Vintage Revivals • Page 75 of 120 • Fearless DIY

Just A Little Moment of Honesty

By Mandi | 08/14/2014 | 45 Comments

Ok, so maybe that post title is a little dramatic. But you guys. I am feeling a little stressed and would love to air all of the laundry that I have piled up. If that is ok?

Blogging room makeovers in Real Time is sort of hard for me. Some of you may remember my Master Bedroom that stopped cold turkey? (this is where we left off)

Well, I didn’t just stop blogging it, I stopped working on it. I just didn’t love the direction that it was going and had a few other projects that were pulling me away. So I painted the wall white and gave the headboard a coat of navy spray paint and haven’t worried about it again. It has become a makeshift studio for shooting projects on a blank background. (So I guess that I am *technically still real timing it, since I have done nothing.) I haven’t shot it, but you can see what it looks like from the BHG shoot for DIY Magazine and Flea Market Style.

I have a sense of security working on a room behind the scenes and then showing you the process after. Sometimes (um..every time) it gets a little hairy. I tend to be more of a doer than a planner. If I think that a paint color is going to be awesome, then I try it. If I hate it then I repaint it. You guys see glimpses of it (like here and here) but I have the after to show you how great it turned out and that makes it ok. Like there is a method to the madness, but to be honest, sometimes the method is try everything until you find something that you love.

For this reason (and a few others) the Nugget is giving me extra stress.

Maybe because its a one time deal? If I can’t use all of the ideas that I have in a room, its ok because there will always be another room. But there will not always be another Nugget. I want it to be phenomenal.

The other problem that I am having is that I feel like this little trailer is a great opportunity to really let the whimsy and retro kitsch out of the bag. I mean, it is totally acceptable canvas to be fun and a little over the top. But it is such a teensy space that it can take a severe left turn and not stop until it reaches Candyland and Gloppy the Molasses Monster.

This amazing picture from Inaluxe is the perfect Retro Desert vibe that I am going for.

The last bit of blockage is coming from lack of fear which sort of sounds like an oxymoron. When I talk about fearless DIY it is in a no-idea-is-too-crazy kind of way. Just try something with reckless abandon and see how it turns out. I keep finding myself stuck in this rut that used to be fearless but isn’t anymore.

Anyways, thanks for listening. Talking through what is giving me clogged creative arteries seems to be the only thing that helps and I just want you to know that you are not alone if you ever feel like you are over thinking a room to the point of match searching (so you can light it on fire).

Michelle’s #colddeadfingers Trailer Reno

By Mandi | 08/07/2014 | 58 Comments

Falling down the world of Vintage Trailer makeovers on Google had left me with one conclusion. Actually 3. Red, Turquoise, and Cherries. Also lots of tchotchkies.

Now don’t get me wrong, I love those colors. I love tchotchkies a.lot. I was just itching to see something more modern. There are little moments of fantastic trailer designs (Design Sponge has a great before and after here) it just takes some sifting. I will say though, I LOVE how people get this boost of confidence when they are working on these things. I mean, there are some pretty gutsy moves happening and while it might not be my style, color me impressed.

Please for a moment, imagine my squeal of delight when an awesome reader emailed me pictures of the trailer that they had just overhauled. I emailed her right away and begged to be able to show them to you guys. She also might have thought I was nutso when I asked if I could interview her over the phone. But not tooooo nutso, because she agreed. Ba-bam!

Welcome to Michelle’s 1961 Avion aka The Bean:

When they bought it off of Craigslist for $3500, it had a few things going for it. The adorable shape obvs. Those brass sconces are the things that dreams are made of. And the stove. The stove is the cutest. In Michelle’s words, there is good vintage, and there is decrepit vintage. The Bean had moments of good that they worked with all of the other things were replaced.

The majority of their time and budget went to things that you cant see. Rewelding the frame, converting the propane to electrical for the fridge, internal plumbing, you know… the fun stuff!

Michelle wanted the trailer to be an extension of their home. So a lot of the colors and finishes were things that she used inside their house.

After 4 months of work they turned this baby into a place that is gorgeous, and comfortable, and completely magazine worthy.

The biggest undertaking was polishing the aluminum. When I asked how they did it themselves, Michelle’s AMAZING husband sent me super detailed instructions that I will be putting to good use on The Nugget and sharing with you guys then. Can you even stand this before and after!?

Kyle said that it was a 40 hour job, and one of the messiest things he has ever undertaken. Gulp. (Fingers crossed that Court skimmed this post and didn’t read that last sentence.)

And Michelle very wonderfully sent over a few pictures that were taken inside their home so that we could see just how perfectly it matches the vibe.

Just because I cant get over it. One more time.

Also, they are obviously a family of super models. So there is that.

Michelle, THANK YOU for sharing this amazing before and after with us!! Seriously, it is so inspiring!!

So friends, I have to know, what is your favorite part?

The Nugget: Prepping for Paint and Movin’ Lights

By Mandi | 08/06/2014 | 22 Comments

Dudes! We are overhauling a 1972 Bell Travel Trailer! Follow the entire series from the beginning here!

When we left off last week, we had just made some major repairs…in the form of new walls. The next step was prepping the entire interior for paint.

There were lots of little flakey patches on the walls.

Sort of like psoriasis for a trailer.

So that needed to be addressed. There were lots of holes, and some pretty substantial cracks that needed to be filled.

First things first was the filling. I used my favorite 3M™ Patch plus primer . If you have ever patched a hole with a sub par product before and then painted it you will know why I recommend this. You know that sheen variation that happens? Like the paint finish is just completely sucked up into the patch? That is the problem that is magically resolved with this product.

(This step by step process is the same for the walls in your house too!!)

Locate the holes. I will say there was a surprisingly large number in the little Nugs.

Using your fingertip press Patch plus primer into them, and then spread a small amount around the outside of the hole. Leave a small mound above the hole that can be sanded off.

Let it dry! (You will know if you are sanding too soon because the putty will ball up and roll as opposed to turning into dust.)

Another thing that we did to prep for paint was caulk the seams.

Fun fact! Did you know that most caulking guns have a small hole on the handle to cut the tip off of the tube?! Dude. I was SUPER impressed about that million dollar idea.

We also had some pretty major seams and the remnants of the bunk to repair. Once we had it out to work, we sort of fell in love with the space. So we decided to leave it out. The only way that we could get the boards out was with a grinder, so as you can image, there was some hefty damage.

We used Patch plus primer and a putty knife to fill them, because the seams were so deep we did this in a few layers. You can see the first layer on the bottom below.

Once everything that was patched and caulked was nice and dry it was time to sand.

For the love of all that is good in the world, Please wear safety gear when you are doing these type of projects. Safety goggles or glasses, a respirator, and hearing protection will be your 3 best friends. You are like the Plastics, without all of the backstabbing and the word Fetch. Did you know that there is a specific order that they should be worn?

First, if you have long hair pull it back. Then is your respirator, then goggles, then hearing protection. And because I thought you guys might love to see me sans makeup, I made you a safety GIF.

The sandpaper that we used was 3M™ Sandblaster Advanced Abrasives . I have to say, I have never used it with an electrical sander before (I tend to be more of a sanding sponge type girl, but this job needed some true grit). The backside is very tacky and I was blown away at how it adhered to the pad on the sander. Like it had to be peeled off, but didn’t leave a residue. I recommend using 150 grit for this type of project. We had the wall texture that we wanted to tone down, and the flakey patches that had to be smoothed out. 150 is such a great grit for power without major scratching.

Check out how well the walls patched and sanded! It is as smooth as glass.

The last paint prep step after all of the dust was wiped off was to tape edges off with ScotchBlue™ Painter’s Tape . My trick for a super sharp paint lines is to rub the roll of tape over it before you start painting. You can get some pretty fantastic leverage and pressure that you cant get with your fingers!

Prepped and ready to go my friends!!

I have to tell you guys the funniest story. So 3M sent a few randoms in the package of tape and sandpaper. One of which was this automotive electrical kit.

Court was over the moon about it. See, he likes things to be nice and organized and compartmentalized. The problem is that I am literally the messiest creative person on the planet. I mean, there is stuff just everywhere. So as you can probably guess, he swore that if I touched his electrical kit that he wouldn’t step foot in the Nugget again.

I feel like it is an epidemic in my life to have off centered lights. When there is a logical place for the lighting to go, it is NEVER there. Every light in my house is like that. So imagine my lackluster enthusiasm when history started to repeat itself in the Nugs.

Because we took out the bunk, the main center light could be moved so that it was hanging above the table.

We started by drilling a hole in the spot that we wanted the light to live. Then Court posed for a picture I like to call “Fishing But Coming Up Short”. Apparently all his days on the lake did nothing for his wire fishing skills. Good thing I have a hidden wire fishing talent.

Once the wire was poking out of both holes, he attached the extra wire from the kit to one end, and pulled the wire out of the original hole.

The 2 wires were joined together with wire clamps (which is basically a tube that you put the wires into and then clamp them shut.)

We pulled them into the ceiling and tada! new light location!!

The next day I patched the hole and now that it is painted, you can’t tell at all! Also it is not required to have chippy nail polish, however it does add to the hard working laborer image that I have been working on. So there is that.

Massive thank you to 3M DIY for sponsoring the paint prep for our little guy. As always, I only work with companies that I love, that have products that I really use and believe in!

Check out their social channels for mountains of inspiration:

3M DIY Pinterest
3M DIY Facebook
3M DIY Twitter
3M DIY Website
3M DIY Instagram

Up next? Tile!!

New Family Member Alert!

By Mandi | 08/04/2014 | 36 Comments

Happy Monday friends!! We spent a great weekend in Salt Lake for a wedding and an adoption, of sorts.

For those that don’t know, we have a 1 1/2 year old Boston Terrier named Wallace that we LOVE. He is the best dog in the world.

For the last 4 months we have been searching high and low for another Boston. Apparently they are like potato chips, you cant have just one. In May we found a 2 year old female. Her family couldn’t keep her anymore. We were over the moon!! Unfortunately they backed out at the last minute (literally). So we went back to our search. The results were puppies and dogs for stud. No adult Boston’s to be found.

After mulling it over we finally decided on a puppy. So we have been patiently waiting for the last few weeks.

We are very excited to introduce you to Gertie Girl.

She has been so much fun! My girls are smitten.

We introduced her to Wallace yesterday and I think things are going well. They will play for a bit and then each want their space. Wallace seems very mellow, maybe because of the puppy comparison? Also there is a lot of sniffing, normal right?

I would love your experiences on introducing new pets. We have never ventured into the 2 dog family territory and I would love all of the advice we can get!

The Nugget: Rebuilding and Hallucinating

By Mandi | 07/31/2014 | 14 Comments

Dudes! We are overhauling a 1972 Bell Travel Trailer! Follow the entire series from the beginning here!!

When we finished for the day we were left with nothing. Literally, the entire back end of The Nugget was gone, and it its place?

Air. Just air.

Now we begin the process of rebuilding because at some point, unless you want to rip the entire thing apart completely you have to decide just to stop digging (don’t worry, we dug through the front too, keep reading!) But seriously. We fixed what needed to be fixed for structural reasons, the other things (like replacing all of the paneling inside) could be taken care of without ripping it out.

One of the craziest things about these little trailers is that they are literally built out of 1×2’s and staples. That’s comforting, right?

Last post I showed you the corner with the worst damage.

When we took off all of the paneling on this wall, and on the back we were really able to assess the situation.

Our options were to replace the entire 1×4 which would include taking off the side of the trailer skin and part of the roof, or working with the good parts of the wood. We decided on the later. Let me stress that if this wood had not been in such good condition everywhere but the joint we would have replaced it without question. It boggles the mind how one spot can be totally rotted away and the piece right by it is fine.

Using a small handsaw we cut out all of the parts that had even potential damage.

We then trucked our cute butts to Home Depot for wood. Because these were interior pieces that no one would see, we used regular pine.

Then we fit a brand new 1×4 piece inside the spot that would run the length of the window.

We screwed it in place, and stapled aluminum flashing from Home Depot on either side to strengthen all of the joints. (Triple it up so that your staples don’t go though!)

Now that the side window had been fixed enough that we could work on the back (it is like the worst to figure out the most efficient way to do things in sequential order….)

We decided that because it was an easy piece to remove, we would rebuild the support for the back window. The staples were freaking me out a little. There were just so few of them…and they were so wiggly!

Luckliy we planned a little and got these things on our first trip. Instead of using flashing and staples or screws for this piece, we decided to use mending plates. They are these crazy knarly looking pieces of metal with teeth that you hammer into the wood on the 2 pieces that you are joining together.

Solid doesn’t even begin to describe it. It is like it was made out of one piece of wood. Take that wiggly staples! Hi-ya!

Once we had all of the pieces ready, we started reconstruction.

For all of our inside walls we used 1/8” underlayment from The Home Depot. It is extremely inexpensive and one of my favorite materials to work with. We brought home (2) 4×8’ pieces and had more than enough to do the back.

We started by fitting the bottom angled piece first.

Using a staple gun for trailer rebuilding is not optional. Because of the nature of the beast, you will want to stick as closely to the original sizes of everything as much as possible. Would I have loved to replace the inside walls with 1/2” wood and 2×4’s? Sure, but then the shell wouldn’t fit and I would be adding unnecessary weight. If the thing has lasted 40 years already then just go with it.

Next we dry fit the large back piece. Dry fitting is something that you will do a lot. Its the best idea that you can have.

We put a couple of staples in to hold it in place so that we could measure for the window.

We held up the back frame and traced the window hole (first making sure that the window actually fit inside the frame!)

Then we took the panel down and used a jigsaw (that I LOVE) to cut out the window hole.

After it was cut we attached it to the back end of the Nugs.

Court also drilled a small hole on the left edge for the electrical to come through.

Now that the inside wall panels were in place we could add the structural support.

We added the window box

Then we added all of the crossbeams. We beefed it up from the originals because this was a spot that we could do it without adding bulk. We used flashing and a staple gun to attach the vertical boards. Let me tell you. This thing is SOLID.

We used the staple gun on the inside to attach the underlayment to the support beams. (Love this inexpensive one!)

Also Court has a Cyndi Lauper thing going on with his rubber gloves. He is such a trend setter.

It was at this point that we stopped working on the back and moved to the front.

After taking off the aluminum I have to say that we were pleasantly surprised at how little damage was in the front.

We replaced 2 crossboards (and they we just stained, not damaged so we could have gotten away with just leaving them).

Do you know what was not pleasant or a surprise? This hot mess of electrical:

After taking out all of the unnecessary wires, tape, and dirt, and figuring out what wire belonged where, we were left with this:

You almost missed it right?! That little bundle by the water tank. That’s it. After we get the hitch spruced up I will show you how to attach them to it! Also the ones that are taped and running underneath the trailer hadn’t been pulled off yet. They were the temporary trailer lights that had replaced the originals.

I will be talking about the lights we installed in another post, but just a heads up if you are using this series to overhaul your own trailer. Waterproof Wire Nuts are ALWAYS a good idea when wiring the outside lights.

Once we had the boards back on the walls and everything situated it was time to put the new skin on. I ordered this from Jim’s RV. There is a company that makes it to the exact size specification that you need.

Tack the skin to the trailer (or have someone hold it) while you mark the holes for electrical. Take it off and drill them out. Then attach it to the frame.

Then we stapled it along the bottom after we had fed our wire though.

The Nugs has this cute little curve on the bottom that I really wanted to accentuate. After we measured and cut slits for the bumper, we used a board as a guide and bent the aluminum up so that it followed the curve.

We found that the best way to fold the skin around the edge of the trailer (with as little denting as possible) was to use a hammer and soft taps. Also if you have excess that needs to be trimmed off a grinder works super wonderfully.

Then we stapled along the edge and voila! new shiny skin!!

We measured and cut the panel for the inside, and stapled it after installing new insulation.

Funny insulation story.

For those that don’t know, we live in Southern Utah and right now it is HOT. Like 110 degrees hot. I had to separate the insulation before we could install it because it was so thick and fluffy. It had been a little while since we had taken a break, but we were making really great progress so we just kept going. As I was separating it I swear to you I could smell cotton candy. When I asked Court if he could smell it too, he laughed himself to tears and made the executive decision that it was time to get out of the heat.

I totally understand the whole desert mirage thing now.

And I still want cotton candy.

Huge thank you to The Home Depot for teaming up with me on this project!!

Thrifting Finds from the Weekend

By Mandi | 07/30/2014 | 19 Comments

I cannot believe it is already Wednesday! Holy.

I will be the first to admit that I have been a lackluster thrifter for the last few months. Buying everything in sight for The Hoard Sale will do that to a girl. Not to mention summer, and The Nugs, I just needed to take a little break.

Hope you folks in St. George enjoyed the pickins, cause I am back.

I feel like the thrifting gods have missed me, as evidenced by the great things that I scored at the DI (Utah’s version of Goodwill) on Saturday.

Dish Holder $2.00, Footed Mid Century Enamel Bowl $3.00, Teacups $1.00 each

Tomato Suitcase $2.00, Ceramic Vase $1.00, White Bowl with Lid $2.00

This chair is one of my favorites ever!! I couldn’t believe that it was only $10. It has a little damage on one of the arms, and as soon as I figure out how to repair it I will let you guys know!

Ivie is going through a phase where she wants to know all about everything that I loved when I was her age. Saved By The Bell is topping our Netflix queue right now, with Full House a close second. So when we found these Trolls it was safe to say that we were both extremely excited about it.

Have you scored anything amazing recently? Pretty please hashtag it #colddeadfingers so that we can see it!!

Using Windows Live Writer on a Mac

By Mandi | 07/29/2014 | 21 Comments

Non-bloggers beware, your eyes might glaze over during this post (or if you are totally not interested come back tomorrow, I am sharing a few cool thrifting finds from the weekend!). For bloggers who are caught in the turmoil of blogging with Windows Live Writer or using a Mac, you will want to kiss me on the mouth. Its ok, I will just be prepared next time we see each other.

Windows Live Writer is HANDS DOWN the best blogging tool that this technology filled world has to offer. Seriously, if you are a blogger and have never tried it, it will change your life.

If you are unfamiliar with the capabilities of WLW, how does auto sizing and watermarking your images sound? (pssst detailed tutorial for that here!) Maybe auto linking URLs to specific text? Writing posts offline and being able to save drafts to your computer hard drive? Those are just a few of my favorite features.

3 years ago the dinosaur desktop that I was using died. RIP old friend. I had just discovered the wonderful world of Windows Live Writer (WLW from this point forward) and had a very small budget for a replacement. I ended up with an HP that lasted a year and 1/2. When it died after such a short time, it was December of 2012 & I needed a new computer stat. I KNEW that the blog was quick becoming more than just a hobby, but all of the research that I had done online indicated that there was nothing created for a Mac that was as wonderful as WLW. I bit the bullet for a few weeks and researched the crap out of using WLW on a Mac. The info that I found said that theoretically it could be done using Parallels and Windows but no one that I could find had actually tested it. The unknown was just too much for my feeble heart. I ultimately decided that WLW was more important. I bought a Lenovo and spent just over $1,000 on it, hoping to make it at least to the 2 year mark.

Guess what? It died. After a year and 1/2. Apparently that is the lifespan of a PC in my world. It was time. I needed a Mac but WLW is literally the most important thing to Vintage Revivals (after a camera, and soap to wash away the thrift store grime). Luckily for me in the year and 1/2 that I was swearing my guts out about stupid ugly Windows 8, a few of my blogging friends who were equally as addicted to WLW as I was, decided to test the Parallels/Windows theory. Guess what? It works!!

So for all of you bloggers who feel like they are having to choose between the program that makes their blogging lives easier, or the computer that will make their ENTIRE life easier I have great news. You can have both!!

All you need to do is install Parallels and Windows (I went with Windows 7 because I HATED Windows 8) and had the guys at the Apple store install them for me.

Once they are installed open Windows –> Internet Explorer –> Search Windows Live Writer (or click this link) and download it.

So the question “Can you use Windows Live Writer on a Mac?” is answered with a resounding YES!! And now you know just how to do it!

No inner turmoil, no buying a new computer every time the wind changes.