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Published 13:55 25 Jan 2016 GMT
Updated 14:00 25 Jan 2016 GMT
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The room before the transformation
He begins:
“My daughter wanted a fairy tree in her room that she could sit inside and read books, climb the branches, and also have a top sitting area. I was kind of unprepared for the physical realities of this project. I used Disney set-design as my inspiration. Even though it was difficult, I learned a huge amount along the way. It turned out pretty well, and she's so happy in her new room!”
He then details the process, which took a total of 18 months and over $4,000. All in all, he worked for about 350 hours on the construction. He learned to weld, paper maché and hand paint the structure.
concept drawing
He started with a scale model and drew grid lines on the floor and wall to perfectly scale up the impressive tree house. Next he created a steel skeleton.
Reminds us of Junior Cert Art
“I found my welding teacher on craigslist. She's a professional sculptor named Carla Grahn, and she was offering 1-day private classes at her studio in Seattle for a few hundred bucks. I learned a ton from her and it was well worth the cost” he says.
Using a concrete mixture, he created the “bark”.
The "bark"
“The formula I found worked best was 2 parts portland cement, 1 part water, 1 part polymer fluid. This fluid can be bought from "Something Better Corporation" online. They also have some videos on youtube showing how this is mixed and applied.
I added 2oz of 1" fiberglass shreds to the mix. I used a 5-gallon bucket and a heavy-duty drill mixer. The concrete was applied with a trowel just like stucco application.
For the texture, I used silicone bark rollers and clay sculpting tools for the smaller details,” he explains.
The upper branches were built with paper maché which he claims was lightweight and durable.
Painting began and inspired by painting old models, the father painted dark colours to lightest. Finally, he added lights, the fairy doors and fair windows and some silk foliage he bought online.
This is a room we’d happily live in now.
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