The Fixer Upper: Sprinter Van style
Something you should know about me, I love Chip and Joanne Gaines. So much so that while Grant was on a photo road trip in Texas, I flew down and met him in Waco to go to the Magnolia Market. Grant described it as “Disneyland for HGTVers”, I described it as “pure heaven.” With any Magnolia purchase, you receive a picture of the Gaines. I felt it deserved a place on our fridge among our other family photos.
When it comes to projects or purchases, I am the type that acts immediately and then reconsiders my options later...there are always receipts. Grant on the other hand, sometimes paralyzingly so, researches for hours before acting. Grant’s method is probably better in situations like building our van but not so much with buying a razor.
Building out our 2013 Mercedes Sprinter Van, it was clear who was Chip and who was Jojo. We spent many weekends measuring out the gear/items we wanted to bring. This allowed the design to be made off of our needs instead of packing to fit the design. While Grant and my father-in-law Kris are handy, because of their tendency to measure once and cut three times we had to call in reinforcements. His cousin John, who is an outstanding craftsman and one of my favorite Ordelheides had the skills and the knowledge to take our van to the next level.
Most of the hard labor took place on 100 degree days while I was at work in an air conditioning building...bummer. But I, like Jojo, would tell Grant my request/needs. Grant, like Chip, would execute my request, such as painting the cabinets grey...twice. Because of John and Grant’s perfectionist personalities, not a single square inch was wasted. The galley cabinets provide enough storage for our every day needs. Under the bed, called the garage, we store all of our gear (and my shoes) that we do not need to access regularly. We opted out from including a bathroom in our van mostly for space reasons. But let’s be real, no one wants to empty out someone else’s bodily fluids. And so far, so good!
Of course, my favorite part was decorating our home on wheels. I searched deep within for my inner Jojo but also had to remember this was a van. As much as I would have loved decorative pillows, there is not enough space for items that don’t serve a function. So I comprised and had Karen, my mother-in-law, sew a body pillow cover to match my color theme. Katie, MIL’s coworker, made us a special blanket of Noel’s flannels that brings a ton of color to the space. One thing I really miss about our house is our garden. Having live plants in a van would be practically impossible, so our friend Megan made me a crochet cactus because of my succulent obsession. I also purchased magnetic vases for colorful faux flowers. These small touches make the van feel more like home.
Overall, Grant and I are very happy with how our van turned out. It is a small space but because of the meticulous planning, it doesn’t feel cramped...even with our 65 pound dog!
