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Oh, to be tucked high above everyone in your own cozy retreat in the treetops — safe, serene and above it all.
Increasingly, this childhood fantasy is being brought to life in imaginative and stylish designs that allow the young at heart of all ages to escape to treehouses in their own backyards. Whether sophisticated, like a deluxe model in McLean, or more playful, such as one in Cleveland Park, these soaring spaces provide great adventures for their respective owners.
A Fun Getaway
To reach their luxurious glass-enclosed hideaway, the Finch family crosses from the deck of their home on a 35-foot-long suspension bridge entwined in wisteria and orange trumpet vines that sways 15 feet above a ravine.
Created by Anthony Wilder Design Build, the 16-by-16 foot octagonal treehouse features 8,000 hand-placed Pennsylvania fieldstones in its fireplace, a vaulted ceiling with curved beams and a ceiling fan. The perch also provides a gorgeous view overlooking the Finches’ tennis court, swimming pool and 100-foot-long pergola. The treehouse, which was built to withstand winds of up to 175 miles per hour, is even wireless. This jewel box structure has seen many uses.
“It evolves as our family needs change. First it was a great kids space, then an office space and now the whole family space,” says Patty Finch, who is 40-something. The Finch children, Megan, 16, and Connor, 14, used to invite friends for sleepovers in the treehouse when they were younger. Then for two years, Bob Finch, 47, vice president of Spectrum Development at Nextel Communications, used it as his office, while he ran a consulting business. (Love the Indiana Jones commute.) Now it’s used for everything from serving after dinner drinks and dessert to teas, tennis parties and competitive family chess tournaments.
The Finch family and other friends especially like to gather in the treehouse to make music. They get together in the evening, sing and play all kinds of instruments including cymbals, tambourines and a wooden xylophone from Mali. Fifteen folks squeezed in most recently.
In essence, this space is a great escape to be alone or with family and friends.
“It’s a chance to really be away,” Bob Finch says. “It’s pretty easy to calm down in a hurry.”
A Young Boy’s Dream
By contrast, Jesse Pollak, 12, and his posse of pals jump into action when they reach his treehouse. They paint swirls of motion as Nick Roman, 12, a friend, scurries up the rope ladder to the 8 foot by 10 foot pentagon-shaped platform. Jesse swoops through the air on a long swing after launching from a bench as his little brother Robin, 8, hops on the hammock before deciding to climb to the lookout. Their little sister Rosie, 4, swings on the child’s swing while Wes Roman, 12, another buddy, swishes by on a disk swing. Lukas Williams, 12, moves in the midst of all the motion.
Jesse, who is interested in architecture, dreamt up the idea for the treehouse two years ago when he decided he’d rather build a treehouse than go to summer camp. An architecture student helped the family with the drawings, deciding first where to place the treehouse without injuring the Norway maple. Then David Kaye, a neighbor who is an architect, looked at the plans, knowing that he’d be looking at this treehouse for years to come. The treehouse, which is 12 feet above the ground, integrates the same railing as the railing on the porches of the house.
Mom, Whitney Pinger, and Dad, Roger Pollak, worked with Jesse for three hours or so a day for roughly five weeks building the treehouse. Jim Singer, a close friend and carpenter, helped them figure out the bracketing and how to make it safe. The Pollaks ordered swings from the Great American Playground catalog.
What’s the best part of this treehouse? “Just being able to swing, relax in the hammock and read, have snowball fights and water fights from the deck of the treehouse,” Jesse says, adding, “And pulling up the rope ladder so other people can’t get in.”
He closes the trap door to be sure of that.
And you could too — it’s not too late to get your own space in the treetops where the entertaining is grand and the pirates will never find you.
