DIYers, take heart: This amazing 200-square-foot treehouse was built over the course of four summers by a non-architect, using only $10,000 worth of castaway items collected from Craigslist.
Designer (and former software engineer) Joel Allen trekked through old-growth forests in Whistler, British Columbia, to find the perfect perch for his rustic retreat: a hemlock tree that stood at the edge of a 20-foot drop.
He said his friends thought he'd gone mad for undertaking such a project. He admitted to refreshing Craigslist every two minutes, waiting for the next new item to pop up so he could swoop in on it before someone else did.
The egg-shaped treehouse was constructed using 18-foot-long ribs that run from top to bottom to form the struts. The cedar siding was salvaged from the interior of an old sauna. Glass from broken cabinets were repurposed into windows. A double pane door turned into a sliding glass door with the addition of Rollerblade wheels on a track.
To create a more efficient space within the tiny footprint, all the built-in shelving and furniture were crafted from free Craigslist finds. Allen used the oft-forgotten space behind the stairs to place a small desk, and built sleeping quarters into the loft.
Since completing this elegant retreat, Allen and his fiancée (who also had a hand in the project) now reside in Salmon Arm, British Columbia, and build small custom homes for lakeside retirement communities.
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(Images: Dwell)
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oh. my. god.
Very cool!
What RMHCT said.
Does anyone else think of Myst?
I want one but I don't think just anyone is allowed to build a dwelling on crown land. How long until the guv'ment issues an order to remove it?
Wait. He spent $10K, not to mention thousands of hours of design and labor, to build a structure on land he doesn't own?
If so, perhaps his friends ARE right.
Welcome to BC ;-) I live on Vancouver Island, and there are known, long-time squatter communities up and down the coast. And the folks aren't living in tents. The Gov't may issue an order to remove, but with the way all levels have been cut back in the last while, I don't imagine that there are that many out there policing this sort of thing. As long as you're not in a tree they want, or on top of minerals that have a market value.
Amazing!
ONLY $10k?? That doesn't sound like a bargain.
I have just the tree...
Hey Folks, Joel here. I didn't notice a link from this page to the official treehouse website: http://thehemloft.com. Please check it out for the full story on the HemLoft.
Thanks!
I love it but as @Bibliovore said, I'd fall right off that railing-free entry.
Love it! Here are some tips on building your own from my interview with professional treehouse builder Simon Payne http://blog.2modern.com/2011/09/treehouses-for-grownups-blueforest-co-founder-simon-payne.html enjoy!