Sunday, July 15, 2012

1970 Bell, A Buying Adventure

So why did I tow home a 42 year old camp trailer a few days ago?  Well....I'm beginning to wonder myself but I tell myself it will all come together in time. 

My mom and I have actually been wanting an old camp trailer to redo and make cute.  We were checking Craigslist constantly, making calls, and being told the same thing:  "it just sold."  We did this for a month and then took it as a sign we weren't supposed to have an old trailer.

Last weekend there was a Sister's on the Fly rally at the fair grounds in Moses Lake.  This group is our original inspiration for wanting a vintage trailer.  It's an all women group that meets up to camp, fish, travel, hike, and hangout together.  Most of these women have old, cute trailers. Going to the rally that weekend made us want one and want to join the group.  The search for a trailer was back on!

My mom and I were on Craigslist through out the day saving adds and making calls.  Same story, though, when we called they were already sold.  Vintage trailers in the price range of $500 to $1,200 don't stay on the market long.  The other problem was all these trailers were a few hours away, which made going to view them tough with hay on the ground. 

So one afternoon, and with lots of suggesting by my dad, my mom, sister, our friend Holly, and I went on a drive to Mardon to knock on doors and ask if they owned that old trailer and if they wanted to sell it.  We were on a mission, but nervous about going to strange doors.  We headed into the residential area of Mardon and went straight to a house we knew had an old trailer.  Holly and I climbed to the top of these people's steep driveway, kinda jumped the fence, and knocked.  They answered!   So I asked if they wanted to sell their trailer.  They said "sure, make an offer after you look at it."  So the four of us girls piled into this little Bell trailer and crawled all around the outside.  We told them we liked it but wanted to look around a bit (a.k.a. knock on more doors). 

No one else answered their doors.  So we called back to the owners of the Bell and made an offer of 200 bucks!  They took it without hesitation!  Just like that we had bought a vintage trailer.  Wow!  We were so excited because we did not think knocking on doors like little snoops was going to end well.

My dad and I towed the trailer home the next evening.  It's funny.  We went from giving up on getting a trailer to having one with in a week of the fire for one being rekindled! 

These are some "Before" pictures.....
 She needs a bath and a paint job.
 There is a faded decal on the back that I am going to recreate on the computer as a stencil then paint on again.
 Where's the fridge?  We'll be putting my small dorm fridge in.
 Table needs to be put back, and the cushions are going to be replaced.
 Dirty, stain linoleum has to go.
A couch should be in this spot.  We'll be taking care of that as well.

...Bell has a long ways to go and a lot of cleaning up to do before anyone camps in her. 

Thursday, July 5, 2012

Bottles and Windows

When I'm on Pinterest, I always see these great decorations made out of old glass bottles and window frames.  They make me want to craft!

So I took an old window frame from my grandma's old barn and started redoing it.  First, I cleaned it up.  Then I painted it this soft yellow color and added these adorable flower hooks that can be used for hanging coats or aprons.  After that, it sat for a few weeks as I searched for the perfect finishing touches, which I found at a thrift shop in Idaho and on Pinterest.  I got the hanging bottle vase idea at a thrift shop and the criss-crossed twine with clothes clips idea off Pinterest.  I think it is so cute and will be great in either a kitchen or entry way!

This bottle vase idea came to me as picked through dozens of old bottles at a thrift store.  I wanted this one bottle and then I wanted that one other little one.  I kept picking out bottles and waned them all.  However, I didn't know what I would do with them at home.  After sitting on the floor with my friend for several minutes and lining random bottles up, the idea just struck me...I would make a stair step flower vase!  When I got the bottles home, I lined them up tallest to shortest and tied twine around them.  It turned out so pretty! 

I had a lot of fun making these two projects and can't wait to start the next project that pops into my head!  Should be a good one whatever it is!

Sewing for a Queen

Some of you may not know this, but I love sewing and do a pretty good job.  I've sewn at least a dozen tote bags, a couple dress, a handful of aprons, and other little things.

Since my sister has gotten into showing horses and being around rodeo queens, I have been wanting to sew some western clothes and queen clothes. 

Well, I got my chance earlier this week.  No it was not a whole outfit, but I'm really pleased with myself.  I got to sew big shirt cuffs for Miss Moses Lake Round Up queen Jade for a Fourth of July parade in George, WA.  It took me most of the day to sew these two cuffs, but let me tell ya, they are soooooo good looking.  The shirt I added them to was stunning already but the cuffs were a really great added touch! 

 One cuff.  There are some secrets to making these but I'm not willing to give it all away!
The amazing shirt the cuffs were added to!

Thanks to Jade and her mom for giving me the chance to sew for them.  Jade you are a wonderful young woman and a beautiful queen!

If anyone else needs some sewing done or help with a project, I'd be happy to do it or help!