our vintage caravan renovation project (part 1)

16 June 2016

We like to keep ourselves busy in the Junkaholique household, so with no new projects on the go, we had to find a new thing to get our teeth into. I have always wanted a little caravan to do up but never had the logistics to get it about or store it. We currently have a space in a barn storage, and with another addition to our family, our camper van is getting a bit snug! (Actually it's perfect for a family of four, it just doesn't have much storage space for all the beach toys, food, blankets and firewood. I don't think people had these things back in 1978??), it made it possible to finally get one.

We won this 1970s Thomson Mini-Glen on ebay, and the very kind owner drove it down from Cambridgeshire to Southampton, to a car park where we exchanged cash for our new home on wheels and then we took it back on the ferry. We were very excited! But I think the littleuns less so, our daughter may have been put off by the 70s decor ; ) In fact I think she thought we were betraying her beloved camper van so I had to explain that we will take this one as well as the camper van. "But where's the steering wheel??" "I'm still going to sleep in Vanny".

We are going to totally transform this caravan inside and out and have pretty much got the colour scheme worked out, and even a name!

It is tiny! but just like the tardis, it is like a neat hotel room inside, with kitchen, bathroom, and a dining room that turns into double bed. Also a wardrobe, a crazy 70s notion that you will need to keep your dress/suit nice and neat whilst camping...our van had one of these too!

*edit* just discovered a cocktail bar as well!??!!

We've already ripped out some of the cupboards that were rotten, the carpet has come out as well as the curtains and seat cushions which were turning into dust.

We have so many ideas of how we are going to use this caravan, mobile Junkaholique shop? jewellery showroom?? Exciting!! I will of course update our progress with some more photos shortly.

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the start of summer

2 June 2016

So it's finally feeling like summer here in Blighty, and that makes me very happy indeed! It has been a hard old winter, I had a pretty awful pregnancy and my body (and brain!) have yet to feel/look anywhere like normal. Thats all to be expected of course, but it is nice to feel like one's self again isn't it? Our little boy has grown so much already and he is only 2 months old. Last week my mister had to fly to Japan for a week at short notice (for a funeral), and I was a bit scared to cope on my own as our baby would not be put down anywhere without screaming till he was purple.

Luckily he grew out of this just in the nick of time, and the week went past easily and I actually really enjoyed focusing just on the tots for once.

Now he just wiggles and smiles on his basket, I could start organising our garden a bit. I invested in some hideous garden toys (yet to be assembled) to keep the littles happy whilst I ~~sleep~~ work.

I also made a sand pit and paddling pool out of plastic storage tubs, and painted the picnic bench (as it had gone all mouldy from last year).

I found a beach sand ice cream making toy, and then my daughter wanted an ice cream van (we see a lot of these on the Island!). So I made her a VW camper/ice cream van out of a card board box.

It has a musical box inside, to announce when the ice cream van is coming.

With a sleeping babe, we also had time to bake a cake for my mister's home coming, which she expertly decorated...she was really proud of this cake ; )

Life is slightly less intense now, and we are finding a little bit of routine in our daily lives again.

It is a surreal time, to give birth and absorb the fact that we created another human and it will grow into another child! It is amazing and weird and scary and exciting...ha ha!!

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