Pallet for Home

 Been so busy with working at the Farm & playing with the old camper, I once again have neglected you.. Hopefully these progress shots make up for it a little...

I moved the camper from the sheltered backyard to the hill garage area- Now THAT was a 25 minute job with potential of a cartoon ending. But I got there. By myself... just not straight. Thankfully these small campers can be lifted in the front with some help & maneuvered  a bit.

This is the front side where I began using rubbing compound on the top before playing with the few coating of roofing elastomeric. If you remember from the first set of viewing, the oxidation was much harsher. That boat cleaner lightened it but did not get all the way through. Rubbing compound & a rotary buffer to the rescue! This is also the window I had to make my own glass holder framing. Hence that shiny aluminum trim on the big window.

 Remember the roof at last viewing? I FINALLY got to a point of sealing. That back rectangle vent? yeah. Thats gotta go. All this work to seal it up & I discover that vent with windy rain make for a very wet interior. Searching out a small bit of sheet metal before I finish up there.

 For removing the last bit of oxidation, I am using Rubbing compound with the buffer tool. Cuts through but it still takes some time & skill on a ladder...

 Ahh, the back side. I have yet to do much here. The trim is not even back on. I did put new rubber gasket on the small window and replace window screws, rain drips.

Lots of work still to be done before the chill of Fall takes over & my non insulated self takes refuge inside... with that electric fireplace that came with it of course!

Hopefully I get the sealing all done so I can get the wood walls up & have the top half of the skins polished for their waxing. The bottom half will be painted in the Spring.

Now I must bid you adieu being the Farm will not sleep in for lil ol' me. and of course I wish you...

Sweet dreams,

~Tammie

Sometimes the greatest adventure brings more then you anticipated. In this case, my canned ham has turned into a Can of worms...or in my case, Ants... But let's start from the beginning.

I traveled an hour to pick up my camper early. All by myself. How Independent of me, or so I intended.
That morning I grabbed some magnetic tail lights for it's towing as well as the hitch ball. You'd think I could just hitch what Panda has dubbed "The Baked Potato" to my truck & off we'd go. Nope. Let's just shorten this a bit to say the seller spent 5 HOURS trying to connect the wiring for the magnetic lights to The Captains truck being we discovered there was not a Plug set up for the job. 

{taken with a cell phone so it's great}

One thing lead to another and combined with being in 95 F degree sun on asphalt the entire time, I ended up calling The Captain to drive the hour out to follow me back home. Major NO NO but I could not leave the camper where it was due to being unsecured in a Reception Party hall parking lot.

 Instant flashes of drunk wedding reception guests getting the bright idea to 

1. Force their way inside to sleep off a night of celebration. {what a surprise that would have been for both parties if I came the next morn & just hooked her up & drove away... }

 2. decide how fun it would be to push her over the hill just off the parking lot& watch her crash

or 3. Hey look! Free camper! Help me hook it up to the car!

I was in tears when the Captain pulled in, apologizing in between deep breaths. Did I mention WE were to attend a wedding reception back home and were already 3 hours late? He was frustrated but ever so patient seeing how upset I was over the whole mess.I white knuckled the entire way home following close behind as he drove the truck towing the camper. Every tiny sway had visions of disaster popping in my head the entire hour. I did not feel relief until we were 15 minutes from home.

The next morning I inspected her more closely and found an invasion of ants. One thing led to another trying to find the nest for eradication & well.... she now looks like this after finding the rotten wood of their enjoyment:

We still have some pieces to remove as well as replace. I truly do not mind gutting her down to the floor and bones. It will ensure a much stronger restoration as well as giving the pleasure of rearranging for an ideal layout.

Oh my, what plans The Captain & I have been discussing! I even have Little brother Army involved {and his sweet offer of lending me his air gun nailer setup!}. So I have duct taped my rose colored glasses on should any doubts start creeping in as they had that first day. I can do this! WE can do this! With a little help from a connection of Panda's friends father whom is an electrician as well as The Captains friend who does Carpentry work,  It will be done right from the beginning. Plus, I'll learn some new skills along the way. What? Did you actually think I would just hire someone to do it and not be involved? I'll be there every step of the way. Even if it means just handing them wire cutters & connectors or lugging wood to the band saw.

A grand Adventure has begun.
 

Up next,  Garden update!

I'm a chick Obsessed. As with any new adventure, I DIVE right in. I usually come up for air later on with just a few scratches...  Being this one has been a long term dream, it casts an even more surreal glow effect. Many thanks to Small farm Girl for her comment to my last post on the dilemma of contrasting decor themes. As to the subject of the Vintage camper decor, she suggested "Why not do both!". I began to think intensely upon those words and realized, if I change the Blue of the one choice into Turquoise and add some reds, rustic oranges and other desirable's in there to POP- I could mesh it together for the balance I sought. So the hunt began as I embraced my admiration for the Gypsy interior using Turquoise but keeping things middle road enough for The Captain.

I have contemplated some solar light self made lanterns to use with the camper being MANY candles in such close {and OLD} quarters is a bit scarey. Our local dollar tree has the landscape spike ones for $1 a piece which I knew fit perfect for my plans. the lanterns can be hung on the canopy or set on the ground in the sun during the day to charge & placed about for their evening enjoyment. I'll share a tutorial if you can wait that long but there are plenty of similar ideas on the net.

I am SO making a few of these knotted rope holders but a trip to the flower factory will produce much nicer glass vessels then mason jars {no proper gypsy chick would use Mason jars when they could be holding gems from the garden bounty~ unless of course they were tinted...}

Tutorial found over here at marthe Stewart living:

Speaking of tinted jars,I do believe this is pure WOW!

Who knew something as simple as GOLD puffy paint & food coloring dyed Modge podge would transform jars into Moroccan inspired lanterns! http://www.designsponge.com/2011/03/diy-project-moroccan-lanterns.html

Maybe not as perfect as the real thing but close enough! and boo coo bucks saved in the process.

Now how about a Moroccan inspired rug.Oh, the bust the budget price tag making you TRY to ignore the want? Then why not try out this tutorial using a shag rug and Rit dye!! Yep. Over at gorgeous & shiny things, you will find yourself in awe over the transformation you can create.

Has me turning the wheels on how I can transform a colored rug using bleach in place of the rit dye for some "milk thistle lily damask" Gypsy designs. Now where's that Bleach gel pen.....

Little brother Army brought me some very pretty scarves/shawl pieces from his time in the Middle East. He also made the mistake of showing me the bounty he still has filling rubbermaid containers when I helped them move from across (or is it diagonal) the country. I may have to seek out his willingness to part with a few more textile items in my color palette.

 Over the last 6months I have noticed a few similar scarves with the gold thread woven in at the thrift stores. Of course at the time I resisted snatching them without a clue what i would do with them. Now? I'm smacking the forehead with after thought. while making mentals to start snatching away!

Picture & tutorial via American Gypsy

Over at American Gypsy {whom has inspired today's post}, has shared a way to get those exotic pillows using scarves. Of course, you could use throws or other large pieces to make pillows for the bed or floor lounging. Luckily I found her as I mooned over exotic pattern pillows, rugs and blankets. Scarves run a whole dollar at the thrifts here and textiles all run under $4. Now if I could only find the color scheme I desire, I would be set!

Now as for a piece to use on the outside of My Gypsy Chick caravan, an AWNING! Over at "This Montana life", you will find a very helpful {and again boo coo buck saver without the reduction in Glam}, easy Awning tutorial!  http://thismontanalife.com/make-your-own-awning-step-by-step/

I truly have not a single idea on what color route to go with {burgundy? green?, ?,?} I am leaning to a solid color top with Indian influenced shape scallops. This is the Mediterranean scallop found via four seasons tent masters:
 Yep. That's the shape I want hanging from the edge of the awning. Thankfully I have all winter to tackle that project.

Thank you for all the encouraging words & sharing in the happiness of my newest adventure. As you know, I'm all over the map.  Now you can throw in some Vintage Camper remodeling to the mix.

I go this Friday to measure her tires and HOPEFULLY find a used pair before bringing her home. otherwise she will be riding a landscape trailer. Who knew camper tires would be such an ordeal PLUS cost more then car tires? Gently Used tire shopping at boat yards & RV repair shops is in my future.

Years ago, I came within hours of buying a Vintage Tin Can camper but those dreams were dashed. With things slowing down on the to do list around here, those dreams crept back in for the enjoyable remodeling project.

I think I found her! My Betty! A 1967 FAN Coach Camper that needs SOME work but not a huge overhaul. This dreamy Vintage camper was bought by the current owners as a restoration project a few years ago but their jobs kept them from going beyond the cleaning as well as the start of repairing the once leaked upon roof interior. I ventured out this weekend with Little man at my side, to look the 13 foot long camper over.

I fell.. HARD. I did not expect to have the first one I look at to have such an impact. She met every one of the bits on my checklist and I made my offer after discussing it with The Captain. I find out today if this will be my "Betty".

You can see where they began to remove the water damaged ceiling wood as you peer through the door.

Standing in the doorway, you see the back seating/ twin bed area as well as the Kitchen side. The seating has a wood pull out system which would fit a Twin size mattress perfectly. The electric fireplace is obviously not original but would be added in the remodel plans. Fall Camping would be much nicer with a heating unit.

The current owners have already sanded down all the wood {BONUS!} for stain & sealing. This dining area transforms into a Full size bed nook. That stick on squares of tile MUST go.

Get a look at that most likely never used oven!

I will be crushed if this one slips through my hands but in defense of the possibility, I was not prepared to buy this soon. I wanted to look over as many as possible to educate myself in differences, what to look for, etc. I got lucky with this couple. A project they meant to undertake no longer fit their schedule and they want it to go to someone who wants it for restoration remodel to USE. NOT resell for a profit being they were selling it so low in price. The wife has voiced it to her husband whom told me, his wife prefers I get it since all the other interested parties are looking for a resell venture.

Now if only that would play in my favor of our negotiations...

Hopefully, I share next the excitement of bringing "Betty" home but if not.... the hunt will continue.

As for the current undertakings,

Black Raspberries are being picked every morning, producing almost 3/4 a colander each time. PLENTY more on those canes but one of my larger spots has been invaded by black angry hornets. Grr.

Frog & I hit some trails around the lake for Blackberry reference and could not pass up some picking of the areas black raspberries. Upon which we found this nestled within the heart of a patch just 3 1/2 feet off the ground:

I have neglected you so this warmer season and will try to be more of a presence. Especially if I get my "Betty". yep. Vintage Camper remodel fun. Maybe I can get her ready for a trip to the Country Living Fair this September with Panda at my side. That place is surely to produce some Tin Can fancy decor.

Sweetest dreams,

~Tammie