Tinkering, Summer 2012: New Floor and Cupboard Storage!

[Karen B.]

This summer has been one of disappointments so far: I bought material to make new curtains and a new bedspread for my 13-ft Scamp, but since I'm living in a shoebox while I'm finishing my PhD, so much of my Scamp stuff has been stored at my parents' since last summer. The bad news is that they're moving and my fabric got packed up and put into storage with the rest of their stuff--and I'm not going to be able to get to it until after I head back to Nebraska from Minnesota. The disappointment is large. The good news is that the old curtains are accessible, so they'll work for another year.

But what I was able to do: I took the remaining vinyl that I used on my new front dinette floor three years ago and made myself a new floor for the Scamp. I apparently have a fear of doing irreversible things, so I cleaned the living daylights out of the carpet and laid the vinyl over the top, then trimmed it around the edges. I hope it works. Right now, it looks great and I think it's going to be a lot easier to keep clean (with two cats) than the carpet. The remaining scraps of vinyl went into one of the bottom cupboards next to the fridge.

I also took some plastic over-the-door shoe storage, cut it apart, and staple-gunned it to the insides of various cupboard doors. I should have painted the doors, but I'm hoping to replace them with real wood before too long, so it's not worth the effort.

I think I can afford one trip this summer (trying to travel on a grad student stipend is tough), but I think I'm taking the long way back Up North from Minneapolis at the end of June to where I'm staying at my grandparents' cabin 200 miles north of Mpls. Can't wait!

(I'm working on posting pics as soon as I can figure out how...)

Karen

[Karen B.]

Pics of the floor and the cupboards.

I was pretty disappointed that Dad wouldn't let me use his Dremel (probably smart), but I got to use the air ratchet which made up for it. We only had two rules as we worked: Rule 1, no blood. Rule 2, we had to be speaking to each other at the end of it. Dad didn't break Rule 1 till the end, so that might be considered successful.

I've got an old orange crate that fits perfectly into that dead space under the dinette, so that'll be more storage (I just don't have a picture of it yet).

There's more pictures and such on my blog (Adventures in Scamping), if you want more.

Happy Summer!

[D Davis]

What a simple, yet brilliant idea! Thanks for sharing this.

[Donna D.]

Cool stuff, thanks for sharing!!

[Bonnie and Claude]

Karen, the floor is lovely! Is that vinyl flooring that comes on a roll or is it like the laminated click flooring? Does it feel solid when you walk on it or does it have a bit of softness? Is the metal base trim all that holds it in place?