DIY Vintage Winnebago Kids Bunk Bed

Jack’s little Winnie bunk bed is hands down one of my favorite (and one of my easiest) DIY projects. You could obviously use this method to create any number of cool shapes— I made a version of this as a submarine for a local preschool— but I thought it would be so fun to give Jack a kiddo version of my grown-up-real-life Winnebago Brave.

Here’s what I used for this project:

Materials:
1/8 in 4x8ft Utility Panel
3/4 in screws
Finish Washers
White and Yellow Paint
Ikea Kura Bed
Ikea Trofast Shelf

Tools:
Impact Driver/Drill
Circular Saw
Jigsaw

Here’s the diagram for all the measurements I used to cut and paint mine. These measurements will fit the Kura bed, but you may need to modify if you’re using a different base bed (though it shouldn’t be too much different since it’s a standard twin size bed length).

1. Cut out your plywood panel using the measurements. I used a circular saw for the larger straight cuts and then a jigsaw for the interior window cuts.

2. Paint two coats of white on the whole thing (you could do both sides, but I left the inside raw wood).

3. Use masking tape to mask off the RV stripes and paint two coats of yellow (or whatever color you prefer)

4. Attach the RV panel to the Kura bed using screws and finish washers. You can touch up paint over the screws to help them look less obvious. I did a few along the top, and a few along the bottom.

That’s it! On mine, I covered up the area on the bed where the ladder goes with the RV panel, so I used the Trofast shelf as a set of stairs so Jack could climb up to the bed. I initially had a play kitchen inside so it felt like a real mini RV, but now that Jack is a little older and the play kitchen isn’t his speed, we turned it into a little gaming den where he can play Minecraft with Dan. Super cute!

Joshua Tree Dreamin'

Now that my kitchen project is almost done, my brain is buzzing with excitement for my next project, which is to re-do my '72 Winnebago Brave!  Back in 2016, just before taking her down the west coast on my Wildbride Retreat tour, I did a super quick reno on it, putting in new flooring, painting most of the walls white and yellow (I had planned on doing wallpaper on the other ones but didn't get it in time before I had to leave), painting the cabinets white, and ripping off the naugahyde on the dash.  I installed the copper pipe curtain rods and made the little white curtains with faux leather hang tabs, and did another copper pipe along the back window to hold books and things in place while we were driving.  It was a fast project, but it really changed how it looked, even though I never actually got around to finishing all the things I wanted to do.  

Fast forward two years and I would love to finally complete this project! 

• I think I'm going to rip out the floors I put in because there are some uneven spots in the subfloor that need to be fixed, and I want to put in a lighter wood. 
• I'm thinking of taking out the upper cabinets above the kitchen sink and stove (that account for quite a bit of storage, so I'm a little hesitant but I know it will open up the space significantly and make it feel way bigger, which is a big deal when it's a 20 ft RV. 
• I'd also love to actually reupholster the bench seats.  So far I've just been "slip-covering" them with blankets and fabric. Having a kid now, I'd like to get some kind of faux caramel leather that's easy to clean and wipe down.
• I'd like to finish the dash and maybe pull up the 70's carpet that's under the driver's and passenger seat up front and replace it with something different.
• I removed one section of the accordion pull down bed in the rear and turned into storage space, so I want to make that work a little better for storage, especially if we remove the upper cabinets in the kitchen.
• And I might replace the table for something more pretty.  

I'm hoping to get out of dodge here in the dead of winter because I do not do well in the grey, wet winters here in the PNW.  Dan's parents live in Joshua Tree, CA and I adore it there, So my goal is to get this ol' girl up and running (well, figuratively speaking, her engine runs fine... for now, fingers crossed!  She is old!) and head down there for an extended period of time.  By then I think Jack will be old enough that he'd have fun playing around on the rocks in Joshua Tree National Park, and of course his grandparents would love to spend time with him too.  And I get some much needed Vitamin D!  So many wins!

And speaking of National Parks, Parks Project sent me this cute Joshua Tree tee and bandana and hat (and a delicious pine scented candle too)!  I couldn't resist putting the bandana on Jack and Dusty.  Having spent lots of time enjoying the beauty of so many of our national parks on multiple RV trips, I'm a big fan of any company that is actively working to protect our national parks and protected natural landscapes here in the US.

the brave show ep.1 / meet the new brave!

ne thing that I've heard over and over again in regards to starting something new is to start before you're ready.  As a perfectionist, that's hard because I could spend forever tweaking details and fixing things to get it just right, but what that means is that I never end up actually launching the new thing, it just sits in draft status hiding away, imperfect and unfinished.  So, today I'm starting before I'm ready.  Done is better than perfect, right?  It's not perfect but here it is!  I filmed the first episode of The Brave Show!

Oh, right, and other big news: I bought a new (old) Brave!  Ahh!  Yes I am a crazy person.  I'll tell you more about the new gal in the show and give you a tour as well!

It's so bizarre to think about how it's almost 5 years exactly since I found my first Brave.  There's some sort of kismet in my life with Braves and I feel like it's a sign that when I'm doing things with the Brave, I'm on the right track.  Things just come together in a really perfect way that kind of freaks me out sometimes.  My friend Kristi calls me an automotive empath, which she claims is a real thing, so I'm just going to go with it.  What I do know?  I feel most alive when I'm behind the wheel of a Brave, chasing adventure and listening to the knowledge the road gives.

It ain't perfect, but it's done!  Here goes nothing!

THE BRAVE // vintage rv renovation inspiration

lot has happened in the past week (including my first burlesque show on Saturday!), and I've got some Brave news forthcoming, but for now lets just look at pretty pictures, eh?  My aesthetic has changed quite a bit since my last Winnebago journey.  I was into textures on vintage prints on more textures next to more prints... you get the idea.  Hence my obsession with all things 70's.  Faux wood?  Hell yes.  Tacky patterns?  Bring it on.  But my current style is a bit cleaner and simpler, with some nods to that vintage style I was hot and heavy with back in 2008-2010.  The Brave needs a refresh, so it makes sense to give her a look that matches current me!  Plus, with my plans to film the video podcast inside the Brave,  I want something less dark, dim, and cave-like.  I know it's, like, all the rage to white wash the interiors of these vintage RVs and trailers, but the truth is, a good whitewash can seriously open up and brighten a space, and when you're dealing with a space appx 20 x 8 ft?  I'll take all the openness and brightness I can get.  
Obviously this is going to be a DIY-heavy endeavor, so I'm excited to share projects as things start to get rolling.  I have some boring mechanical stuff to deal with first, but I'm already filling my brain with inspiration for her cosmetic overhaul.  I don't even think Pinterest existed when I did my updates to the Brave before my last trip in 2010, and it's crazy how many RV renovations are out there now!  It's fun to see how many people have taken an interest in reviving these old gals since I was deep into that world in 2010!
 
  I really want her to be clean and bright, but still full of personality.  And for me, practicality and functionality has to be major.  I see a lot of cute RV or trailer renos and I feel like you'd have to remove half the stuff to make it driveable.  I mean, I love styling spaces as much as the next blogger, but I also am going to be driving this beast thousands of miles, so she really does need to be functional as a vehicle that drives on the interstate. It seems like most of the renovations I've found that I love are trailers, which seem a bit easier to work on since you don't have to deal with being inextricably enmeshed with the chassis of a truck.  The layout of my Brave is pretty much stuck, since everything is where it needs to be to work with the truck base, which is fine because I really love the layout I have.  I've been in a few Braves and mine is by far my favorite layout, very open and light, all things considered.   Right now on my to do list: 

• whitewash interior
• reupholster bench seating in rear
• refinish counter + table
• make new curtains, possibly new rods too
• redo bathroom (not sure what I want to do yet, though)
• finish flooring
• repaint flying W on exterior!

I seriously can't wait to transform the Brave into a mobile home and studio that reflects my style and give it a fresh new life!  It's gon' be awesome, y'all.  *does geeky excited dance*

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THE BRAVE // a new dream hatching

 sent a letter out to my VIP list folks last night talking about fear and how I'm learning to rewire my response to fear (sidenote: calling it my "VIP" list feels weird since I consider all of you VIP's, so you guys should come up with a better name for it.  I hate the word newsletter, so boring.  Ideas? The Brave Report?)  I'm excited to lean into fear, rather than recoil.  Well, maybe not excited about the fear part, but I'm excited to see where living into fear takes me.  I need to do a recap of TxSC because I was so inspired to go for some new dreams that I hadn't even considered, but there are various fears attached with going for new dreams, and I'm not going to let those fears keep me from hunting them down.

One of my big fears is failure, or trying something that ends up not working out (which feels like failure, too).  Over the past few years I've hesitated to mention any of my new dreams here on the blog for fear of it not working out or people being disappointed if I don't end up following through.  I've been going back through my archives pulling favorite outfits for my #flashbackfriday posts and I was reminded how recklessly open I was about so many dreams, the Brave in particular.  So here goes nothing: I'm planning another Brave trip (once you say it, you have to do it right?! Ahhh!).  I have weddings to shoot this summer and so I'm tied to Tacoma for the next 6-ish months, but I'm not going to take on any fall/winter weddings after the last one I have booked in October, and I'll have a similar timeline for leaving in the fall like I did 5 years ago.  On my first trip I left on Sept 20th and returned Dec 20th, and I'm not sure what the duration of this one will be, but it's definitely planned to be cross-country again, and since it's in the winter (again) I'll be heading south on a similar-ish route as last time to keep warm, though I would like to make it further up the east coast on this trip (maybe hitting NY if it's not too cold?).

 



Can we all take a moment to appreciate this needle + thread parking job?  I'm standing against the house on the opposite side of the alley from the winne to take this photo.  I'm pretty sure if the Brave was 2 ft longer it wouldn't have made the turn.  There's about 2.5 feet on either side (closer, if you count the eaves/gutters).  This is the Winne's current home.  Kristi lived here for about 6 months and I have another friend moving in for the next couple months.  

Last time my trip was very much an inward journey.  It was a healing journey for me and something I needed to do for myself.  I needed the trip to fill myself back up after going through my breakup, feeling a bit lost after graduating from college, and wanting to fulfill a lifelong dream.  This time, I feel like I want to fill others.  I want this trip to give back to people, so I'll be starting a podcast/vlogcast (or both?!  I haven't decided!) called The Brave (I'm very clever) and on my journeys I'll be visiting rad chicks who are kicking ass and taking names, inviting them into The Brave studio (i.e. the kitchen table) and chatting with them about life, dreams, confidence, feminism, creativity, and more.

The Brave needs some TLC, she hasn't seen a lot of action in the last few years, so I'm wanting to semi-gut her and give her some new life with a renovation, which I really would love to document here on the blog as well!  Last year I ripped out the old brown carpet (it was ugly and not even original) and installed this new flooring, and I also installed a new butcher block countertop, but I'm noticing that it's already warping (anyone else have this problem??), so I might have to re-do that, but hopefully I can salvage it.  The windows in the back are pretty leaky and have completely destroyed the wood veneer walls, so I'll probably be gutting the walls and giving it some kind of new treatment.  It'd be nice (for both time and money reasons) to not have to completely gut her, but we'll see how far I have to go once I see the extent of the damage and what I can work with.  

I'm actually kind of excited about giving her a fresh interior.  When I first went on my search for the perfect Brave I was hot and heavy into vintage surfaces and textures.  I was a dyed in the wool maximalist in my visual preferences and had a pretty strong penchant for faux wood.  I found a winne that was pretty close to original, with a few exceptions, like the carpet and upholstery.  Being forced to give her a new look due to water damage gives me a chance to give her a new look that fits my current personal style and I'm excited to see how she ends up looking by the end of the summer!  As of now, I know I'll be painting her, reupholstering the rear benches, and making new curtains.  The bathroom will probably need new walls, and I definitely need to figure out a way to seal the windows so they don't ruin the walls again.

I don't know if Dan will come with me, I think he was excited about it being another solo journey for me.  I may or may not take Dusty.  She's an amazing car dog, so I think she'd had a blast.  On my original trip I'd wanted to take a dog of my own, but the thought of bringing a puppy on the road seemed like not a great idea, which is why Little Bit came with me as my travel companion.  Those are all details which will be worked out much closer when I leave, though.   One large part of prep will be figuring out the financial aspect.  Needless to say, driving a 1973 Winnebago across the country isn't the cheapest way to travel.  Last time I went on a Winne trip I was living at home in my parents' basement rent free (and eating free too), saving all of my money to pay for my trip.  This time I've got a husband, utilities, insurance, mortgage, etc., which means I'll be hustling a lot more to be able to pull this trip off, but I believe in it and I know I can make it happen.   I'm launching my new photography guide, PHOTOBOMB!, this week, and all of the proceeds from my shop will be going directly into my Brave fund to get that girl both in tip-top shape for the road and also go to gas and lodging, though hopefully this time around I can park in more blog friends' driveways to save on RV parks!  If you want to head over to the shop and snag PHOTOBOMB! for 10% off, use the code "NewDT" at checkout* to get a discount!  It's sort of like a Kickstarter, except you don't have to wait to get your thank-you gift for supporting!  I'm planning on launching a couple more new courses and guides, and so all of those will also be in support of the Brave. *expires 4/6/15 I'm really excited, and a little nervous, to bring this all to life.  Truth be told, I had thought about selling the Winne just over a month ago, to help alleviate financial strain (and to reclaim my backyard).  I couldn't bring myself to do it, though, feeling like the Brave had more to teach me and share with others, I just didn't know what.  The Brave gave to me in so many ways and I want her to give to you guys now.  I'm trusting that in some crazy way I'll be able to facilitate that.  So get ready, ya'll.  The Brave is ready to come cruising on into your life this year, so you'd better make room!  (appx. 22ft x 8ft, so you can plan accordingly.)