anyway. I am in New England, so I don't have experience with the log firm you are considering. I did recently move into a log home and can give you some insight on the homes in general. The log home company I went with insisted that I use a GC that had past experience building log homes. I also talked to home owners that had gone through that company, and saw their homes, got their feedback. The company also had a yearly date when they made a small structure (garage) on their property to show how the homes are constructed. Very informative. When my house was being built, they sent one of their experts to assist in the laying of the log shell, to make sure that no corners were cut. (I am glad they did.) As far as Summit Studio's feedback: In my home, each log is connected with a layer of insulation. My home here in the hills of western Massachusetts is more tightly insulated than my old stick built home down in Connecticut - this is noticeable in the winter! Up here, I'm on the side of a hill with little in the way of trees to serve as a wind buffer -- it's a LOT cozier here than back down at the old place, where the winds never amounted to much. When the house shell was constructed, there was space along the floor allotted for electrical conduits and outlets. Light switches on outer walls didn't prove to be a problem, either - planned for at sensible locations by entry doors. As for plumbing, all my plumbing is on interior walls or sections of the house, with the exception of my prep sink... those hoses and drain pipe go down to the basement just before the back of that cabinet (which is how it's done in just about any house that has a basement). In winter country I really don't want plumbing on outer walls anyway. Yes, a log home will settle more than a conventional stick built home. When building, they take this into account (a reason why my log company insisted on my hiring a GC with past log home experience). I've had a few minor drywall breaks, but minor, and I knew to expect them. (I did have a few troubles with the GC I chose, but those had nothing to do with this being a log home.) Pricing notes: This worked out to be less expensive than my original stick built plans even though the ultimate house was the same square footage and more or less the same footprint (different design). I knew in my rural area dropping a half million on a home was just plain stupid. The log company charged me for the log shell, and included the roof, front porch, and exterior doors - but not the staining or floors. The GC charged twice that to do the foundation, the walk out basement, all the interior including carpentry for cabinets, the back deck (it wasn't an option on the log company plans), and the septic. (I'm not including the well or the landscaping in this.) I was able to do custom higher end things where it mattered to me, and scale back on the trivial stuff. Excluding that landscaping and well, this worked out to just about 10 percent above the GC's quote. I was able to modify the plans I chose from the log company. I discovered GW (now owned by Houzz) about the time I was working on the kitchen design, and I'm grateful for their assistance! Although the logs were being milled at that point (no changes on exterior), I was also able to get a couple other pointers placed towards my benefit inside.

I also live in a log home, we built it ourselves (DH & I) 13 years ago. I truly like the cozy feel of all the wood but it does lack natural sunlight (which is why I am always outside!) Because our home is so remote, the only home on 27 acres and a dead end, I don't use window dressings at all, other than the bedroom, which does have blinds. This helps brighten it up quite a bit and I have a lot of lamps, plants, colorful scatter rugs, pillows & throws. This works well & I get a lot of compliments on my decorating. I will say this, at first, I went a bit crazy with "cabin decor" and I lean more toward rustic yet colorful now. Be careful not to try too hard for the lodge look as it can get old & boring quickly.

I'm going to look at this from a slightly different perspective: Sometimes being forced to sell a property like this is a blessing in disguise. We sometimes become so attached to our family after they are gone that we forget to live our OWN lives. apple_pie_order said it, don't spend your life trying to make dead people happy. It's ok to have some sentimental attachments. It's not ok when those attachments have us making bad life decisions. Keeping this house would be a bad life decision on multiple fronts: 1. You clearly can't afford to buy-out the co-owner and the extensive repairs that are needed. No shame or blame, but it's good to have a clear-headed idea of the total cost of keeping this home vs your resources. 2. The neighborhood has changed so completely that it's no longer hospitable for that property. 3. There is no longer any "intrinsic value" in the house as a log cabin. It has been so re-muddled and architecturally bastardized that the only value is the novelty of saying "there's a log cabin under all that". I know this is a shock to you, but it wasn't "lovingly restored..." what was done was a "modernization / re-muddle" job. A log cabin was turned into a 1950-60's suburban house complete with an attached garage and kitschy lawn decor. This was the style of that time and what the owners wanted. It's cute and has character - but it's not a "lovingly restored log cabin" by any stretch of the imagination. 4. Keeping the house would require major changes / sacrifices to your life: You would have to live with mold/decay/structural dysfunction or you would need to make life changes to create the income to rehab it. If you don't sell, those are your choices. It's not rent-able as-is either. 5. I feel pretty certain that this property would not ever be viable financially as a single family home. Investing in repairs and maintenance would not ever result in a property that would appreciate and be marketable at some point in the future. It will always be a tear-down. 6. The co-ownership has created a potential legal minefield (see below). 7. Most of all, I think the weight of the sentimental attachment, and the history behind the will and how that went down, is crippling you.