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How To Wash an Airstream Trailer

Before Buffing

Before Buffing

George and I keep joking that if the rain keeps up, the Airstream is going to need to float. I’m not usually one to talk about the weather (so boring!), but trying to fix an airstream during the rainiest summer I can remember has been a challenge. I never thought I’d be envious of the folks that fix up their Airstreams in the dry, oppressive heat of the South West.

Another Before Shot

Another Before Shot

It seems like the copious and annoying rain would clean the Airstream. (Hey, it works for my car!) But, alas, rain wouldn’t wash away four (or more) years of pollen and road dirt from the Airstream’s exterior. So last weekend when we had a glorious , glorious break from the rain, I got to washin’.

There are so many tips and tricks out there to get an Airstream shiny. This is simply how we washed an an airstream trailer. I’ve seen everything from buffing the exterior with transmission fluid to an acid bath. My method won’t make your Airstream shine like a new nickel, but it will be safer. I’m not sticking my hands in acid. No way, José.

Supplies:

Step 1: Create a vinegar and water mixture. 2 parts water to one part vinegar.
Step 2: Spray down the exterior and apply the water and vinegar mixture using a soft cloth.
Step 3: Spray off the water and vinegar mixture.
Step 4: Create an ArmorAll and water mixture.
Step 5: Repeat step 2 & 3, but this time with the ArmorAll mix.
Step 6: Towel dry.

After Buffing

After Buffing

Tips: Do not scrub with a scrub brush! We found that this actually hurt the aluminum. It is also very important that the vinegar is removed completely from the exterior or it may corrode the metal.

Another After Shot
To make our home really shine, we’ve got plans (if it every dries up) to buff our baby down!

Buff-a-dub-dub!

love,
melanie

 

Airstream Update: The White Thing

book shelves in an airstream

On the 4th, we had our friends over to enjoy a fire pit. They have a three-year-old who was very impressed with the airstream. He kept asking if he could go into “the white thing.” I’m pretty sure he thought it was a playhouse. I’m ok with that.

shelving in an airstream trailer
You can see that we finally got all the shelves built and painted! We also did a bunch of unphotogenic stuff like fix the water heater. I also did a bad thing, ya’ll. I accidentally painted over the knobs for the air-conditioning. We tried turning it on and thought it didn’t work. After much Googling, we figured out there was higher setting on the knob. Doh!

I may be a couple pickles short of the jar, but we have the sweet, sweet joy of air-conditioning.

love,
melanie

The Current To-Do List

To do list

Lately I feel like we’ve been living in the jungle in the middle of the rainy season. We’ve had a record amount of rainfall in our area this summer and it has put a literal damper on our situation. I’m hope, hope, hoping that we get a little relief from the rain over the holiday weekend, so we can complete the Airstream.

Do you see our to-do list up there? It’s still long and it mostly involves stuff that we can’t do when it is raining. Did you hear that, rain? You need to go away! Sorry, ya’ll, being cooped up indoors has done something to my brain…

I also haven’t been able to take many pictures for ye ol’ blog because it has been too cloudy. How do my blogger friends from the Pacific North West do it? Natural light has been scarce ’round these parts.

Do ya’ll have big plans for the long weekend? I’d love to hear about it in the comments!

love,
melanie

 

Airstream: The Done List

done list

In the beginning stages of the airstream renovation process, the thought of making a “To-Do” list overwhelmed me. I couldn’t bring myself to do it because there was just so damn much to do! But since we’re almost to the end of our renovation journey, I decided to make a “Done” list. Sometimes making a list of things I’ve (we’ve) accomplished makes me feel better about the tasks I have left.

I’ve recently discovered the joy that is Wunderlist. You can see my “Done” list above. We probably had a million other tiny things we did that I forgot about, but this was the big stuff. I feel goooooood.

Have you ever made a “done” list? Tell me about it in the comments!

love,
melanie

 

Airstream Remodel Update: Part 2…3…or is it 4?!

bench in airstream trailerI’m one of those people that sometimes has trouble seeing the final product. Are you ever that way? Before we did all this remodeling it was hard for me to see past the blue carpet and smell past the funk.

But the Airstream is finally getting to the point of where I can imagine myself (happily) living in it. I get a little excited feeling in the pit of my stomach just thinking about it. Or maybe I just need an afternoon snack.

In the picture above you can see that George built us a bench! I painted it and my next job is to make a comfortable cushion and lots of pillows for the bench. I love pillows. (Or as I pronounce it pell-ows. It’s a southern thing?)

Taking out oven in Airstream

Here you can see where we took out the old oven. We also found our friend, Stewart Little‘s home in here. We’ve found more creatures in this thing than I care to mention. Let’s hope they don’t like our new oven setup.

love and excitement,
melanie

 

Airstream Update: Bed Buildout Tips

before6Humble brag time! In the past week, we’ve accomplished so much on the Airstream that I have to break up this update into two posts!

Above you can see a before shot of the bed area. Below you can see the bed build progress shots.

Bed Build ProgressIn this photo, you can see that George first built the initial frame. It fits a queen size bed! He built the bed by taking measurements of our current mattress and our new “bedroom.” Then, he built a box to house the mattress. He made it easier on himself by building a rectangular frame for the bed, then cutting rounded side pieces to fill in the curved areas.

For extra sturdiness the bed is attached to the wall. This will be helpful in case we want to haul our home on our next adventure!

Wooden Bed BuildElevated Bed Painted with StorageGeorge also built a really great front cover for the bed. This will allow us to hide junk under the bed. (Speaking of junk, please excuse all the mess! It’s hard working in a small space!)

I asked George if he could give any tips for building a bed in an Airstream and he jokingly said, “Just buy one!” It was a difficult and frustrating process. But in all seriousness, his tips were:

1.  Measure carefully
2. Be prepared to cut the curved boards more than once
3. Realize that it will never be perfect. Working with curved walls is difficult.

I am so proud of the hard work he put into building this bed. I’m also proud of myself for the paint job!

I can’t wait to eventually sleep in here!

Have you ever built furniture? I’d love to hear your tips in the comments!

love,
melanie

 

A Faster Progression: Airstream Update

DSC_1143

How long does it take to get paint out of one’s hair? I still have paint in my hair from two weeks ago and I’m doubtful that it will ever come out. It took way more coats of paint to cover the walls than we expected. We had to use a primer, two base coats and a top coat to cover the icky, dated walls. But at least now the airstream now has a floor and painting is complete. We also installed a “real” toilet. No creepy camper potties for us! (TMI?) Anyway, what I’m trying to say is “we made some serious headway, people.”

If anyone is curious, we ended up using Kilz Premium as the primer, Valspar Contractor Finishes 2000 in Ultra White as the base coat and Valspar Paint and Primer in Ultra White as the top coat. We also put a coat of Kilz on the floor before we laid it to ensure the floor was sealed. If you can’t tell, I want the Airstream’s interior to be as bright white as possible.

Bed Build ProgressOur budget is getting a little tight as we are progressing through this project. Flooring is expensive! We chose laminate flooring to keep the cost down and keep the airstream light in case we ever wanted to tow it. And again, we had to buy much more paint than I ever imagined. It can be cheap, fast or good, but it can’t be all three– is that how the saying goes? Le sigh.

bathroom in airstreamWe’ll definitely be reusing old lumber from previous projects and trolling Craigslist for free stuff. My friend already found us a 3/4 size fridge for $75 bucks on Craigslist and I’m hoping to score a few more steals! (Gabby, you are awesome!)

Does anyone have any tips for acquiring free fabric or lumber? I need both! Let’s hear them in the comments!

love,
melanie

Airstream Inspiration

I feel guilty about not being “productive” this weekend. Do you ever feel that way? Learning to relax is definitely something I need to work on.

Tropical Storm Andrea put a damper on our Airstream progress. This past weekend, we had planned to install the floor, but it rained crazy-hard. And when it wasn’t raining, it was a humid, unbearable 95 degrees. Gotta love living in the south!

But instead of staring longingly out of the window at the airstream, I decided to make myself at least feel productive by looking for inspiration for the Airstream’s interior.

A few of my favorites are below.

For the source, just click on the picture!

Airstream Kitchen

This is my ultimate inspiration. I love the clean lines and the bright white in this airstream.

Kristiana Spaulding.DCR010

I adore this desk! It folds down for more space.  Gorgeous and genius. It’s the Natalie Portman of desks.

babmi ii bed silvertrailerThe storage under the bed in this Bambi airstream is so clever. And I just want to climb in that bed!

maine-home-linekin-bay-3

Although it isn’t an airstream, I really admire the woodwork that went into this bus. I also love the pattern mixing in the textiles. Custom woodwork and pattern mixing are two aspects I want to incorporate into our own design.

For more of my airstream inspiration, follow my board on Pinterest!

love,
melanie

Airstream Renovations: A Slow Progression

The past few weekends have been a whirlwind of work. I’m not complaining but, man, I could use a nap… or two… or five. Here’s the progress we’ve made on the airstream.

lights before and afterThis picture accurately describes the first weekend we worked on the airstream. The lights at the bottom of the picture are indicative of how dirty everything was. The lights at the top were thoroughly cleaned by moi! We had no clue that the inside of the airstream was covered in mildew and mold. I guess it was hard to look past the ugly blue carpet!

I scrubbed every square inch of the trailer with a bleach mixture while George demoed. I even used a toothbrush to get in the cracks! A perfectionist’s dream! We had no idea the extent of the mildew, so we ended up demoing a lot more of the inside than we had imagined to just get everything clean. More demo means more building we will have to do, but at least I’ll sleep safely knowing we won’t be living in a petri dish.

DSC_1129

after primingGeorge cleaning out an old bee nest!

The weekend after the deep clean/demo, we primed! I think it already looks better with just a coat of primer on everything. What do you think?

Next weekend, we’re planning on painting the entire place a bright white. With such a small space, I think too much color on the walls would be overwhelming. And after seeing all that mold, I definitely want the place to look and be clean and bright.

There’s been a few obstacles, ahem, Mildew McMilderson, and our to-do list is a mile long, but we’re making progress. We won’t be moved in before I start my new job next week, but we’re figuring it out.

Living positive and living small,
love,
melanie

 

 

Airstream: The Before

before1

For the last few weeks George and I have been trying to agree on a name for our 1978 Airstream Sovereign. Bombshell Betty, The Stream Machine, El Enmascarado de Plata. None of the names have stuck. If anyone has any suggestions for a name for our future home, I’d love to hear it in the comments!

In the meantime, I snapped these “before” pictures. Get Clinton and Stacy in here because it he she is in serious need of a makeover.

 

before2

 

before3

 

before5

 

before6There she blows! Is that saying appropriate? I don’t know. I’ve lost my mind thinking about how much work we have to put into our new home before it is livable.

Believe it or not, the pictures are more flattering than the actual product. The carpet looks way worse in person and there is a distinct wet dog smell– dampness is a problem common in older airstreams.  She has also been sitting for the last 4 years without much attention, so we’re hoping a little lot of love will help.

When we bought her, we knew she was going to be a huge gamble and a hell of a lot of work. But I don’t know if we actually realized the time it is going to take to fix her up. We’ve got a list a mile long and it keeps growing!

Despite our growing to-do list, and I don’t want to jinx it, but I still feel fairly calm about it all. Talk to me in June when my new job starts and our home isn’t fixed, then we’ll see how I feel!

Any tips or names for our big beauty queen? Leave ’em in the comments!

love,
melanie