Place Your Hand Over Heart

I love Craig, and his little list.  I think that the internet is amazing and in 2008 I used it so much I wrote, and published, a 400 page book about my dating “adventures” on craigslist.  When I’m bored I peruse the FREE ads.  I’ve purchased two cars, sold a camper and a truck, found a rental, sold various items and purchased more household goods than I can account for.  So…it’s only natural that throughout my trailer project I turn to my old friend, Craig, for both goods and services.

The upholstery on the old dining benches had to go.  They were torn, punctured, stained, stinky, and…well…almost 50 years old.  The only good thing about them is that they were built well and had never been inhabited by mice.  (mouse urine is very icky!)

So I set out to find an independent (read: cheap but good) person who would recover them and also use my foam pads to build a split mattress for the back.  I got 3 bids.  I know the drill.  Ask for 3 people to bid on the project, then negotiate with the guy (or gal!) you like most.  

The bids ranged from $1500 - $500.  In this case, I couldn’t bring myself to talk down the lowest bidder and I really liked the guy.  He was local, prompt, professional, nice and enthusiastic about working on my project.  (Bonus points for being enthusiastic about tearing off 50 year old upholstery and having to deal with a semi-over-controlling Type A personality like myself!)

I delivered the benches and foam pads (left over from a previous project) to him on a Saturday with my truck and told him to call me when he was done.  It helps when you’re asking for bids to let the contractor know that he or she will have as much time as they need to get your project done.  If you’re truly not in a hurry, let them take all the time they need.

There’s an old saying in contracting:

You can have something fast, cheap, or good. 
Pick Two.

Design wise, I toyed with the idea of polka dots, pink lace, 50’s diner, rock and roll, and rustic cabin themes.  But none of them really struck me.  And, there were so many trailers that were “cute” and “girly” and that’s just not me. 

So until the point when I met with the upholsterer, I couldn’t decide on a color scheme.  So when we met I picked out two colors that would be reasonably priced (he had some left over from a prior project) and readily available.  I also wanted to go with a somewhat neutral back round colors so the appliances and accessories would stand out more.  I chose off-white and deep red.  I then immediately went to the paint store with my fabric swatches and had them custom color sample paint to match.    Ta Da!!

When perusing Pinterest.com (the world’s greatest online resource for all things pictorial) for trailer ideas I put “red and white” into the search field and up popped the most amazing Sherwin Williams color scheme that then became the overall plan:  Vintage Americana. 

Picture this…

dark blue accents…deep red accent walls…

off white ceiling...light purple/blue side walls…

stars and stripes…mason jars…rod iron…

antique baskets…reclaimed barn wood floors.

Can you see it?

“Oh, say can you see…by the dawn’s early light…what so proudly we hailed….at the twilight’s last gleaming”

Yeah.  Corny.  I know.  That’s how I roll.