Mysest56 
November 18, 2018
Is there some kid out there who doesn’t long for a personal little sanctuary — a personal place to call her or his own? The treehouses featured here are constructed out of different substances and in varying configurations, sizes and shapes. Some have their feet firmly planted on the ground, but some have trees growing straight through the middle. Despite all this diversity, they really do have some thing in common: Every one is going to bring out the child in you.
Doug Abbott of Village Builders states that security was foremost on his head after he took on this project, which sits one of a small grouping of trees. “I needed it to be secure for children of all ages, and it had been constructed to ensure a deck encircles two sides of the building with a rail, allowing them to play inside or outside,” he states.
In a nod to the dumbwaiter systems previously, “We also stretched the ridge of the building out over the deck to permit to get a rope and pulley system,” Abbott notes, “so that the children could haul their toys in a basket by the ground around the deck without having to carry them up the steps”
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Shelter Design Studio, LLC
Jason Hayburn of Shelter Design Studio claims that this treehouse was assembled for the grandchildren of a couple who live on a wooded lot. Located in a natural clearing, it’s constructed out of cedar, and it has retrieved windows plus a standing-seam metal roof. “The owner needed the treehouse to look like a quaint cabin in the woods,” states Hayburn. “It’s an L-shaped floor plan with a half-round deck that connects the two legs. The children like running up the stairs on one side and down the stairs on the other.”
Bjon Pankratz
This treehouse was created and assembled by Bjon Pankratz because of his children. His wife, photographer Laurel Pankratz, documented the process. “I always wanted a treehouse as I was growing up and never got the opportunity to have one,” she writes.
Bjon Pankratz
The Pankratz treehouse gives off a warm, welcoming glow at night.
Bill Fry Construction – Wm. H. Fry Const. Co..
“Every little boy needs a tree fort, especially a builder’s son,” states Bill Fry of Bill Fry Construction. Fry used redwood, since it will fade into the color of the adjoining trees. “All the doors and shutters near keep our outdoor buddies — squirrels, racoons, possums — outside”
He proudly notes, “this unassuming house has come to be the world headquarters of the Tree Fort Republic, an association of local boys with its own governing body and paper.”
Kerrie L. Kelly
Now this is really a delighted home. Interior designer Kerrie L. Kelly teamed up with Pulte Homes to make a treehouse made of metal, wood and foam that was raffled off to benefit the Child Abuse Prevention Council of Placer County, near Sacramento, California.
“The house sold for $36,000, with all of the proceeds benefitting the charity,” says Kelly. “Meanwhile, one blessed child had the structure reinstalled in their very own backyard. The entrance is a ladder, and the exit is a slide that comes out of the side of the tree into the softscape below.”
Kerrie L. Kelly
The inside of Kelly’s treehouse features hardwood flooring, window coverings with hardware made of branches and inspirational sayings painted on the walls.
Keith Willig Landscape Services, Inc..
“What I’ve found in increasing four boys and construction treehouses is that children love big boxes up to the gifts that come in big boxes,” says landscape architect Keith Willig. “Meaning they like it simple and in a way that permits them to use their creativity. We typically use recycled stuff, old fence boards, doors and windows.” Surprisingly, it required two workers just 3 times to create this inventive structure.
Keith Willig Landscape Services, Inc..
This is another project by Willig. “I like to interject a little midcentury-modern asymmetry into the plan and let the children tell me exactly what they want in the way of features — for example, a fireman’s pole, pirate flag, zip line, net, trap doors, et cetera.” This multipurpose treehouse took more to construct than the prior one, requiring approximately 10 times of labor by three workers.
Lloyd Architects
Some treehouses are built with much more than just fun and games in mind. “This one belongs to a fantastic family with a special-needs daughter,” says architect Warren Lloyd. “It occupies the attic level of the house, and the back conceals a residential elevator that ensures that the daughter has access to all parts of the house.” He adds that lots of components, such as the branches nested beneath the deck, were the owners’ thoughts. The tree trunk was framed in wood, and the branches are a metal frame. Both were completed with epoxy resin and synthetic substances.
Aitken and Associates
This beauty looks almost just like a work of art. The caption attached to the picture by landscape designer Karen Aitken pretty much says it all: “Wisteria on Atherton fort.”
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Show us your treehouse: Can you have a treehouse, or did you personally as a child? Please add your photo — current or vintage — and tell us about it.
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