It's all about that paint, 'bout that paint!

Now although the title is rather silly, picking the color to paint your RV is no joke. And honestly, I highly recommend painting no matter how much you don't mind the wallpaper. My husband and I intended to do just an accent wall and ended up painting the entire place and we are extremely glad that we did. Not only does it help to get rid of that camper smell, it makes the place feel like a real home by bringing a touch of our personality to the standard assembly line 5th wheel.

First, pick your color inspiration! We decided on a ten dollar pillow from Bed, Bath, and Beyond. It was extremely elegant containing golds, silvers, brown, and cream. It's definitely a color that you do not normally see in a 5th wheel and contained many usable colors that would assist in making the place home.

We weren't sure what colors were exactly right. We picked a color called Sandie Pecan and Brown Suede. We thought the Sandie Pecan would be the accent wall but it ended up being to light. We then picked the Brown Suede out and liked it much more for the accent wall, and made the final decision to paint the entire house with the Sandie  Pecan using the Brown Suede to accent. In total, with three adults working, including paint pick up time, etc., we have taken about 10 hours to paint with the bedroom and bathroom still requiring the second coat.

 I began by cleaning and bleaching everything down. It was pre-owned by a couple who used it rarely. It had been locked up throughout the winter and spelled stale and contained some left over rotting food that required a good clean out!

 Some changes definitely needed to be made throughout this thing in order to make it a beautiful space that my husband, Kitty and I would be calling home for about the next 6-7 years at the shortest.

 Blue's favorite space was the garage. I think it was because there was nothing in it making it easy for him to see, sniff, and experience our new space.

 This is the view (slide outs closed) from the garage facing toward the front.

 YUP, I was such a happy cleaner xp

 As the night went on I decided it was safe to pull all the slides out. Our home becomes very spacious and an enjoyable space that I can envision holidays, sleepy days, and in general the a place to finally call our own!

 This provides the best pre-remodel view of the 5th wheel. Some of our basic plans include painting, taking out the cabinets below the TV and extending the counters, moving the sink, putting in a dishwasher, changing the loft into storage, replacing furniture, creating shelving space, putting in skylights in the kitchen, and overall adding a touch of femininity to the place. As a toy hauler the overall theme is a man's retreat with bottle cap opener and all!

 First to start we removed all non essential items, including the couch (that will not be going back), outlet covers, lighting fixtures, and those HIDEOUS (I cannot extenuate it enough) window fixtures. Then we picked out our colors. It was then time to move onto the dreaded painting. To tape off and paint the entire slide out myself took about three hours. One of our friends came over to help, he painted and my husband taped and it took us about 6 hours to complete, almost two coats on the entire main living space. The following day my husband and I began some touch ups and finished the second coat, and moved onto the bedroom and bathroom. To paint almost an entire 30ft trailer (we are not painting the garage) with 2 coats we highly recommend at least a gallon of your main color and about a quart for any accent colors. For taping off you will need at least three rolls of tape!

 Sorry this picture is sideways I am to lazy to flip it, but I wanted a picture of our first meal in our new home. (Note to those cooking make sure to place the rack on one of the upper shelves as the burner in the bottom will burn the bottom of your food, while not cooking the top.)

Here is the general color concept. I do not currently have picture of the finished product as we have had family visits and illnesses over the past week which has hindered our remodel of home. Our next step will be taking out flooring and putting in a new laminate that should further increase the homey feel. For those that are wondering, I will be posting in excess about taking the flooring our and putting it in for the slide outs as I personally have found no information on exactly how to complete this task. So it should be fun.

Finally, I will post updated pictures hopefully this weekend once I have finished painting the bedroom and bathroom, and removed the flooring.

Happy 5th wheeling!
Victoria

The Beginning

 

 In the Beginning

What started out as a concept on Thursday, turned into reality on Sunday. My husband and I purchased a 5th wheel that we would not call our home for the next several years. It was extremely fast and slightly unplanned but overall we are very happy with our choice, and become happier as the trailer comes to life with us!

I have decided to start a blog, because in my adventure thus far (which as only been 5 days), blogs have been the greatest source of information for information about living in a trailer or RV year round.

Context

Here is a bit of context to assist you in determining if small living, specifically RV style, is appropriate for you. My husband and I live in Alaska and intend on living here for a few more years until I am accepted into a Neuropsychology PhD program. We are unsure of where we will end up as there are several programs I am interested in. Further, we are uncertain if we will stay in the city after I get my degree.

Variables at Play

With the general context set in place my husband and I began talking about looking into apartments because we are currently living with his parents. One of the greatest issues with Alaska is the cost of living. The most disgusting apartment in the worst part of the city will still run you approximately $1,000 with only some utilities included. To make matters even more difficult we have a cat, which no where allows pets. Plus, I must admit, that I am extremely picky when it comes to my living situation. I want tons of counter space, we must have a washer/dryer, and dishwasher. To get the perfect apartment we were looking at, at least $1,500 excluding utilities. This was not possible as we both make less than $20 hourly and were interested in saving for a house, however, with knowing that we would be moving shortly it is impractical to purchase a house.

Last week, we began talking about purchasing a fifth wheel for our move in order to make life a bit easier on us. We stopped in at an RV dealership and began the hunt, determining important aspects that we both required for a fifth wheel, especially if we were going to be living in it for several months. During this same time, my parents were in the process of looking at an RV in which they were planning on living, permanently.

After seeing several fifth wheels, my husband and I had several requirements listed, including washer/dryer, large kitchen, and a garage. Most of these amenities come standard in a house but definitely not for a trailer.  We talked about how much we would spend and decided that $40,000 would be an appropriate amount but we would likely not be able to get a toy hauler (garaged trailer). Most toy haulers, even used, were upwards of $75,000. I was not very happy.

Finding Our Fit

One evening, as I lay in my soft warm bed searching items on my phone. I decided to pull up craigslist. There was trailer after trailer with many different features. Some trailers were ugly with rotting insides, while others were far more extravagant  than one could imagine. Then I saw it. The perfect trailer! It was beautiful! I could see it's overall robustness and all important pull outs. I was in love, there was just one issue was it as amazing in person?

After talking with my husband we decided to meet with the owner and look at the trailer. The next day we were out viewing it. In a matter of moments we decided to purchase the trailer, however, we were racing another couple who had also agreed to purchase it but had not provided the money. I said a quick prayer as we raced to the bank. Within 20 minutes...WE HAD OUR HOME! It felt amazing to know that we had just purchased our first home. I felt no fear, it was right, it was perfect!

The overall cost was only $5,000 over our budget, but... the trailer was worth $10,000 more than we paid!!!!! :)  PS: it's a 2009 Keystone Fuzion 403

Finding Your Fit

Now our story worked out pretty darn well. Within less than a week we had discussed, looked, and purchased our trailer. It is not likely that it will occur for you in this amount of time, or at this stage in your life. It is most definitely a commitment in many ways, financially (although cheaper than a house or apartment), relationally, and space. Here are several things to consider:

• What are absolute necessities you are looking for in your tiny home?
• Once looking, are there any new things to consider?
• Is it what is best for you financially?
• Are you willing to live in a small space and become ninja organizer? 
• What aspects of a trailer are you willing to compromise on?  (For example, I could compromise not having a garage, but was not willing to give up a large kitchen).
• If you purchase a trailer will you be staying at a year round RV park, purchasing land, traveling, or staying on a family or friends property?

These are a few thins my husband and I thought about before purchasing and they may help you make your decision as you begin to look at what your future plans, and goals are.

Anyways, I most definitely need to sign off; Ive been to excited to sleep this past week :D

Good luck on your tiny endeavor!
Victoria