Home Away from Home
Come take a trip with us in our little pop- up.
It’s not the camper I always envisioned us having.
It was a blessing because right after we discussed looking for one, a family friend mentioned he wanted to sell his to my husband and it was just the right amount: cheap.
Behold, the mid eighties: lots of Country Blue.
The floor was old and gross- as the camper was mostly used for guys’ hunting trips the last several years, but it was in good shape so we set out to “modernize” it.
Observe the state of the art faux-parquet sticky tile renovation.
My husband also replaced a panel of wood from the cabinet near the door that had gotten wet and swollen.
The fuzzy blue cushions were just washed and slip covered, for easy care, with groovy green fabric I found for half off. The sewing would have been free had I learned to sew more than buttons.
To replace the curtains, we needed to find something that would tolerate being crumpled into a wad most of the year when the camper’s down and be opaque at night. I went with privacy curtains from Walmart and had them hemmed. The sides of a couple of panels had to be sewn together to fit the one big window, and I used my button sewing skillz to sew the plastic tabs at the top and velcro on the sides for fitting around the camper frame and fastening to the walls (talent!) I don’t know how well they’ll hold up over time, but it was a quick and easy fix right before our Grand Canyon trip.
I can use a few silk scarves as curtain ties to let extra light in.
I had a blanket that matched our fancy pallete of green and more green,
got another one at a resale shop, and threw on a couple of Target pillows.
(day 66)
Tada. Now it’s just like home, with a teenager capable of texting and gaming all day in bed, no matter what the scenery is outside.
That’s our bathroom, if we want to use it.
Our camper has a sink but it’s so tiny and splashes water everywhere.
It’s just easier to use a rubber tub outside.
Here we have our living room
and our kitchen.
Next on the list is maybe spiffing up the outside, and replacing the curtains that close off the bed areas.
No, it’s not an airstream or a teardrop or even my dream Shasta, but it has grown on me.
The more places we go in it, the more older couples camped near us in larger campers and rv’s will tell us they wish they’d never upgraded from a pop up.
At night, when I feel the camper sway a little in the wind, as if we’re up in the very trees we hear rustling around us, I’m glad we have this little home away from home.
We enjoyed having you!
LOVE IT!
Thanks, Ninotchka. It's a little memory maker.
You really fixed it up right nice! I love the colors and the swirly pattern on the cushions. Glad you were able to make it livable. 🙂
I grew up with one of these. Ours was a Nimrod that a friend of my parents won on The Price is Right. One summer we spent 6 weeks in it, traveling through Idaho, Oregon and Washington. After I went to college my folks traded it in for a camper, then a regular trailer. Now they're staying in hotels, or condos on the beach in Maui….but we all remember the Nimrod…thanks for the trip back. And awesome job with the refurb!
Thanks Gail. We didn't do much, but it doesn't clash with my sense of aesthetics (lol) as much now.
Kim, I googled the Nimrod- that is a sweet little pop up! I love it. What a fun trip that must've been together for 6 weeks! Those are the kinds of memories we want to make with our kids.