The Design Home is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.
There’s never been a better opportunity to truly fuse your work with nature.
With COVID-19 still keeping many office workers at home, this is the time to try a unique experiment and put a home office in your tree. Seriously!
While backyard office sheds may be the most practical, if you have the trees and the means, why not put together a dreamlike escape to the canopies.
Studies have shown the stress-reducing power of nature – one, in particular, showed that “visitors to a natural environment reporting significantly lower levels of stress than their counterparts visiting a more urbanized outdoor setting or indoor exercise facility.”
With our increased time sitting in front of blue-light emitting LCDs, it’s important to yin that yang with the healing power of biophilia to counterbalance the artificial pulses.
You can stand at your desk and wear blue light blocking glasses all you want, but the overwhelming power of a cool breeze and warming sunlight while you rearrange those spreadsheets cannot be overlooked.
Here are some of our favorite office treehouse examples to inspire your creation:
Green Cube Home Office Treehouse Of Peter Frazier
This small cube overlooking Chuckanut Bay in Bellingham, Washington is the home office of Peter Frazier. With glass on three sides of the house, it has spectacular views of land and water. It has a deck that cantilevers over the slope and a lush evergreen forest below.
The owner’s humorous story is much like my own: “Like many in the computer industry, I graduated from college thin and fit, but since then, through years of all-nighters, sitting in front of my screen for long hours, and a rich diet I became overweight. I went from 190 to 242 pounds as I grew into each role: graphic designer, user interface designer, customer experience researcher, businessperson, husband, father, and community member. Last Fall I said, “Enough already!”
“Recently I decided that working standing up would help me live a more active life. It’s worked. Along with meditating, running, hiking, and kayaking, working standing up (with hourly interludes of pushups, situps or yoga) I’ve dropped 30 pounds. My thinking is clearer for longer and you’re more likely to find me with things in perspective.”
“I’m fortunate enough to work at home above Chuckanut Bay in Bellingham, Washington.
This stand up desk is a piece of cedar with its live edge intact. On it I have room for a Dell 24″ monitor as well as my MacBook Pro, and my good old Monsoon sound system. The hard drive holds the documentary I am working on called “Stumblebum”.”
Banyan Drive Treehouse by Rockefeller Partners Architects
American firm Rockefeller Partners Architects designed the drool-worthy, sensually modern Banyan Drive Treehouse.
The architects explain it as “Part office/studio, part recreational getaway, this unique project is located at the base of a large pine tree in the backyard of a canyon residence. The client is an artist and lover of nature so the Banyan Drive Treehouse, perched twelve feet off the ground, will serve as a creative respite from the demands of domestic responsibilities.”
“Though modest in size, the plan is efficient and allows for a studio space/living area and a toilet room. Deep-oiled wood siding, mahogany windows, and a Rheinzink roof were chosen for their natural qualities and rich palette.”
Photography: Eric Staudenmaier
Cool Tree House Designs From Baumraum Treehouse Architects
Baumraum is specialized in designing and building of treehouses, which may just be the most awesome job in the world. It’s the ultimate dream method to get away from the tensions and hassles of city life.
In Baumraum’s words, “we transform your individual ideas and wishes into ingenious and inspiring dwellings that combine versatility with craftsmanship of the highest quality and maximum safety standards. A major objective thereby is to handle the trees and their surroundings with the utmost care, ensuring their protection and preservation. Baumraum combines the creative and constructive expertise of an architect with the long-standing experience of a landscape architect, a tree expert, and established, reputable craftsmen.”
Nestled among the canopies, the treehouse fuses modern aesthetics with nature.
It almost looks like a ship, marooned in the green sea of leaves.
A large, spartan idea just calls for you to jump on it in exasperation while you mentally work through that hard problem during the workday.
Even the windows evoke the feeling of being on a slowly rocking ship.
Million-dollar views.
Sleek, oval geometry allows bright light in through the windows with a relaxing window seat just asking to be read on.
Charming nighttime vibes that evoke a fairytale.
This one is just the right size for a home office nestled in the trees, with a few relaxing amenities for taking breaks in between.
Snøhetta Pine Forest Treehouse in Sweden
While this one is a full house, we thought it was a good example for an office treehouse because of its modern design. In reality, a small minimalist treehouse office with a bedroom and bathroom isn’t a terrible idea. Take your power nap in between calls and you’ll never have to go to your main house during the day!
For children, the places where you can isolate and sail in their own world, like the tree houses are magical spaces where everything is possible. For the adults, that childhood dream and the ability to briefly turn off the world and enjoy a little magic is offered by the unique Treehotel in Sweden, which recently got a new fascinating building designed by the Norwegian architectural studio “Snøhetta “.
Amidst the thick pine forest in the Swedish wild, ten meters above ground, is a luxury new house made of wood, metal and glass that offers a beautiful, unobstructed view of the beauty of Lapland. The treehouse has numerous wide windows and an unusual terrace in order to allow visitors to enjoy the natural surroundings, amidst the tall pine trees, away from the city. This way the architectural structure naturally melts in the forest and breaks the boundaries between the interior and exterior, making the little house part of the forest.
The whole experience begins the moment the guests approach the woods. As you get closer to it, the view towards the house disappears and you can see an unexpected facade which is essentially the floor of the house. The surface of the floor is covered with large black and white print with pictures of trees stretching towards the sky. The 55 square meter treehouse stands on 12 pillars and has a staircase and a small elevator for guests.
Wood as a natural material dominates the building. The house is made in typical Norwegian style, with wooden walls and pine tree planks. The surface of the facade is burned in order to obtain a specific dark look, but also it is easier to maintain. The floor is made from ash wood and the inner walls are made of birch. The interior is in light tones with natural light that spills over from the numerous windows and creates a contrast to the dark exterior of the building.
With the specific wooden interior elements and the unique location on a top of the tree, this house is a celebration of Nordic architecture and the beauty of the pine forests.
This treehouse is nestled among the timber, but stands on its own, structurally.
The staircase give you a hearty morning workout in the snow.
The mirrored glass offers reflections of the trees, because what else would you rather look at?
A sunken bed beneath the skylight serves a practical lounging purpose and can likely be hidden when not in use.
There’s room for guests! Again with this one, if you’re using it as an office, you’d likely reduce the number of beds and turn this into a workspace.
Ever wanted to lay on a net and decide if it would break, causing you to fall 30 feet? Me neither!
(Photo Credits: Johan Jansson)
