Day 8 of vintage Aloha camper remodel

I think we're almost done!

These are the boards that the dinette cushions go on.  

They were pretty nasty looking, so I painted them.  

On the outside front corners, we needed to take off the old J Rail and replace it. 

Since someone had covered the corners with rubber and added another strip of metal, 

we went to a local sheet metal shop and got some metal wide

enough to cover all the damage.

New butyl tape and caulked.  Not real pretty, but does the job.  

I'm painting the metal to match the camper. 

I think it looks better with the stripe going across the J Rail.  

I also painted the vent cover on the side.  

It's no longer needed and boarded up behind it.  

Now I have to try and match the pale gray on the rest of the 

camper, so I can paint the rest of the new metal.  

For now, it just has Kilz primer on it.  

So hard to get accurate colors with my phone, but hopefully you get the idea. 

Aqua and bright green.  

The curtains will match the green.  

I love to do hand stitching, but hate measuring, cutting and getting the sewing machine out. 

So, I'm procrastinating on the curtains.  

The curved part of the ceiling had to be caulked, so it will get painted tomorrow.  

What an improvement from the first pictures!  

If you've forgotten what it looked like when we got it, go back to Day 1 post.  

Amazing.  

I'm getting attached to this little camper while working on it. 

But, if I find one in good condition with a working bathroom, I will sell this one.  

Still small things need to be done.  

I want to put trim around all the windows, paint the wheels (after they're greased), 

replace screens, and change out the old receptacles.  

I've ordered some decals and they should arrive soon.  

The finishing touches!  

Dad and I are on our own now.  

It's a good time to make some memories. 

And we're both ready for this memory to be over.

Dad wants to get back to building furniture and I want to go camping!

Day 6 & 7 of vintage camper remodel

I keep thinking we're gonna get so much done "tomorrow", but it doesn't always happen.  Life happens.
Working on the camper is not always the priority.  And that's how it should be.

We are making progress though!

This is my 84 year old father, "supervising".  :)

There was about an inch opening at the bottom left corner of the door.  

He figured out that is wasn't bolted in right and our hired guy got under there and fixed it and now it closes correctly and no critters can run in!

This is the plug for the trailer lights.  

I had to order an adapter so it will match up to the 4 flat plug on my Jeep.  

So many little things.  

I don't know if the outside trailer lights work, but we'll find out when the adapter arrives.  

Painting is almost finished.  

I took the photo at the end of daylight, so you're not seeing true colors.  

They're bright!

I cheated with the hardware and just spray painted.  

There's so much of it!  

I still have to put the hinges on the doors so I can put them back on.  

This camper has tons of storage.  With all that storage, comes hardware.  :(

Dad took the metal "J rail" off the front corners today.  

We got new sheet metal to cover the damage. 

And new butyl tape to go under it.  

But first, I have to scrape all the old putty off this corner, so we get a better seal.  

So that's all the pictures I have for you. 

Lots of little things are getting done.  

Caulking, shoe molding around the floor, sanding, electrical updates, etc.  

It's coming along mighty fine!

On a side note-  

I moved back to NC in November and jobs are not very plentiful in Yancey County.

One must be patient.  

Today, I got a p/t job.  It's a good job, but only 15 hours.

So, the search continues for another p/t job to make a f/t job out of two p/t jobs.  

~Prayers are much appreciated~

I don't start until next Wednesday, so there's still plenty of time to finish the camper.  

Maybe I'll even go camping this coming weekend!

I think the South Toe River is calling my name~~~

Day 5 of Aloha camper reno

Not much work done on the camper today since it's Sunday.
I went out this morning and finished doing the putty over the staples.  My dad said it looks like it has the measles.  :)

Then this evening, I went out and started some painting to get ready for the guys 

to do some trim work tomorrow.  

There's that gorgeous aqua paint!

Tomorrow is a full on work day again~

Day 4 of Aloha camper reno

No work done on the camper today, except for me filling in some staple holes with putty to get ready for painting.

But, I did go shopping at Big Lots, Dollar Tree and some thrift stores!  Here's my good finds.

All the items in the above photo are from Dollar Tree! 

Gonna look so cute!  

The word on the block is that this camper may be for sale when it's finished!  

Day 3 of Aloha camper renovation

My day was mostly spent going out to buy a mini fridge and supplies.  The fridge will be a nice surprise, but
that will have to wait a day or so.
I went to Lowes to get trim, and when I got back (1/2 hour one way away), I had gotten the wrong trim.
So, we went back to Lowes at supper time and got the correct trim.  The second time, my dad went with me.  :)
On the way back, there was a beautiful rainbow, much more beautiful than the photo shows.

While I was gone on the first trip, the guys got the new flooring laid.  It's peel and stick vinyl.  

I got a great deal on it since the boxes were open.  Instead of $12 a box, the store manager only charged me $2.50 a box and the two boxes were enough!

I had planned to do the floors last, but they're done and I'm thankful for that.  

And I'll be sure to cover them when I start painting.  

Yesterday, I found some curtains that spoke to me.  They said, "buy me and use me in your camper!"

So I bought two panels and will be making them into curtains for the camper.  

Aqua walls and bright green polka dot curtains!  Retro fun.  :)

That's it for today.  Tomorrow I start painting the inside.  Aqua!

Day 2 of Aloha renovation~

What a difference a day makes!   Here's some before and after photos of the front corners.

New wood to replace the rotted wood, new insulation, then new paneling.  

Here's my contractor Eric replacing the rotted sections of wood.  

More new wood to replace the rotted sections.  (on the curve and corner) 

This is inside some of the drawers~

And here's all the hardware I took off the drawers and cabinets.  Sure glad I'm replacing them and don't have to get all that paint off! 

Tomorrow the paneling gets finished, new wiring and maybe I'll get to do some interior painting.

Turquoise walls!

Renovation of my 1965 Aloha vintage camper

Saturday, I traveled an hour and a half to look at a 1965 Aloha vintage camper.  The seller had sent me pictures, and it looked real good, so we headed out.

The camper had some water damage, but looked better than any others we had seen, so I gave a deposit and made plans to go back and pick it up yesterday since my Jeep was in the shop. 

Last night, we bought the camper home. 

Looks pretty good huh? 

Well, with the sun shining just right (or wrong), it showed more water damage than we had seen at the first visit.  Too late to back out.  It's mine. 

Got up this morning and got to work!

Tear out the old and get ready for the new.  

Then the painting began.  

The hunter green had to go.  

I had chosen a light turquoise, but when I starting painting it, it was way too pale to be near the white.  I needed more contrast.  So, I took it back to the hardware store and they added some blue and black, but then it was like a royal blue, so I had them add some green.  Perfect.  

As for the paint, I am using Benjamin Moore exterior gloss and rolling it with 1/4" nap. 

I'm not a professional and don't try to make it look that way.  

Just want a fun camper to spend some time with the Sisters on the Fly. 

(I'm Sister #6249)

www.SistersOnTheFly.com

Tomorrow we rip more rotted wall out and start replacing with good wood.  

The fun has begun!   

Trip from PA to NC. A VERY long ride!

My son and I just got back from a trip to visit my parents in Burnsville NC.

Google maps says the trip takes less than 9 hours. For us, it takes 10-11 hours. We stop to eat and since I drink McDonald's sweet tea to stay awake, we do lots of bathroom breaks. :)

Nothing real exciting on this trip, but we got to visit old friends and spend lots of time with my parents. 

We lived in Burnsville, NC for 12 years, so we had lots of friends to visit. 

On the way, we got to buy gas for $1.99 a gallon!

I took this photo at the TN Welcome Center on Hwy. 81 South on the way to NC. 

Love the old cabin look!

And not too far from my brother's house in Bandana, NC we saw this awesome old house. 

Notice the Christmas decoration on the porch. 

On Sunday morning, we went out for breakfast and this place was the only restaurant in town open on Sunday morning, except for fast food. 

The sign is sooooo cool retro, but it could use some TLC. 

Eggs and sausage were good, but the homefries were deep fried and tasted 

like old grease french fries. 

I must remember to ask them to cook my homefries on the grill if I eat breakfast there again. 

Here's a photo of the menu. I loved the play on the southern slang. 

It really is how some of the locals talk that are from that area. 

On the wall at Lil' Smokey's, I was surprised to see two signs that I had made when I lived there and did craft shows!

I took this photo on our way home, near Erwin, TN. I took it with my phone, so I apologize for the poor quality, but look at the beautiful scene!

I took a couple photos at a Virginia rest stop on the way home. 

And the gas on our way home in VA was even cheaper!

So, this is my mismatch of photos. 

I should of taken more, but I was busy going to 7 different thrift stores hunting for wool clothes to recycle, eating at lots of favorite restaurants, and visiting old friends. 

My two favorite thrift stores were Shops of SafePlace Thrift (formerly The Attic) in 

Spruce Pine, NC on 226 in the Grassy Creek Shopping Center behind Western Sizzlin, 

and Barkin' Basement Resale Store which is run by Yancey County Humane Society and is 

located in Burnsville Plaza Shopping Center on Hwy. 19E across from Burnsville Chevrolet. 

Be sure and stop by and shop. Shops of SafePlace Thrifts benefits domestic violence victims and Barkin' Basement benefits the animals of Yancey County, NC. 

Meals I made sure to eat while I was there was:

Pollo Loco at El Chapala's in Burnsville. (twice)

Appalachian House Salad with house dressing at Appalachian Java & Cafe in Burnsville.

Fried rice at Tokyo Restaurant in Spruce Pine.

Potato wedges & potato soup at Garden Deli in Burnsville. I was gonna have baby rack

ribs, but we went for lunch and the potato soup sounded yummy and it was!

In closing, I am sooooo glad to home! 

I walked into my home last night after 11 hours on the road and I have to say that being in 

my primitive decorated environment makes me happy, and sleeping in my own bed makes me even happier.