We have had many questions regarding what this little camper looked like before and after the renovation. Disclaimer: We aren’t finished renovating this sweet little thing, but if you’ll stick with me over the next couple (few) posts, I’ll give you a play-by-play, pictures included.
The day we went to see her I was mildly surprised to see what good condition her structure was in. Outside she looked like a new one, with a few minor cosmetic issues that weren’t worrisome. Being that D.A. is a contractor, he would know if she had too many structural problems which if she did would not be in our best interest to buy.
However, the big plus in her favor was that our friend takes excellent care of his toys and she had been parked inside a huge pole barn, out of the elements. So no weather damage! But I digress.
She was what one could expect from a 2005 model camper. Brown and blue with a little… what is that color? Pink? Thrown in for contrast? Ugh. Just view the pics and you’ll see. Metal mini blinds. So far, not so bad. The window valances and couch matched. Then I opened the bathroom door. Is that… yellow? Dear Lord, I’ve come to view an Easter egg!
In fairness, she wasn’t that bad. Yellow was more like gold which sent me straight into the ’60’s and for a brief moment I wondered if I could find olive green fabric with huge daisies in white, gold, and burnt orange for window treatments [insert giggle here because I would never do that…maybe].
Normally when we have looked at campers, I take a few pics around the inside and out, and before I leave I take a panoramic pic of the inside so I can have something to look at while deciding. Since we had both given the silent signal that this was ‘the one,’ I just did the pano shot before I left.
When we finally got her home, we went inside, turned on the a/c and sat down on the couch which I now call a futon. We brainstormed and dreamed about what we would like to do with her and what we wanted to do first. The inside decor was my decision. D.A. would do whatever I wanted (within reason and cost).
The first thing she needed was cleaning. I mean really, when a camper sits for long periods of time they take on this funky, closed-up aroma. I did a little bit, but we went right into demolition and renovation so I really defeated my purpose.
And so begins the renovation of this little camper. FYI: at this writing most of it is complete. We have been on our first camping trip (I call the “Maiden Voyage”), learned a few things, and are gearing up for the next trip, which I’ll discuss further over in the Travel Friendly section (if all goes well with this formatting which we haven’t got just right… yet).
After a little cleaning, the next thing I had D.A. do is take down the valances and mini blinds. I sprayed them with Lysol to get rid of germs, and most of the musty smell. And then I went shopping for fabric to re-cover those. She had side covers which I decided not to put back up. The mini blinds went in the trash because let’s just be honest… who wants to clean those? Plus, some of them were bent and that really gave me an eye twitch.
I had tried to get D.A. to brainstorm with me about what color fabric we should get to cover the valances, but his reply was, “This is all you, Babe!” You know I smiled at that.
While at Walmart one day I ran across Pioneer Woman fabric! Who knew? I suddenly got inspired and within a few minutes I had my cart loaded. When I got home I showed it to D.A. who actually said he liked my choice! For those inquiring minds, I chose the Breezy Blossoms pattern. I got 9 yards which covered the valances and made a nice shower curtain for the bathroom. I also got one Fat Quarter bundle which made some nice reversible throw pillows for accents.
I got to work on the valances, vacuuming them then spraying them down with Lysol and letting them dry. In the meantime, while searching for a staple gun with which to put the fabric on, I borrowed a friend’s sewing machine because I already knew I was going to make curtains.
I came home one afternoon and D.A. said, “I got you something.” I went to the table where all my supplies were and found a brand new, electric staple gun! It made covering those valances so much easier. It went by in a flash.
In between getting the valances done and making curtains, I went on a road trip with friends, to the mountains for my birthday. While in the mountains, I stopped by a little quilt shop and we found the perfect fabric for the curtains! Also while I was gone, D.A. worked on priming and painting the walls of the camper.
But the most impressive thing we did was putting thin shiplap on the inside front wall. My intentions were to paint it white… until I saw it. It was beautiful! I loved all the knots and the grain of the wood. So I had D.A. clear varnish it. Turns out, it was the perfect accent.
As for the cabinets. Well, what can I say about camper cabinets? I mean, really. We all know what they are and what they’re made of. But these had a nice little inset in each cabinet door which I had D.A. paint white to offset the color of the cabinets from the white walls. I didn’t want stark white all over the camper (incidentally, the color choice was Studio White). Therefore, between the walls and insets, along with the floral valances and natural shiplap, it turned out beautifully. The only thing we didn’t get to just yet is… the bathroom. But we keep the door shut so it’s all good. We will have all winter to finish that.
I hope you’ve enjoyed seeing the transformation of this little camper. We have had a great time re-doing it and making it our own. We still have some renovating to do, but we will work on it throughout Winter. So far though, we think she’s pretty sweet.
One more little thing we did was change all the lighting to LED lights. So much more efficient, cooler, and brighter. And then I began decorating. See if you can figure out my favorite decoration. Comment below and let us know what you think!
Until next time…
Shelley
This Little Camper 
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