AKA, what I did during the Coronapocalypse.
I fully and freely admit and own my trailer park origins. We lived in a mobile home until the time I was 10 years old. The trailer park back in those days was an amazing place to grow up. It was full of other kids and my grandmother lived in the same park. For some reason, even though she had the smallest yard of anyone in the park, all the kids would gather on her lawn on summer evenings and we would play games like “What Time is it Mr. Fox” and “Red Light/.Green Light.” Don’t know those amazing yard games? You should know by now what do do. Gram would sit in her lawn chair on her patio and be ready to dole out homemade chocolate chip cookies. So much nostalgia; I can still smell the summer air and the scent of the blooms of the snowball bush in her yard. Apparently, that’s a Viburnum bush to you readers that can actually plant something and have it live. I possess no such skill.
So when I joke about being trailer trash, I own it. As the old ad said, “you’ve come a long way, baby.”
So here’s another fun fact about me…I like to swing a hammer. Don’t let the eye makeup and the long hair fool you, I’m a handy girl to have around. I have been tackling DIY projects for a long time, ever since I wanted to repaint my bedroom and realized that hanging all those Duran Duran posters with thumbtacks left about a gajillion tiny holes in the drywall that needed to be patched. Circa 1988, my room was a shrine to Duran Duran. Don’t judge me.
I have painted, spackled, drilled, nailed and built stuff I am damn proud of. A gorgeous thrift store hutch became the kitchen command center when I painted it a high gloss black to match my table and chairs. I built a photobooth backdrop stand for parties (theme parties are LIFE, people). I have created white trash chandeliers for my patio out of old light fixtures and mason jars. Pinterest is the best place to find inspiration and I will admit I log on with the best intentions. What may start as a quest to find ideas for holiday mantle decorations ends up with me coming up for air three hours later dazed and confused. I go in looking like Charlize Theron in “Snow White” and come out looking like Charlize Theron in “Monster.” You get the idea; Pinterest is a virtual BENDER.
So I found myself with some time on my hands during the Coronapocalypse. I thought it was high time to tackle a project I’ve been considering since we purchased a previously loved (AKA, USED) 24′ RV back in 2010. For a long time, I used to say that my idea of camping was a three-star hotel. But friends and family are avid campers and I cannot resist tagging along. Plus, there’s always alcohol involved. Who can pass that up?But I need to be able to shower in the morning and have a place that’s private to pee. So along comes a camper.
To say we got this baby for a deal is an understatement; it was under $5k; it’s been a great camper and well loved. But I always thought it could be way cuter and not so “standard” looking. Some elbow grease, some paint (and some Pinterest) and voila!
The bulk of the project was simply painting the “wood” cabinets and the walls. This was the most time-consuming part. The cabinets needed one coat of primer and took three coats of semi-gloss white. I changed out the brass hardware with satin nickel pulls.
On the walls, I ditched the circa 2000 border and painted them a beachy blue. This served as the inspiration for the “theme” for the project; it’s now fondly known as my traveling beach house. I framed pictures I had taken myself from various beach trips and added some other items found at Hobby Lobby and tied the whole thing together.
For the tired looking cushions, I took a big risk and sewed covers for them in a coordinating material. I still cannot wrap my brain around that. It took some patience for sure; I am no seamstress by any stretch. I ended up being able to also make cute curtains with the left over material.
One of the biggest challenges turned out to be the removal of the top bunk in the back. This thing was so flimsy I was shocked that I ever let my kid sleep there. When she was 5, it worked well, but now that she’s 15 and taller than me, it was a death trap, so she had been sleeping on the dinette bed anyway for a while. To give her sister a bit more room on the bottom bunk, I thought what the hell, let’s cut this puppy up. When I dismantled it, I learned that the structure had actually already started to crack…yikes!
But it turned out great and still allows for a small shelf in the back to store a laundry basket as well. This portion of the project made me realize that cutting trim with a miter box is a large pain in the ass. I still need to perfect my technique.
The last thing that I added, which I think makes the whole project pop is the peel and stick tile I added to the backsplash. It was simple to use and I love the results.
In closing, I will say that I am damn proud of the way this baby turned out. I loved my camper before and love it even more now because it matches my style. In other words, it’s cute and fun and does not take life too seriously. This baby went from trailer trash to trailer cash in less than 6 weeks. BAM.
Now….to tackle the outside of this baby. Do you think it’s too much to paint it and add the Resist Invisible logo? I think not!
Resist Invisible 