Tiny Lighthouse and Tree Cabin

lighthouse

I thought of this tiny lighthouse when I saw your blog for the first time today. This lighthouse is located in Penobscot Bay, Maine. http://www.lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?ID=539 I was on a schooner cruise (knitting themed) and snapped this photo. I also built (with my dad’s help) a tiny tree cabin 20 years … Read more

The ecoPerch

Treehouses have been making the news lately with Deek Diedrickson’s “Wolfe’s Den” and Joel Allen’s HemLoft. Across the pond, the ecoPerch is a new tiny house design based on a treehouse from the Blue Forest company in the U.K. This beautiful structure is designed to fit into the natural surroundings … Read more

The HemLoft

The HemLoft

by Joel Allen

Some people make a conscious decision to buck the American standard of living and shoehorn their lives into a tiny home. It didn’t happen to me that way. I ended up building a small home through a series of bizarre circumstances. I started off with a career in Software development at the age of 23. By 26 I had saved some money and I attempted a retirement stunt that went sideways, leaving me penniless. That’s when I began living out of my car and decided that instead of returning to software, I would test my aptitude as a carpenter.

The HemLoft
Photo Credits Joel Allen

While living out of my car I discovered that I quite liked the sport of compact living. I was in Whistler at the time and although I didn’t own a home, I enjoyed one of the biggest backyards in the world. I even began sleeping outdoors and got a kick out of finding places where no one else had slept before. I called it sport sleeping and it led me to the believe that my home extended far beyond the confines of my car.

That fall I decided to build a treehouse in my spare time. It was meant to be a simple sleeping loft that I could use as a secret camping spot on crown land in the woods. I felt compelled to build something more elegant than the average treehouse so I began consulting a couple of friends who were recent graduates from architecture school. Together we conceived of the egg-shaped treehouse.

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“Deek” Diedrickson on GardenFork Radio

Treehouses, homemade canoes and Labrador Retrievers. What more can you ask for in a radio show? Eric Rochow of GardenFork recently spoke with Deek Diedrickson, microhome builder and author of the new “Humble Homes, Simple Shacks” book in an episode of GardenFork Radio. Deek and Eric (two men cut from … Read more

baumraum Treehouses

I’m sure many tiny house enthusiasts have dreamed of living in the branches of an oak tree in their own tree house, hidden by leaves and accompanied by birds and a light breeze. This dream could become a reality with these elegant, little nests from the German company, baumraum. They specialize in the design and building of tree houses and other constructions in natural surroundings.

The company combines the creative and constructive expertise of an architect with the experience of a landscape designer, a tree expert, and other craftsmen. They transform individual ideas and wishes into ingenious and inspiring dwellings that combine versatility with craftsmanship of the highest quality and maximum safety standards. These tree houses are also installed without harming the tree. They are not anchored with bolts or nails into the tree, but rather with textile belts and adjustable steel cables. This protects the bark, trunk and branches and allows the tree flexibility and growth.

The dimensions and the height of the tree houses depends on the stability and health of the tree. Sometimes it might be better to anchor the tree house to two or more trees rather than a single one. The tree houses can have a horizontal or upright design, with two or more levels, or even consist of several interconnected constructions at different heights. Most of the tree houses are units about the size of a small trailer or caravan.

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An Atypical Tree House via Dwell

Ryan alerted me to this 172 square foot tree house which serves as an office and guest room that was featured in Dwell.

This office/guest house is built on an estate in Brentwood, California a suburb of Los Angeles and was designed by Rockefeller Partners Architects, Inc. I’m sure this was an expensive tree house but that information was not given.
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The architects took about eight months to design the tree house. Construction of the inhabitable sculpture, with its studio and lounge, took another 18 months.

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Green Line Architects Tree House

Steve from Green Line Architects had commented on the Old Time Tiny Houses post and I happened to click on his link and discovered this cool tree house. Steve said I could share it with you, so here are the details.

This treehouse was designed for relaxation and contemplation, a meditative space for kids of all ages…   It was originally conceived as a place for children to play, but its equally comfortable for adults.

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It is ideal for a couple, on a romantic evening, or could easily fit a family of four.  In a pinch, it could sleep up to 6 adults.

It’s fully insulated, which is a necessity in our cold mountain climate, with has a natural gas heater and electricity, and no bathroom, though the owner will be use a composting toilet in it from time to time.

The owner has requested anonymity, as well as keeping the cost a secret!  (we can tell you that it was very expensive…)

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It was designed collaboratively between Green Line Architects and David Rasmussen Design.  David is a designer/project manager at Green Line and he built the treehouse, and designed and built the custom lighting fixtures.  He honed his skills building  handicapped accessible treehouses for Forever Young Treehouses.

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Free Spirit Spheres

What do Ewoks and Julie “Butterfly” Hill have in common? They have discovered the ethereal magic of living up in a tree. Tom Chudleigh of Vancouver Island, Canada has discovered the same magic with his Free Spirit Spheres, handcrafted tree houses that bob among the trees like giant apples. Image … Read more

Outa the Woods

I have been wanting to cover some tree houses as they fit very well in the tiny house arena. There are some really neat ones around the world that I would like to share with you. I will start with one of my favorite finds, located in the East Kootenays … Read more