Treehouse Designers Guide: O2 Treehouse

All treehouse builds involve a significant amount of mathematics, but Dustin Feider's projects look like a gorgeous geometry equation in a tree. His geodesic structures, or triangulated spheres, are modern, modular and so future forward they even hang by cables so they don't puncture the tree. Made of recycled and reused wood—he once did an entire roof out of recycled pallets—his structures are mainly used as playspaces, though the next phase of his business will focus on living spaces. Feider offers design and building services, plus pre-made structures that can be flat packed and shipped. 

Based in:

Oakland, California

In the business since:

2005

Cost:

$10,000 and up

Most requested design:

The Lotus, an 8x10-foot structure with horizontal slats that Feider describes as "ship wreck meets lotus flower."

Most distinctive design:

The Honeysphere, a 20-foot diameter wooden sphere with 210 openings, 420 facets and 12 points from which branches enter and exit. 

Specialty:

Mathematical perfection. "Via the strength of the geodesic, I am able to use any intersection to hang the structure, making it very easy to install in a tree. I can also use the underside of the form as storage and the frame to place window locations anywhere in the sphere," Feider says. "In geodesics, there's not much room for error because any inconsistencies compound as you build. The top has to fit on the pumpkin perfectly."

Celebrity clients:

Robby Krieger of The Doors

Project locations:

Wisconsin, Minnesota, Texas, California and Portugal

Fun fact:

Feider works with non-virgin recycled plastics, which means you can "take the canopy off your treehouse and put it in the recycle bin if you want," he says.

Contact info:

O2treehouse.com
510.394.5072