So I shared pictures of our 1984 Avion 30R here as it came to us (I think the most I did in those pictures was pull up the carpet and clean). I’m still working my way through 47 yards of pleating tape (!!!!). But here is the state of things as we started off the summer adventuring around Oregon.

We slept in it as soon as it was clean enough to do so. Here it is bare bones, with the floral drapes and burgundy bolsters removed.

The ONE drape I managed to finish. I also made all new sheers, which was a PROJECT people. Slippery mothers… The bolsters were done in the rich blue fabric. I turned to Air Forums a lot (they have a vintage kin message board, but a lot of the general Airstream hints help). I also decided to set up an Instagram account for our trailer adventures, it’s called avionlife if you want to follow us on there.

I did outsource the furniture recovering. My plans had to change a little after we decided not to paint the interior at all. It is all in such great condition that we just could not bring ourselves to do it. And after camping I have to say the idea of having an all white interior seems a bit dubious at best.

I found a pin about recovering basic folding chairs (ours were a gift a few years ago – from Costco I think). Super easy and highly recommend doing this. So much more fun. Use Rustoleum paint, Krylon was a POS for this project!!

Our couch made into the bed for us…. It’s not so comfy. Bj can’t stretch out so we’re trying to figure out exactly what we want to do. We have ended up moving a kid out here and taking a twin before.

We decided we didn’t need a microwave when we traveled so we ripped that out. Eventually we ripped out the wood around the window and put in aluminum blinds. We did the same in the bathroom. So hard to get a picture of, this is the best I have:

By the way the little lid on the counter is for the laundry basket and might be my favorite feature. That and the tub!!!

Note: best used when you are fully hooked up or you’ll fill up your grey water tank fast! Oops, rookie move.

The awning is not the one we specified, the repair place put this on by mistake but we’re living with it. I have dreams of a black and white awning, that is what was originally on this, I believe.
We took this thing all over the state this summer, and beyond a bit (Mt. Saint Helens). We went to the beach, the mountains, crater lake.. it was all amazing. The family time in this thing is second to none. Now I now why they say GO RVing!

Oh hey we got a “vintage” trailer. It’s an Avion 1984 30R. That means it’s an Avion (by Fleetwood) from 1984, it’s 30 feet long and has a rear bedroom (two twins we’re using for the girls). Upon first glance most people comment on our “Airstream” but it’s not. It’s not related at all. We’re biased but we think it’s better. All the cabinetry is solid wood, it’s better insulated and 6″ taller inside (which is very important when your husband is 6′ 4″. Also they are way, way cheaper. The parts are more standard so it’s a little easier to replace things. Of course we swoon over awesome Airstream renovations like anybody else, but it just wasn’t in the budget to go that route.

And we’re totally in love with it. Here are some before pics.

The seller was in Arizona, so the window trim stuff was all dried out. We spent most of our budget fixing things that were pretty basic, and we still have things like that to fix (our fresh water tank leaks, for example). But we decided to clean it up as best we could and go camping this summer. It was AMAZING. And I can not wait to go on more adventures with this awesome trailer of ours.