We are still a few years away from finishing construction, but our plan is to open the North Star suite with the Under Hill and Copper Crown suites following close behind.

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According to local legend, the North Star was once the home of Ms. Temperance Longbottom. Best know as the captain of the privateer ship, Avellana (guests will sleep in the captain’s quarters), Ms. Longbottom once discovered pirates’ lair; filled with wonders and relics from every mythical corner of the world. After relieving these rogues of their ill gotten gain, she set off on a series of voyages; intent on returning the artifacts to their various homes. Sadly, Temperance never returned from these travels. As a result, the North Star and its attached private garden are filled with the remnants of the pirates’ trove — ancient statues and arcane paraphernalia. Temperance's ramshackle property is perfect for couples looking for a one-of-a-kind romantic hideaway.

We have been sharing our journey as we dream, plan, and build the Hazelnut Inn almost from the very beginning. It is an interesting project (if I do say so myself) and I have really enjoyed writing about it thus far!

As it turns out, I am not the only one who has been keeping the internet informed about the nuts and bolts and hard work (!) of building our little hotel. Our general and our framer have also been diligently documenting the inn’s progress on Instagram and recently our framer, Rob Span, wrote a few longer posts about the preparation and pouring of the inn’s footings.

Of course my father, Dan Sawatzky, has been keeping his legion of readers informed for a very long time. You can read his perspective (half design genius and half proud father) on the design and construction of the inn on the Imagination Corporation’s Journal.

And (because this post’s title is a little bit of click bait) here is my two cents (if we still had pennies) on writing a blog:

1. Have something to write about

   Possibly you should write about something other people might find interesting but definitely make sure it is interesting to you.

2. Write about it

   It doesn’t really matter what you start with, nobody except your mother is going to read your first post.

3. Keep writing about it

   This is the hard part but keep at it (sadly, nobody is going to read your second post either).

4. You guessed it - keep writing

   It’s just not a blog if you don’t you write regularly.

Good Luck!

Construction on the Hazelnut Inn is progressing in leaps and bounds these days. We still have a long way to go but we are on track to open our first room.

Guests who would like to be among the first to book a stay can sign up for an early-bird email below. We will be taking advance reservations in the next few days so now is your last chance to sign up!

Photo Credit: Rob Span

Yesterday, we installed the Copper Crown suite’s bedroom tower roof and the Under Hill suite’s skylight tree. Along with the North Star suite’s ship stern, these two features really define the building’s eastern elevation. The trusses for the rest of the roofs should arrive today and once they are in place the Hazelnut’s final silhouette will be evident.

Installing large pieces like these is always a bit of an adrenaline rush, but the trick to a good lift is to go as slow and methodically as possible. We took our time and everything went smoothly - just the way we like it!

It won’t be long until we can begin to shingle the roofs. Once the exterior is weather tight we will start theming the interiors.

It is really starting to feel like we are building some momentum on the site these days. Our carpenters are merrily hammering away while we are busy prefabricating in the shop. This coming week promises even more visual progress - I can hardly wait!