ORC: Treehouse Before and Plans

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A treehouse counts as a room, right? It has 4 walls, a ceiling and a floor, so I’m calling it a room. (Just saw that Orlando is also doing a treehouse. *Shakes fist in the air!!!*) The spring One Room Challenge kicked off yesterday and I’m joining as a guest participant. In case you have no idea what the One Room Challenge is, Linda from Calling It Home issues a challenge twice a year to complete a room and document it in 6 weeks. Every Wednesday for 6 weeks, 20 designers share their progress and on Thursdays, Linda invites guests to play along.

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I’m working on my kid’s treehouse for the ORC. Maybe it’s not a glamorous space, but it’s so much fun. My husband built the treehouse over the past 2 summers and we just haven’t finished it up. It’s such a great space. Located down a mossy, tree lined trail…

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it’s painted to blend in with the trees, almost invisible until you reach it.

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It blends better when there are actually leaves on the trees. All of the wood still needs to be stained.

It has a partial wraparound porch and space under it that is begging for a hammock or at least a swing.

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It still needs walls and furniture. And all of the kid’s snow toys need to be put away. Apparently that’s the last time they played in there.

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We used clear corrugated plastic for the roof, which lets light in, but also makes it feel magical when the wind blows the trees.

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The view is my favorite thing ever. It’s the perfect place to watch sunsets. Plus you can see our swamp!

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It’s basically a blank slate, with a few things to keep in mind.

With a swamp nearby, mosquitoes are a problem. The windows need screens and the treehouse needs a door. It’s too far from the house to run electric to, so all light sources have to be solar. The kids want a cozy space to hang out it in, so I have to figure out how to make it comfortable using outdoor mildew-proof textiles. They also want places to sit. I want to give them waterproof storage so they can leave stuff in there. I also want to be able to steal it and use it for a grown up hang out space. Or just hide from the kids sometimes. 😉

My original plans were to do a camping theme, but I want it to be adult friendly as well.

 

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I’m sure the actual plans will change as I work, but this is the direction that I’m going in. The white chair cushion is for a daybed idea that I’m considering. Shiplap walls are also a consideration. They would be so easy to install (and carry up the ladder!) Plus they would be the perfect backdrop for everything else.

Hopefully the weather starts to cooperate a bit more. It’s hard to trek out to the treehouse and work when it’s pouring rain or supposed to snow.

 

 

Linking up here.

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9 Comments

  1. This is awesome! I am really hoping we can build a fort/playhouse for our kids this summer. Do you happen to know what the dimensions are? The ceilings look pretty tall.

    1. The house part is about 80″ x 105″. It’s about 80″ high. From the ground, the deck is probably 8′ high. It’s high enough to fully stand under. My kids are 8 and 12, so old enough where I don’t worry about the height. If they were younger, I would have asked my husband to build it shorter.
      It’s big enough for adults to comfortably hang out in it. 🙂

  2. Ooooh what a fun space to transform! It will also be interesting to see how you address the outdoor challenges. I can’t wait to see the progress!

  3. This is wonderful! We want to build one of these in the next few years (our kids are still a little young at 5 and 3) and I will totally be using your as inspiration. Can’t wait to see it finished!

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