.jpg)
Having your very own place in the world is a big deal. I remember buying my first piece of property when I was 18 and thinking Wow, I own this little piece of the world. Within the boundaries of this property, I can come visit, entertain and camp out here whenever I want and no one can tell me to leave. This reminded me of a time when I was much younger and had dug in a hidden fort into a hillside or when my brother and neighbor went and built a mansion size tree fort out of materials we had borrowed from a near by shed.
Having your own place in the world must be a basic instinct with most of us. It makes you feel confident and like you belong. Even with the technologies of today, social media, cell phones, and clicks in schools, I think kids struggle even harder with finding out who they are and where they belong.
I think kids still should feel like they have that place that they own, feel confident and like they belong to something important and even that something important belongs to them. I wanted my kids to have this experience and wanted to create a place that was just as unique as they are. We had the regular swing set / playset with a slide for a number of years, but I wanted to provide a home type feel that they too could use to entertain, camp out, and even call their own.
I began doing sketches in 2009 of a crooked little house that took many forms. I began collecting materials starting with some old barn wood I saw on the side of the road that was for free. I also had helped my good friend Ed Martin, remove a Giant double trunked cedar that had fallen in his yard. I loaded the 10’ length logs on a trailer and hauled them home. The last piece I collected was a 6’ diameter reinforced concrete manhole type of pipe that would later support the whole structure. I got this piece for next to nothing from the manufacturer as it was spec'd to have a hole drilled into one side and was never used by the state.
.jpg)
It made sense for me to begin the construction of this crooked cabin since I thought I had at least 60% of the materials with very little money invested. Just like the old days, I never really knew where the rest of the materials would come from, I just knew they would come.
On the day I started, I completely rearranged the orientation of the tree house from what was drawn and from that point started the design process all over in my mind.
I failed to mentioned before, that the location in which I wanted this tree house, there were no suitable trees so I decided to make one.
Along with two large cedar post, I used the concrete pipe as the main support structure for the house. I built a steel and lath wire frame to look like a wind swept tree trunk. The walls and roof lines, I wanted to have swag and and a dilapidated character. I wanted it to look as if the overly confident “papa bear” from the Berenstain Bears built it himself.
The treehouse was a joy to build and my kids helped right along the way. It took us about a year of weekends and some summer nights to build. I know they will have fond memories playing in their tree house and even building it with their dad. I know for me it was, and may always be, the most important project I have belonged to or been a part of.
