Upgrading an RV interior without affecting its resale value
I simply recovered the pillows with woody-themed fabric and even used hubcap-themed buttons!
Brown.
Everything in many newer RVs is brown. Shades of brown. Patterns in brown. Sure, there is wood that’s brown. Of course. And the wood-look linoleum is gonna be brown. No doubt. But then they add the wallpaper, the window covers, the upholstery, even the cheap bedspread - all shades of brown. Bleh.
I don’t hate brown. Really. But so much brown = boring!
So, when my friend Bev gave me a couple yards of “Woody” print fabric, I knew just what to do! New valances and pillow covers would add a splash of color to the brown palette, and it was the beginning of decorating our Mini-Lite with a theme that suited our love of old cars, Hawaiian shirts, and adventure.
Originally I thought I’d make new valances. However, I quickly realized that the fabric is not very heavy or stiff and the valances would hang too limply to look good. So, as I was thinking of a way to beef them up, like add a heavier backing or something, I went to Curby to remove the existing valances for measurements. That’s when it hit me. The existing valances were heavier. And brown, so I knew we would never want to actually see them. By the way, those valances are installed on a strip of velcro. Removing and replacing them could not be easier! So I took all the brown valances down, took them in the house, and started cutting my beautiful Woody-print fabric into the correct size to cover the brown. I even found that if I was careful, I could simply leave the velcro exposed and put them right back up the same way I took them down!
Once I had the valances covered, it was pillow cover time. I made a simple fold-over cover that opened in the back. Once the pillow is in, the cover actually fits pretty well. Then I was really excited to find buttons that look like white-wall tires, to hold the flap closed.
Of course, the curtains were still... brown. So when my friend gave me a shower curtain that she never used, and it had - yup - Woody print! I decided that print would not only look good as a shower curtain but as window curtains as well. I took a trip to my favorite shopping venue - Amazon - and found the shower curtains and bought two that I converted into window curtains.
While this isn’t our camper, this owner really stepped-up the changes without affecting anything permanent yet giving the trailer some very unique style.
Curby is really stylin’ these days. We added a couple Route 66 signs and have a great theme inside, with some color other than brown!
Best of all while all these changes make an immediate impact in how the trailer looks, they aren’t so permanent that we can’t change it back to brown when we decide it’s time for a new trailer. We’ve seen plenty of RV modifications where the owners had better hope that any prospective buyers liked their changes or the RV will languish in the marketplace.
And with the changes in style and taste brought about by all those style-focused TV shows, things are going to change sooner rather than later. So that ship lap back splash that’s so “in” today may be yesterday’s news just as the pink appliances in our kitchen are.
Though, truthfully, that’s why we love ‘em. What changes have you made to your RV to adapt it to your own personal style?
