The Guesthouse

Your first stop upon arriving at the Treehotel grounds is the Guesthouse, where you check in to your room. The nine rooms in here give off a distinct throwback vibe, drawing on inspiration from designs of the 1930s to 1950s. Don’t worry, though — they still have Wi-Fi.

The Blue Cone

Set upon posts, this square red building is raised off the ground and handicap accessible. In stark contrast to its rustic exterior, the Blue Cone’s birch interior emanates a calm, sleek Swedish design. It also provides four beds, a sleeping loft, lounge area, and bathroom.

The Dragonfly

Perfectly suited for use as a meeting room, the Dragonfly boasts a table that seats 12, a lounge area, bathroom, and two smaller group rooms. Even if you’re ditching work for a personal stay, you’ll find that this lodging comfortably sleeps four people. Whatever the reason for your visit may be, the Drangonfly’s large panoramic windows are sure keep you feeling close to nature.

The UFO

The name helps paint an accurate mental picture of this silver orb nestled into the trees. To top it all off, guests gain entry to the UFO via a retractable staircase that stretches down to the ground. Inside, you’ll find a much cozier scene, with a main room that accommodates up to five people.

The Cabin

On first approach, the Cabin appears to float weightless in the trees. Intended for two guests, it’s a long capsule-shaped room with a double bed, bathroom, and terrace.

The Bird’s Nest

Camouflaged in the surrounding trees, one might trek right past this room if they didn’t know what to look for. Completely encased in branches like the massive nest of a bird, the Bird’s Nest is also accessed via a retractable staircase.

The 7th Room

As you’ve probably already guest, this addition came about only after the first six rooms were designed and built. Looking up at it from ground level, you’ll see a reflection of the surrounding forest printed on its underside. But while it blends into its surroundings on the outside, the 7th Room offers a very different atmosphere inside, with contemporary decor and massive northern-facing windows that facilitate views of the northern lights. Guests can even lay in a large cargo net off the deck to take in the sounds of the forest and obstructed views of the sky from a height of about 32 feet off the ground.

The Mirrorcube

Distinct even among unique designs, the Mirrorcube looks exactly like its name suggests. Its aluminum-framed base was contoured around the base of a neighboring tree before the reflective glass walls were added to complete the cubical concept. Like the other rooms, though, its interior brings nothing but warmth, comfort, and sleek amenities for two guests to enjoy.
Nearby buildings offer breakfast, lunch, and dinner options, as well as showers, a sauna, and a bar. When you’re not too busy enjoying the spectacular views from your room, visiting with other patrons in the sauna or Guesthouse, or eating your way through Swedish delicacies at the on-site restaurant, you might find yourself taking in the nearby hiking, rafting, kayaking, wildlife viewing, horseback riding, fishing, or fat bike riding options.

The post Sweden’s Treehotel Offers Offbeat Lodgings in Cozy Forest first appeared on Dornob.

Set on the grounds of Fiskars, an art and design hub, the KOJA treehouse has been realized in 1:1 scale for the Fiskars Village Art & Design Biennale. Made of sustainable materials like wood and wool, the treehouse captures Polestar’s design language and planet-protecting values, “symbolizing a shift in both the way we use materials and the way we define a space,” as the brand explains.

Designer Kristian Talvitie was inspired to create a structure that allowed people to immerse themselves in nature without traveling far. The idea is that while it’s important to make the technologies we use to travel more sustainable, it’s also important for everyone to travel less in order to respond to the climate crisis. The treehouse nestles up into a tree canopy, which can be located virtually anywhere — even in a backyard, or a public park in a major city. That makes the experience of relaxing among the branches more accessible, reducing the need to intrude upon the wilderness.

The design is a black capsule with a nearly 360-degree ribbon of glass along the facade, granting occupants sweeping views of their surroundings. Stairs at the back grant access, and inside, visitors will find a bench wrapped around the tree trunk, essentially turning it into a sculptural focal point. Padded benches and work surfaces also line the interior walls. The roof is made of glass, too, so you can look up and gaze at the stars. This modern treehouse is made of locally sourced materials to help it blend in with its environment but has a futuristic aesthetic, demonstrating that sustainable design can be sleek and interesting, too.

“It’s amazing how well it embodies our brand values,” says Martin Österberg, Head of Marketing for Polestar Finland. “It’s beautiful in its simplicity, and the fact that it’s made from locally sourced spruce really emphasizes our focus on sustainability. We think we found the perfect home for it here at the Biennale.”

KOJA wasn’t the only sustainable micro-house displayed at the Fiskars Village Art & Design Biennale. As part of the exhibit “House by an Architect,” it joins six other mini-homes which are available for rent through Airbnb. KOJA will remain open to the public through September.

The two other winning designs of the 2021 Polestar Design Contest are “Glad to Be Dirty” by Mingwei Liu in the Student category and “Polestar H_UB” by David Vultaggio in the Professional category. The former is a small, geometric car which an architectural take on Polestar’s design vocabulary that actively filters dirty air as it goes, “allowing the user to feel proud of driving a dirty car.”

The H_UB is both a brand experience center and a place to hang out while charging your Polestar vehicle, which generates its own electricity and produces hydrogen from a biomass roof. The design is “a comprehensive reimagining of what once might have been called a garage.”

The post Electric Carmaker Polestar Translates Its Brand Identity to a Modern Treehouse first appeared on Dornob.

In London, a family with young children did just that. Lacking any mature trees of their own, they were saddened by the loss of a neighbor’s ailing tree, which provided shade and a sense of a natural environment to their urban backyard. They turned to architecture firm De Matos Ryan to build a play structure that evoked the wonder of a treehouse. Completed in 2021, the “Penfold” project is an unusual take on playhouses that could be mimicked in other treeless environments.

“All children have an unencumbered view of the world, who, given the opportunity to express themselves, can act as a catalyst to highly innovative and imaginative concepts,” say the architects. “Together we developed ideas around a den which was inaccessible to adults but had a crow’s nest, referencing their favorite cartoon Danger Mouse, in which the reluctant sidekick, Penfold, is a timid, bespectacled hamster.”

“Penfold’s codename ‘Jigsaw’ gave license to develop an entirely sustainable geometric timber frame that was elemental and simply looked like the way it was built. The structure needed to be prefabricated in pieces and carried through the house via domestic scaled doors. When assembled the triangular Douglas fir frames combined tom are a truncated pyramidal form. The Siberian Larch slatted cladding has a stainless steel cable lattice to encourage climbing plants over the volume and ultimately create the sense of a tree that never was.”

De Matos Ryan wanted to give Penfold an unusual form and abstract scale so it could become anything the kids can possibly conjure up with their imaginations, from a pirate ship to a castle turret. Since it’s so tall, they had to get planning permission to build it, which was granted only on the provision that the family must remove it if the property is ever sold. Thankfully, since it’s modular, that just means they’ll have an opportunity to pack it up and take it with them if they like.

This idea of allowing vines to climb up over the structure to give it a lushly vegetated feel is brilliant. Whether or not any of the family’s neighbors cut down additional trees, the kids will retain the fun and functionality of their treehouse, and the whole family will have something green to look at from their back windows.

The structure brings a sense of childlike wonder to the compact garden. Wouldn’t you want to climb inside and explore it, too? Alas, the builders have ensured a “kids only” policy by building the entrance as a portal so low you’d have to crawl into an uncomfortably tight space to get in.

The post Treeless Treehouse: Multi-Level Play Structure for a London Backyard first appeared on Dornob.

“I got to spend a few days and nights in some of the Treehotel rooms right before the pandemic, and left with a sense of rejuvenation from complete immersion into nature,” says BIG founder and creative director Bjarke Ingels. “I couldn’t help wondering if there was a way to take the immersion one step further – and almost instantly the idea of inviting not only the human visitors but also the resident bird and bat population to cohabit a spherical swarm of nests came to life. After our first conversations with Ulf Öhman from Norrbotten Ornithological Association we were relieved to learn that birds don’t drop where they nest – so there is hope for the glass to remain clear within this cloud of aviary architecture.”

As the name suggests, Biosphere is a spherical suspended room that offers habitation not just to humans, but wildlife as well. BIG worked with Swedish ornithologist Ulf Öhman to craft an exterior that’s capable of welcoming up to 350 families of birds, strengthening biodiversity in the area. In addition to bird houses of various sizes designed to attract different species, there are bat houses, bee houses, and bird feeders. The treehouse is accessed by a suspended bridge stretching from the ground to the pine canopies.

“Inventories in Norrbotten County, carried out both by us as ornithologists and by the County Administrative Board, show that a number of different bird populations are decreasing,” says Öhman, chairman of the Norbotten Ornithological Association. “Forestry has led to a. Reduced number of natural holes in trees where breeding birds nest. The installation of bird nests is therefore an important measure to take. Furthermore, climate change leads to the insect boom happening earlier in the year, and by the time the birds’ eggs hatch, the boom has already passed.”

“Feeding is an important support mechanism for the birds that stay in Northern Sweden and require food during winter. Demonstrating the use of bird nests and feeding, not just at the Treehotel but for people to install near their own homes, is valuable. An initiative from Treehotel to take such measures may inspire their visitors to do the same.”

If you think the outside is cool, check out the interiors. While BIG decided to craft a comfortable space that emphasizes pragmatism and simplicity, the glass walls let guests watch as birds enter and leave the birdhouses attached to the exterior. It’s a birdwatcher’s dream, almost as if you could cozy up inside a tree trunk yourself and peer out at natural bird nests tucked within the branches.

The checkered pattern of the bird houses allows glimpses of the forest outside and transmission of natural daylight. The room also includes a living area with a chair swing, a bathroom, and a lofted bedroom. These dark interiors are designed to direct visitors’ gaze outward instead of within. Even better, guests can climb up onto the roof for 360-degree views, giving them an intimate sense of immersion in nature.

The post BIG’s Biosphere Will Add a Floating Birdhouse-Covered Room to Sweden’s Treehotel first appeared on Dornob.

As Buckminster Fuller himself explained, the tetrahedron represents “the minimum system of the Universe, and it turned out to be, then, omni-triangulated and we found that structures are always triangulated. Structure meant triangle and triangle meant structure, there were no other stable polygons. Therefore, the tetrahedron turned out to be the minimum structural system of the Universe.”

The tetrahedron is Fuller’s model of the simplest three-dimensional geometric system that can be used as the basis for other shapes, like his famous geodesic domes. He called this “cosmic logic of the structural mathematics strategies of nature,” which he spent much of his life studying and defining under the name “Synergetics.” In the case of Bow House, the tetrahedron helps to create a stable base for the cabin, takes full advantage of the small plot of land, and gives it an interesting silhouette.

“Casa Proa (Bow House in portugues) was designed by Atelier Marko Brajovic by a creative process inspired in triangular modulations on different scales and a tree house typology,” the architects say. “The 6x6x6 meters of equilateral triangular volume was installed at Praia do Rosa beach in Paraty (Brazil), located between a Mango tree, the traditional colonial house, and a major rock on steep waterfront terrain. The triangular geometry redundancy on the floor plan and section, as well on the tetrahedron roof system, promotes both structural and perceptive strategy. The architecture organizes a compact living space modulated in further sub-triangles and creates a visual pattern as much in the space and finishings.”

The architects also drew inspiration from traditional South American treehouses in designing this dreamy beach retreat. Though the cabin is on stilts rather than getting its load-bearing support from the surrounding trees, its perch on the slope just above vegetation like tropical flowers and palm trees creates a similar effect.

The main sleeping room is in the center of the cabin, looking straight out from the “prow” toward the ocean. The kitchen is tucked behind it, and in the two triangle points on either side are an entrance and a bathroom. The edge of the wraparound terrace serves as one big bench, so you can sit anywhere you like and look out at the forest, the water, or the hills on the other side.

Furniture custom-designed specifically for Bow House fills the interiors, including curtains made out of local shrimp fishing nets and wall lamps made of traditional bronze boat drains. It’s details like these that make it feel like a one of a kind getaway infused with the flavor of its unique Costa Verde location.

The post Tetrahedron Treehouse Peeks Out of the Trees Like the Prow of a Ship first appeared on Dornob.

Commissioned by the tiny home startup Bambau and designed by architecture studio Precht, “Bert” is an imaginative modular home that can sprout up vertically as well as horizontally in the form of additional prefabricated rooms and stairwells. The layout of the home mimics that of a tree, with its upward movement and ability to branch out.

For inspiration for their build, studio co-founders Chris and Fei Tang Precht tried to get inside the mind of a child. “As architects, no matter if young or old, we have an inner child that looks at the world with playfulness and curiosity,” says co-founder Fei Tang Precht, adding that “that curiosity makes us want to explore, experiment, and create. That same curiosity gave birth to Bert.”

They even used elements from children’s entertainment within their creation. “We are fully aware that architecture is this serious and profound craft with a long culture and tradition. You see that when we architects find reference for our projects in art, philosophy, literature, or nature,” says Chris Precht. “For this project, we also looked at art to find reference. But not at Michelangelo or Dali. Rather we looked at cartoon characters of Sesame Street or Minions.”

The name even came from the Sesame Street character Bert, beloved for his long, cylindrical head, while the structure’s round, oversized windows were intended to look a bit like the one-eyed minions from the Despicable Me film series.

“We took a playful look at this project and wanted to create a rather unique character than a conventional building,” adds Chris, “a quirky looking character that becomes part of the wildlife of a forest. I think this quirkiness can create feelings and emotions. And maybe these are attributes in architecture that are missing these days.”

The treehouse begins like any sturdy sapling, building its foundation into the ground with a circular base. Then “the trunk” of the edifice begins to grow, with tube-shaped units like kitchens, living rooms, and bathrooms being stacked on top of each other or creating new horizontal limbs.

Constructed from wood, the exterior is covered in leaf-shaped shingles to give the treehouse an element of camouflage in the forest. Inside, dark fabrics keep the home cozy and hold in the heat. If an off-grid system is required or desired, Bert can be fitted with solar panels on the roof and a composting toilet and water treatment facility can be built into the ground floor. Alternate plans are available for Bert in less forested regions, too, as it can be fabricated from steel instead of wood.

Studio Precht, based out of mountains of Austria, continually tries to build distinctive, climate appropriate, and culturally defining structures. They disdain the “International Style” of buildings made of concrete and steel that are essentially “a copy of a copy of a copy” and make cities look indistinguishable from each other.

Chris and Fei “know that buildings like Bert are not the path forward on a big scale, but [we] think as an industry, we need to dare more, try more, and experiment more towards a more diverse future of our cities.”

The post Bert Modular Treehouse Can “Grow” Like the Forest Around It first appeared on Dornob.

There is a method behind the magic of a backyard tree house – and while it is not all fun and games, the construction process can be a participatory educational experience for children as well as an engaging do-it-yourself project for adults. Building a treehouse for kids is a rewarding project that can help refine your DIY skills.

Free from direct attachment to trees, this variant is simple, sustainable and versatile – a plywood-framed box and a set of wooden stilts. It can thus be built and deconstructed as needed, adding safety, too, over a tree-tied version.

Imminently practical (and replicable), Ravnikar Potokar Arhitekturni used standard-sized beams, boards and sheets as well as easy-to-pour concrete footings with off-the-shelf steel anchors for simplicity and stability.

Essential saws and basic carpentry skills make it easy enough for a few (safety-conscious) people to put the whole thing together from scratch, while these plan and section drawings show the basics required to make it all work.

The catch is in the erecting of the prefabricated-on-the-ground framework – one would assume, though, that the stilt supports could be put up first then cross-braces added once they were vertical.

The result: a cool little all-weather reading-room villa, four-season club house cottage and/or lofted play space lodge that is weatherproof, well-lit, modern in style but traditional in materials.

Something based on these specs would make a great little flexible addition to a front or back lawn, garden or forest space, complete with framed views on the front plexiglass facade and little operable hinged-plywood window boxes on all sides.

More from the architects

“The Tree House, designed by Robert Potokar of Robert Potokar Architecture Office and co-designer Janez Brežnik, is a wooden play structure that is elevated without requiring nearby trees to support its weight. The concept, originally designed in February 2008 as since been realized three times. The freestanding, self-supporting house-by-a-tree is a playhouse designed with contemporary design principles, deviating from precedents that model real houses or garden sheds. Instead, the design was guided by the goal of creating interesting and different spatial experiences for children that inspire new forms of play.”

The post Modern Magic: Building a Treehouse for Kids [Plans & Pics] first appeared on Dornob.

Contrary to appearances, the architects didn’t kill any living trees or strip them of their leaves for this project. They instead created faux dead trees to serve as a decorative framework for each cluster, piercing through layers of elevated terraces and the rooftops of the cabins themselves. Each individual cabin faces a different direction, offering unique views of the vegetated mountains around them.

Located within the hotel district of Senbo Resort Hangzhou, these “nest residences” are envisioned as “a group of cabins landing on the branches,” almost as if they were living creatures themselves. The architects wanted to avoid over-realism by adding fake leaves to the trunks, deciding instead to mimic the way some animals choose to nest in dead trees. Since the clusters are nestled within the forest, however, they maintain a relatively convincing appearance.

The WH Studio team explains that “the design of stacking abstract volumes of residential prototype has precedents in Europe and Japan, but most are more inclined to geometrical manipulation and often limited to the internal experience. Based on the commercial character of this project and the mountain environment, we focused on the balance between abstraction and image, indoor and outdoor, geometry and nature.”

“The experience of the Tree House starts with ‘tree climbing.’ We pay special attention to the outdoor path and experience the zigzagging path like ‘climbing,’ outdoor terraces of different heights are like ‘tree branches’ for little rest, and the house is equivalent to the ‘fruit’ of the tree. The path has the experience of winding, light and shade changes, while the terrace is a comfortable outdoor activity space. Although each Tree House contains several artificial trees with structural functions, it is conceptually a ‘big tree’ composed of three elements of ‘path-platform-house.’”

The six cabins in each cluster assume one of two forms: a simple gabled style, and another with four rooftop slopes (with the latter meant to evoke the feel of a fairytale cabin). One style also has a balcony tucked beneath its roof for more introversion, while the other has a projecting balcony for more extroversion. The architects express regrets that their original design was a bit watered down once it was actually built. More specifically, they hoped for a stronger fairytale effect, with shingled roofs and slides leading from the higher cabins to the lower platforms.

Whether it was a result of budgeting or just the clients’ preferences, the architects’ original designs were ultimately altered for a more streamlined modern look. But that hasn’t dampened the popularity of the cabins, which have quickly become a glamorous check-in point for both celebrities and the wannabe Insta-famous. WH Studio theorizes that this warm reception comes from the cabins’ ability to meet “the psychological needs of people to return to primitive imagination.”

There’s definitely a little bit of an uncanny Disneyland feel to these tree house nests, but in a good way, and indeed, it would be hard to resist a selfie or two while staying here.

The post Stacked Treehouses at China’s Senbo Resort Designed to Mimic Nests first appeared on Dornob.

The Castle Cottage — Lake George, New York

If having a whole castle to yourself (or at least, your family or pod of quarantine buddies) sounds more up your alley, The Castle Cottage is your fairytale waiting to happen. Set on a mountaintop in the Adirondacks overlooking Lake George, this gorgeous stone keep sleeps up to six people.

Alpaca Treehouse — Atlanta, Georgia

Sometimes you need a place to get away without leaving the city. In Atlanta, this treehouse set within a bamboo forest comes complete with wandering llamas. Seriously. One of the most wishlisted Airbnbs in the world (and recently featured on the Netflix reality show Love is Blind, Delta’s inflight commercials, Animal Planet’s Treehouse Masters, and VH1’s Love & Hip Hop), this space sleeps four guests. Unsurprisingly, this spot is also super in-demand for small weddings, photo shoots, and music videos.

Silo Studio Cottage — Tyringham, Massachusetts

A romantic getaway ideal for a couple, the Silo Studio Cottage is an adorable two-story round house on the Santarella Estate in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts. Formerly the summer studio of sculptor Henry Hudson Kitson, it features a 35-foot-high conical ceiling with a canopied bed and views of a nearby lily pond and babbling brook.

Earthship Studio — Taos, New Mexico

Staying overnight in an awesome recycled Earthship is a must-do in New Mexico. This one in Taos includes all the cool features you’d expect in an Earthship, including glass bottle walls, polished earthen floors, and a passive solar sunroom, plus modern amenities like Wi-Fi, Netflix, and a luxurious deep tub.

River House — New Orleans, Louisiana

This one bedroom, one bath guest home tucked away in the historic neighborhood of Faubourg Marigny is well away from the crowds of downtown, but it still packs in all the New Orleans charm you can handle. Located on the second floor of a mansion, it features its own private 500-square-foot balcony with original cast iron railings and city views, as well as access to a swimming pool and lush gardens.

Desert Yacht — Terlingua, Texas

Looking for a highly unique place where you can be wild and free? This Airbnb getaway is literally a yacht in the desert near Big Bend in West Texas, and officially listed as “clothing optional.” It features one bedroom, a kitchen, an upper deck for all the stargazing you can handle, and best of all, loads of privacy. The property itself is a good 20 miles outside civilization, but Wi-Fi access and an indoor shower are just a quick drive away.

Desert Sage House — Yucca Valley, California

Dreaming of a place where you can safely gather with your friends or extended family? This complex of cabins, yurts, and trailers is spread out on five acres of land in California’s Yucca Valley, and set up so you can hang out together outdoors or retreat to your own private spaces. You’ll have the whole property to yourselves (but no parties or weddings are allowed). It’s capable of hosting up to 12 guests in five bedrooms, with eight beds total.

Chelan Hobbit Haven — Orondo, Washington

A global pandemic is enough to make anyone wish they could hide away in a hobbit hole. Lucky for you, you actually can! “Underground Hygge” is an earth house nestled into the Columbia River Gorge mountainside in Orondo, Washington featuring an iconic round front door, gorgeous views of the surrounding countryside, six acres to explore, and one bedroom ideal for one or two people.

The Silos at Prairie Vale — Green Ridge, Missouri

You’ve heard of tiny houses, but what about tiny silo houses? Experience one for yourself on a family-owned farm in Green Ridge, Missouri. You’ll get a taste of farm life complete with Nigerian Dwarf goats, miniature donkeys, chickens, and other animals while staying in a silo apartment with its own full kitchen, bathroom, and loft.

The Ark Tiny House — Virgin, Utah

Location, location, location! Utah’s Zion National Park is unlike anywhere else in the United States, and The Ark is a great way to experience it. Sure, it’s a tiny house, but it’s actually capable of sleeping up to six people between its bedroom and common spaces. It also boasts a loft, bathtub, office desk, TV with Netflix, Wi-Fi, a hot tub and fire pit, and a breathtaking bay window overlooking a 75-acre property with a stream.

Find more unique places to stay near you on Airbnb’s website.

The post The 10 Most Amazing Airbnbs for Your Quarantine Vacation first appeared on Dornob.

A new treehouse in Cascais, Portugal falls somewhere in the middle, bringing modern sensibilities to a full-scale space that a grandfather has envisioned for his grandchildren. Portuguese design firm Madeiguincho is known for its carpentry and joinery prowess, often marrying wood with other materials like metal and stone in small structures like tiny houses, garden studios, and even shelters for animals. They also create custom wooden furniture on demand.

For the simply named “Treehouse for Grandchildren,” Madeiguincho created a full-scale space on a platform that looks like it could almost function as a second home. Supported by three strong trees, which grow up and through its floor and ceiling, the treehouse features slatted wood walls and large openings to the outdoors to facilitate free air circulation and regulation of sunlight inside. Elevated about a full story off the ground, it’s accessed by a staircase and measures about 15 square meters (161 square feet).

The architects explain: “This shelter was designed to include three trees in the project. A cedar that crosses the project and two tipuan that can delimit the platform. The support platform is supported by the three tree trunks and receives the house built in CLT panels and a cedar roof.”

“The entire exterior of the house was burned to better preserve the wood and subsequently bathed in linseed oil, allowing [it] to gain a cool and raw texture. This contrasts with a cleaner, warmer interior, with a natural wood texture, lightly treated with a matte oil. The natural light openings prevail in East-West orientation to get a better view of the sunrise and sunset.”

Looking at the photos, you can see there’s no question this treehouse wasn’t made by amateurs. It feels sturdy and contemporary, ready to be glassed in for use as guest quarters or a backyard studio once the children are grown. The contrast of light and pale wood tones gives its interior a lot of visual interest, too, and a sizable deck offers views of the adjacent home and swimming pool.

Browsing Madeiguincho’s other projects on Instagram, the skills and craftsmanship that have gone into this project become clear. The firm displays a love for beautiful wood, a strong proficiency at creating beautiful joints without the use of modern fasteners, and a knack for the kind of raw simplicity that leads to beautiful, professional-looking results infused with the traditions of the past.

When you were a kid, would you have wanted something like “Treehouse for Grandchildren,” which feels like it’s on par with structures made for adults, or do you prefer the smaller and more ordinary treehouses family members often build for their children?

The post Top-Notch Craftsmanship Shines in This Treehouse for Kids first appeared on Dornob.

Do you find black buildings harsh, gloomy, or even foreboding? How about when their shapes are just as dramatic as their color, with rooflines as sharp as the edges of blades? Perhaps you wouldn’t consider a stark black structure that slices up into the sky the most welcoming sight, but on the edge of Norway, it’s actually quite a fitting way to greet the northern landscape.

Created by the firm sivilarkitet espen surnevik as, the PAN-cabins are a pair of rentals located along Norway’s eastern forests in an area named Finnskogen (after the Finnish immigrants who settled there in the 16th century). Just northeast of Oslo on the border with Sweden, the area is known for its beautiful scenery, skiing, hiking trails, and frequent sightings of wildlife like moose.

The small dwellings are elevated high up into the treetops to take advantage of the location, gazing out at the surrounding forests. Set on six-meter-high steel frames (about 20 feet), the structures are more like lookout towers than traditional hotel rooms, featuring striking black facades with roof tiles that resemble the scales of enormous fish or reptiles.

Just as dramatic as the cabins themselves are the spiraling staircases that reach into the air to grant access, semi-enclosed but still offering panoramic views of the landscape. The other side of each cabin has a blind facade, guaranteeing guests total privacy despite the two structures being within view of each other.

While the exteriors may feel about as warm as a cold-blooded serpent, the interiors have a homey, cozy vibe about them thanks to textural pine cladding and wool textiles. Each end of the A-frame cabins offers spacious windows to look out, too. The cabins sleep up to six people with the help of lofts and fold-out beds, and each includes a contemporary black kitchen. They’re designed for summer use, so there’s no need for wood stoves.

Architect Espen Surnevik, a professor at the Oslo School of Architecture and Design, created the cabins for clients Kristian Rostad and Christine Mowinckel. He says Tove Jansson’s Moomin books are one of his main inspirations for the bridge in particular. The Moomins are a family of fairytale-like characters resembling white hippopotamuses living in a cold, snowy Nordic setting.

Surnevik adds: “For me, it represents a genuine feeling of how the Nordic individual relates to the long distances between settlements in rural Scandinavia, the loneliness, the dark winters, and the cold climate. Jansson puts words and illustrations to the illusions that are created inside the mind, of fear and the warm security that occurs in us all when in contact with the bare elements of the Nordic nature.”

“The cabins are made as an intuitive response to the client’s will and vision of having unique architecture with an almost mythological link to the place, landscape, and Nordic forests. The cabins were planned with retreat-like qualities that offer the possibility for a comfortable stay all alone in the middle of the wild nature of Norway.”

The post Stark Black Triangular Cabins on Stilts Welcome Visitors to Norway first appeared on Dornob.

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In perfect conjunction with the initial reveal of a new merit badge aimed at sustainability, the Boys Scouts of America teamed up with Seattle-based Mithun Architects to create the 5,800-square-foot treehouse as both an example of eco-friendly design and an educational center.

The idea spawned from the history of the surrounding land, a 10,000 acre-plot in the forested slopes of the Summit Bechtel Reserve. Situated on a former coal strip-mining site, the area speaks volumes on the need for sustainability awareness, and the architecture is beginning to respond accordingly.

The five-story treehouse is vertically oriented to minimize its ground footprint and environmental disruption to the area. Spiraling 125 feet into the air, its steel frame provides views and interactive displays that teach people about sustainable living practices. Teaching by example, the treehouse is also a net-zero structure thanks to the use of strategically-placed solar panels and wind turbines. Plus, its incorporation of unfinished natural materials like Corten steel, reclaimed oak, and locally-sourced black locust in the siding and floors means a lot less upkeep is required. It’s also attained net-zero water consumption through the implementation of water collection and filtration systems. Campers rely on composting toilets to further conserve water and create a full-cycle system that’s completely free of waste.

The team from Volume Inc. was tasked with making the educational spaces as interesting as the surrounding activities at the adventure camp. To pique interest in youth while competing against ziplines and a skate park, they integrated information throughout the building in both in and outdoor exhibits meant to engage passersby. For example, a message draws the eyes up while climbing the stairs, revealing more words on the backdrop of each step that eventually reads, “Climbing stairs could generate enough energy to power a laptop, a phone, anything really, (Just climb).” Other words and phrases jump out from the corridor walls sending messages related to water consumption, electricity savings, and resource conservation.

Inspiring scouts towards environmental stewardship, the exhibits not only encourage awareness, but explain how systems work with art-like tactics. A camping cup rain chain exemplifies water collection, while a see-through glass display gives a visual representation of how power generation works.

The Sustainability Treehouse hosted the first Jamboree for the Boy Scouts of America in 2013, an event that takes place every four years and draws over 50,000 scouts from around the country. Since then, its design has caught the attention of several organizations and earned several awards, including:

AIA Northwest and Pacific Region Design Awards, Citation Award, 2015

Society for Experiential Design Exhibition Awards, Honor Award, 2014

CORE77 Design Awards, Professional Award, Interiors and Exhibitions, 2014

AIA Committee on the Environment (COTE) Top Ten Award, 2014

AIA Seattle Honor Awards, Award of Honor, 2013

The post Inside the Boy Scouts of America’s Sustainability Treehouse first appeared on Dornob.

All of these features and more are built into the dreamy Hanging Villa, a private residence by TWS & Partners in Bandung, Indonesia. Commissioned by a client who wanted to entertain large groups of family members without giving up his own personal spaces, the house features several stacked offset volumes facing in different directions to optimize views — not to mention multiple terraces, rooftop gardens, and a palette of natural materials that create visual harmony with the home’s surroundings.

“The site takes benefit from the beautiful surroundings of deep valley and has an advantage of its proximity to the forest conservatory, which provides [the] tranquil atmosphere of the mountainside,” say the architects. “The building’s mass is originally taken from the idea of stacking boxes, which are rotated through their corner axis in order to create different walking experiences from different angles of view. This strategy also allows the users to have different orientations in different rooms and have almost 270-degree views of the surrounding valleys.”

“The building is oriented to take the full advantage of the sun’s position and perpendicular to the wind direction to maximize the wind [entering] the building, while the extensive use of glass openings allows natural cross-ventilation and maximizes [the amount of] natural light entering the building during the day. The building has been weatherized for maximum protection against the loss of warm and cool air by applying appropriate insulating materials and window glazing to reduce heat loss in ways that do not cause indoor humidity.”

A vertical circulation tower leads from the garage at street level up to the second floor, dropping visitors onto a sunny boardwalk that stretches across a reflecting pool. They then enter the villa’s main communal area, which contains the living room, dining room, and kitchen. Full-height glass walls give these more public areas of the home some of the best views, while the interiors are designed to offer a “tranquil and relaxing atmosphere.”

The reflecting pool and other water-based elements aren’t just decorative, of course. They add to the building’s natural ventilation scheme, naturally cooling breezes as air flows in to reduce the need for air conditioning. Slanted wooden louvers on the facade let even more air in while offering some protection from the sun.

Hanging Villa is a beautiful example of design that takes inspiration from local traditional architecture and works with the regional climate to produce a result that feels comfortable, familiar, and refreshingly contemporary all at once.

The post Hanging Villa is a Dreamy Green Getaway in Indonesia first appeared on Dornob.

With the image of a hobbit treehouse at the core of its blueprint, the Griswald is topped by a masterpiece of Canadian red cedar, with rope lighting and hand-cut maple leaf shingles that create a tree-like canopy around the perimeter. Below that, the exterior walls are covered in cedar tongue and groove planking for even more natural appeal. Unique cutouts in these walls give the home’s wood-covered door and six louvre windows pop-out appearances. Another small window sits Dormer style, peeking out from the roof like a tiny birdhouse. The entire camper sits on a 1977 Ford Camper Special chassis.

Even with character oozing from its exterior, one might not expect the many extraordinary touches that await them once they enter the Griswald. Starting again at the top, the ceiling and walls are lined with pine tongue and groove planking, brightened by LED lights running down a central beam. Wooden arches appear to support the roof while adding visual appeal to the space.

Including the sleeping loft, the entire space only takes up 160 square feet, yet it offers all the comforts of home. The bathtub was designed using a steel trough large enough for two people to share. Surrounded by opulent butternut wood with rustic edging, this tub invites you to relax in water heated from a nearby custom wood-burning stove. This stove is also a heat source for the entire home on cold nights.

A fully-stocked kitchen not only provides a space to cook and eat in, but also commands attention all throughout the interior. After all, it’s hard not to be drawn towards its one-of-a-kind wheelbarrow kitchen sink, which appears to go straight through the wall (the part protruding from the exterior can actually be used as a planter, too). Elsewhere in the kitchen, you’ll find a backsplash of multicolored glass tiles and an LED worklight. Appliances include a propane gas range and oven along with a two-door not-so-mini fridge, while eye-catching blue pine cabinetry ties the room together.

When the food’s ready, it can be enjoyed outside or at the table, which itself has been carved into a corner with a creative nook bench that incorporates lumber from old cabinet doors.

The Griswald sleeps five people in total, with a double mattress in the loft, a futon that doubles as a couch, and a hammock that stows away for more space. If you plan on staying in it for longer than a few days, you’ll be happy to know that the van’s cab has been converted into an outhouse for use while parked. And don’t worry, there is a closing door that separates the composting toilet in here from the main living space. Even better, that toilet can be broken down and be removed altogether during transport.

The Griswold is currently for sale at an asking price of $45,000 and is located in Marshall, North Carolina.

The post This Hobbit Treehouse on Wheels Offers Unique Tiny Home Design first appeared on Dornob.

How far would you go to get away from the daily distractions to your work? How about a secluded landscape in Switzerland with a stunning view of Lake Geneva and the Alps?

Since 2013, the Jan Michalski Foundation in Montricher, just northwest of Lausanne, has been a place that fosters the creation of new literary works and the overall increase of literacy all around the world. Writers and artists go there to work and do research, and the general public visits to attend cultural events and exhibitions. Yes, the foundation occupies a unique structure that would be uncommon in any major city in the world, let alone the Swiss countryside. It is a complex that barely touches the ground, with most of its structures hanging from a concrete canopy with an organic form and lattice-like shapes. The canopy itself stands on pilotis meant to represent the trees of the surrounding forest.

The idea for this literary sanctuary came from Vera and Jan Michalski, who originally bought it from the Saint Joseph’s Catholic parish in Lausanne. For that reason, the couple made a point to have the architecture of the complex pay homage to the site’s religious history. Today, the foundation’s spiritual feel is immediately apparent, with its buildings elevated above the earth like graceful celestial bodies. Maybe not that high, of course, but the intention is clear nonetheless.

Every building on the site is meant to resemble a treehouse, housing both foundation staff and the writers-in-residence, who themselves can live there with their families for anytime between two weeks and six months. “Suspended Forest” is just one of those perched cabins, held in place by about a dozen steel ties. Only its outdoor stairs come close to touching the ground, and even then, just barely. Completed in 2018 by Kengo Kuma & Associates, this 1,292-square-foot home, like all the others in this retreat, only uses materials that are native to the site.

From the main road, thecabin welcomes the viewer with a tilted face, an opening to the ever-changing world within its walls, and a gaping window to the outside. The exterior is a contorted box dressed in hand-cut untreated oak and larch shingles applied in a checkered pattern, which the architects hope will form a patina in the future. Beneath these shingles are white steel plates for waterproofing. The interior wall and ceiling surfaces are covered in larch plywood sheets and triangular in form, framing the walls in a way that creates several memorable interiors. Irregularly shaped skylights permit light to enter the house along its length, with large floor-to-ceiling lights brightening things up even more.

So what to do you think? Ready to get started on that novel of yours?

The post This Forest Complex Pays Writers to Stay Inside Floating Homes first appeared on Dornob.