Juniper Moon Grove Tree Weave
One of our favorite types of commissions that we get at Tree Weaves is when we are asked to construct a large, multilevel tree net. Obviously, large scale projects give our team a lot more freedom to get creative and adventurous with our installations. When you add the ability to create a multilevel net, it truly brings out our inner child as we get the chance to build even higher into the trees, allowing for wonderful views and a more dynamic feel to a tree net or playground structure.
The Juniper Moon Grove Tree Weave was just such a commission. This is an absolutely gorgeous multilevel tree net built in Northern Kentucky. Built along the beautiful walking trails of Juniper Moon Grove, the tree net has three levels, allowing any visitors to ascend way up into the trees and enjoy views of the surrounding forest from on high.
Juniper Moon Grove is an off-grid glamping sanctuary located on 8.6 acres of woods in the quiet hills of Ewing, Kentucky. The grove has gorgeous, wooded walking trails throughout the property, an Amish-built cabin with a cozy, 12’x14’ interior space, queen bed, and 6’ patio, a pavilion with a canvas tent and full-sized bed, luxury outhouse, fire pit, and free roaming animals, such as chickens, goats, cats, and a dog. This is an absolutely gorgeous property and we highly recommend it to anyone looking to get away from the fast-paced modern life and immerse themselves in a tranquil experience that will lead to a deeper connection to nature and one’s self. We cannot speak highly enough about the Menards, the family who own and operate Juniper Moon Grove. They are wonderful people and are extremely accommodating to their guests.
Getting Started
When the Tree Weaves team first arrived at Juniper Moon Grove, we spent a couple hours walking the wooded trails, looking for the perfect place to install a tree net that would allow for the type of dynamic, multilevel design the Menards were looking for. We finally settled on a grouping of about four trees located just a short walk down the hill from the pavilion. We chose this spot because it would allow us to not only build spacious levels, but also allow us to stack the levels and build higher into the trees.
Once we had our installation site picked out, it was time to flush out the design for what would become the Juniper Moon Grove Tree Weave. We knew that the Menards were very keen on getting a tree net that had multiple levels to it. With this in mind, the build team designed a tree net that would have an almost fully-enclosed first floor level, a second floor level with tall walls and no ceiling, and a third floor crow’s nest roughly 15’-20’ off of the ground.
The lead team member on the Juniper Moon Grove Tree Weave, Alex Patton, also wanted to try a new design element with this installation. He had a vision of weaving dream catchers throughout the entire tree net including both the walls and the floors. While we have woven dream catchers into tree net installations in the past, this was the first tree net we have made with such an extensive array of dream catchers throughout the installation.
The Dream Catchers
Dream catchers are a feature that the Tree Weaves team will sometimes weave into the design of a tree net to enhance the aesthetic value of an installation. With the Juniper Moon Grove Tree Weave, we wanted to take the dream catcher aesthetic to a whole other level. In order to achieve this goal, the build team meticulously gridded out the floors and walls of the first two levels of this tree net. Mapping out these grids helped us to install multiple dream catchers in unique, but uniform, patterns throughout the tree net.
Visitors to the Juniper Moon Grove Tree Weave will notice that each floor, as well as the walls, of the tree net has different patterns of dream catchers than the others. We wanted to use different patterns to help distinguish between the three levels of the tree net and to give visitors something to look forward to as they ascend the floors of this multilevel installation.
Each individual dream catcher in this installation is hand woven using individual strands of 550 paracord. People familiar with our work may know that we will occasionally include crocheted mandalas or dream catchers in our tree weaves. These crocheted features are manufactured offsite and brought with us to be woven into a tree net during the installation process. However, the dream catchers in the Juniper Moon Grove Tree Weave were not pre-manufactured. Instead, each individual strand used to create these dream catchers was woven into the floors and walls as they were being constructed.
Level One
Juniper Moon Grove Tree Weave is a three tiered tree net. The first level of this majestic installation is a squarish shaped platform that is enclosed except for the entryway. We wove this level using our standard practice of tensioning an extremely taut perimeter, using blue safeline from Blue Water Ropes, and hand weaving the body of the floor using individual strands of 550 paracord.
The floor platform for this level was almost entirely woven from underneath the platform. This technique allows us to weave a tree net with the maximum amount of hand tension possible, providing a very taut feeling to our tree nets. We were able to create an extremely taut platform for the first level of the Juniper Moon Grove Tree Weave that is ideal for bouncing around. The space is also incredibly safe for bouncing because the first level is very enclosed with woven walls and the second level acts as a ceiling for the first.
When you first walk onto the first level of the Juniper Moon Grove Tree Weave, you will immediately notice the different-colored rows of dream catchers woven into the floor. As we mentioned before, these rows were mapped out using a grid technique to create this striking effect. Each individual dream catcher is woven using a single color of paracord in rows of either Kelly Green, Solar Orange, or Yellow. To help contrast the colors used to weave these dream catchers, we wove the negative space of this platform in Midnight Blue.
Second Level
The construction of the second level of the Juniper Moon Grove Tree Weave mirrored the construction of the first level. The floor platform for the second level was placed about six and a half feet above the floor of the first level and follows the same perimeter of the first level.
This platform was also mostly woven from underneath to help add great tension to the floor. However, when we tensioned the top rope to form the perimeter of walls that would enclose the second level, we unintentionally took some of the tautness out of the second level floor. Fortunately, this actually made the second floor a little more loungy and gave it the feeling of being in a large hammock. We ended up enjoying this as it gave two different and distinct feels between the first and second levels of the tree net.
The dream catchers in the second level are also woven in a different manner than the dream catchers in the first level and walls of the Juniper Moon Grove Tree Weave. Instead of using a single color for each dream catcher in this floor, we wove each dream catcher in alternating patterns of Yellow, Solar Orange, and Imperial Red. We love the visual aesthetic this adds to the floor as you walk across the second level of the net.
Visitors will also notice the stunning wall section at the back of the second level directly below the third level crow’s nest. This section of the wall is woven in a giant dream catcher pattern incorporating all of the colors of paracord used throughout the net.
First and Second Level Walls
Similar to the floor of the first level in the Juniper Moon Grove Tree Weave, the walls that enclose the first and second level of this tree weave were also meticulously mapped using a grid technique that is not only continuous from the first level to the second, but also continues the pattern as it wraps around the sides of the tree net.
We also used a similar technique in the walls of the first and second levels of rows of different colored dream catchers with each dream catcher being woven in a single color. When looking at the walls of this tree net, visitors will notice that the dream catchers create the visual effect of vertical rows of changing colors in Imperial Red, Yellow, and Solar Orange. However, the dream catchers were laid out in diagonal rows that consist of dream catchers in the same color. The dream catchers in the walls are also much larger than the dream catchers used in the first and second levels of the net. To create contrast in the negative space of the walls we used Kelly Green paracord to bring out the vibrant red, yellow, and orange hues of the dream catchers.
Third Level Crow’s Nest
The third and highest level of the Juniper Moon Grove Tree Weave is a single-person crow’s nest roughly 15’-20’ in the air. The crow’s nest is the ideal place for curling up with a nice book while enjoying 360° views of the surrounding forest. For any nature enthusiast wanting to experience the feeling of being a bird or squirrel hanging out high up in the trees, this is the spot for you!
In keeping with the dream catcher theme of the entire tree net, each wall and the floor of the crow’s nest are woven in a large dream catcher pattern. Similar to the very large dream catcher that spans the back wall of the second level, the dream catchers in the crow’s nest incorporate all of the colors used throughout the rest of the tree net. We also included a small portal in the wall of the crow’s nest facing the second level of the tree net to allow easy access in and out of the crow’s nest.
Hand-Woven Stairs and Ladders
Another feature of the Juniper Moon Grove Tree net are the ladders and hand-woven stairs that allow visitors to access the tree net and travel between the three levels of the weave. We created two sets of hand-crafted ladder rungs that can be used as foot or handholds in the first level of the net.
The first set consists of three rungs that grant access to the first floor of the Juniper Moon Grove Tree Weave. These rungs make it easy for anyone to get into the net, even the Menards’ dog, Juniper, found it easy to get into the first floor of the net. The second set consists of five rungs in a semi-spiral formation that lead up to the second level of the tree net.
The ladder rungs for the first level of the tree weave are woven in alternating colors of paracord to help distinguish each individual rung as you are climbing them. We also used a coxcomb technique to wrap each rung giving it a beautiful appearance and an excellent grip for your hands.
On the second level of the net, visitors will notice the stunning hand-woven staircase that ascends to the third-level crow’s nest. The staircase consists of incrementally smaller triangular steps that make it easy for users to step up to or down from the crow’s nest.
Share Your Experience With Us
We truly hope that readers of this post will get the chance to book a stay at Juniper Moon Grove and experience this incredible Tree Weave firsthand. If you do get the opportunity to explore all three levels of the Juniper Moon Grove Tree Weave we would love to hear about your experience.
Please feel free to share your experience in the comments or share any photos or videos you may have from your trip with us on the Tree Weaves Instagram page. You can share any media from this tree net using the hashtag #junipermoongrovetreeweave.