Mike,
Do you have covered space to cut timbers? If so I would go with the cabin. My first frame was a two story 16x24 out of Sitka Spruce I got from Icy Straits Lumber in Hoonah. It is actually on their website, bottom frame in the top picture
http://www.alaskawoodproducts.com/timberframestructures.html After handling local hemlock I love Sitka Spruce, and if you have an abundance of cedar it is easier to move around alone than hemlock.
I ended up adding a 20x24 living room/kitchen and 10x16 entryway to that frame for a whole timberframe house. It was going to be a cabin but we liked it so much we decided to turn it into our house. There is a 16x24 basement with 10' ceilings under the original frame that we just finished out with birch trim and hardwood stairs (not trying to make it look like it is timberframe) and it goes quite well with the rest of the house.
I'd go with the cabin first, you will learn a lot from it without getting too overwhelmed plus get a bunch of ideas for the next one along the way. I started small and now I can't stop!
Feel free to email me if I can be any help.
Tyson
