A lot of you have been waiting a LONG time to finally see the new and improved Vie. Can you say #extremehome(onwheels)makeover?
I’ll take you through the whole tour. But first, let’s reminisce for a moment about the old Vie… Lovely.
Here she is folks… the new and improved Vie! Welcome to our home.
Basically, without tearing down the structure of the interior like the cabinets, over-cab bed, benches, kitchen…etc, we ripped apart everything else. We painted the walls with a random bucket of whitish paint that we found in our house. Cees made all of the cupboard doors out of barn wood that came from an old barn in Idaho Falls. With the same wood, Cees and his friends did all the paneling on the walls and the floor of the RV. We love it because it feels like a little cabin on wheels now.
In these cabinets we keep all of our personal things, like crafts, books, journals, ukulele, games, tiny vacuums, essential oil diffuser…etc (can you tell I dominate this storage?)
We went to Deseret Industries (our local thrift shop) and got a bunch of cool old leather belts and cut them up to make handle pulls. We actually spent a good amount of time at DI planing and browsing to see what we could use!
The curtains are painters’ drop cloths that were actually the table cloths at our wedding! I just hung them up with some paracord that I had at home. The BYU Geology department was throwing away a bunch of old topo maps, so Cees rescued them and we Mod Podged them to the ceiling. This project really brought out my craft-rage. It’s a real thing.
The lights are little mason jars that we drilled to fit the light bulbs. We love them because they are really bright, but don’t hurt your eyes to look at and they don’t get too hot at all after being on for a long time!
The table and all the countertops were refurbished with sheet metal we scored from our Uncle Dave. They are durable, we can cut and set hot things right on them, and they cleans easily and look cool.
We also painted the fridge door with chalkboard paint for fun!
Like we mentioned in earlier posts, the only thing that we couldn’t tackle on our own, was the reupholstery job. We had a guy in Provo handle that for us. At first we tried to sew new cushion covers ourselves, but we realized really quickly that woven saddle blankets unravel when you cut them wrong and are heinous to work with. So, we decided to pick our battles and let the nice upholstery man work his magic. The saddle blankets, pillows, and rugs we got at elpasosaddleblanket.com. (Prepare yourselves for a nightmare of 90’s website design, but rad stuff nonetheless).
The American flag was rescued at some point by Cees, but we can’t remember when or where. On our bed we have a Rumpl synthetic down quilt, that we LOVE and highly recommend. On top of that we have a Pendleton blanket that my mom gave us. With the two of these blankets combined, we stay super cozy and warm at night.
There used to be that hideous blue carpet by the cab area, and we didn’t want to rip it out and deal with contouring new carpet around those tricky edges, so we took the easy route and custom cut a large cork board and screwed it right on top. Also, here you can see Vladimir’s home #Catagonia
The wallpaper in the kitchen area is the last dying remnant of the old Vie. We kinda dig the 80’s pattern and it makes it feel like a separate area from the rest of the RV, so we kept it.
We are so happy that our kitchen is fully functioning, complete with a 4-burner stove top, oven, 2-sectioned sink, fridge, and freezer.
Our cute little kettle from UCO that we use everyday.
A little organization helps us stay sane and maximize our small living space.
We keep all of our shoes in the cabinet right by the door for easy access.
These under bench storage cabinets are home to the batteries, inverter, and all the fun stuff that our solar panels use to power the coach. The water tanks are also under there somewhere, along with Vladimir’s bulk food bag and kitty litter.
I am so glad that we have a bathroom on board! I’m not a super fan of gas station bathrooms and if you know me well, you know I like my showers. We live a plush life here on the road.
The shower is on the right (this is where we store the kitty’s box) and our closet is on the left above the toilet. All of our toiletries and cleaning supplies fit nicely in the cabinets above and below the sink.
Yay for tiny bathrooms with running water!
I think that pretty much wraps up the grand tour! We have been renovating and creating this dream for the past year now and we couldn’t have done it without the help from our incredible friends and family. We pulled WAY too many all nighters and ate WAY too many Little Caesar’s pizzas. But, in the end, it was all worth it and we couldn’t be happier!
There’s our adventure kitty in his favorite spot, soaking up the sun.
Thanks for touring Our Vie with us!
Ahhhhhhh most beautiful and amazing thing ever. I love you guys so much
Thanks, Liv. One of my favorite parts is the tandem bike log you made for us. Seriously the coolest. THANKS.
This makes me want to cry with the exceeding amount of joy and excitement (okay, and a little jealousy) that I feel about this! Seriously. This is the best! I’m so stoked that everything turned out so well for you guys!!
Jen! Thanks for your incredible amount of stoke! The positive vibes you send are overwhelming! Thank you thank you thank you. (And about the jealousy bit, let’s meet up in a park!)
Oh, don’t worry! I fully intend to meet up somewhere! I’m certain we’ll be in touch. I’m hoping for Yellowstone and the Tetons at the very least… that’s my home turf!
Too cool! You’ll never want to come back! I feel like the Bachelor/ette, overuse of the phrase, “That’s AMAZING!” But, hey, it is.
Thanks, Sandy. You helped make it all possible!
This is AWESOME!!! You have done an amazing job with the renovation and making your Vie the perfect home on the road! Looking forward to following your adventures. (I particularly love the shot of Vladimir sunning himself in the window!)
haha, he loves his sunny spots. Whenever we come back to the RV he is always curled up in a little cozy sun spot he’s found.
This is amazing!!! Love it!!
Thanks, Amanda! Its been a good project for sure. Crazy that we are actually living in it now!
So cute! I love the decor and the awesome views out the windows. Makes me want to start pulling our trailer soon.
I’m in love with all of it! The Vie turned out so awesome! Having kitty with you on your adventure will bring you such an extra measure of joy, and yes, i am so super jealous!! I love you both, and you guys will be in our prayers for extra happiness, health and safety! Xx
Thanks Kerri! We’re so grateful for all the help you have given along the way!
So. Freaking. Rad. I’m going to have to hit up Uncle Dave for some stainless steel countertops for our new/old camper. Yours look great, and so utilitarian. I might steal the Mason jar idea for the lights as well because, well, adorable.
Yeah! I am way excited for you guys! That camper looks awesome! By the way, Sterling was the one who pretty much did the mason jar lights one night when we were working on it. See if he can help! haha
I love this SO MUCH! We have wanted an RV so many times during this trip, haha! Love your style. This will be inspiration for our next trip!
Thanks guys!! We always talk about you two and how impressed we are with how you roll!
So beautiful! You’re living the dream!
Thanks Sarah!
Read about you in NPCA magazine. Love your website, photos, adventures and RV…but most of all I must admit I so totally love your adventure kitty!!! (And that’s saying something because you’re way-to-cool RV is absolutely priceless). We are planning a similar trip for 2019. Thanks for all the inspiration. Profitez de votre belle vie!
Oh thank you! And we are totally aware that Vlad is the star of this whole show! You are going to LOVE road life! Good luck getting things all put together! Keep us updated on the rig and the plans!
How to power through a national park road trip with Our Vie’s Cees and Madison | The Charge
[…] They’re a newlywed couple who, with a sidekick named Vladimir Kitten and a Toyota motor home they named Our Vie (get it?), are on a mission to visit every national park in the U.S. They cover every stop on their blog, Our Vie Adventures, as well as everything from how to leash train a cat to how to remodel a camper. […]
Oh wow love how you were to rig up some running water! # goals! Thanks for the post 🙂
Hey Guys!
I have found myself in almost the same exact situation as you were in (recent grad, getting married soon, and just bought a 1987 coachmen to renovate and live out of)! I absolutely love the small mason jar lights that you installed under the cabinets to replace the standard RV lights. But, in all my searching I can’t figure out how to make them to save my life! Can you let me in on your secret??
Thank you!!! You guys are totes rad!
Savannah
Savannah!
So fun you are renovating a little RV! As far as our “secret” on the lights… there isn’t all that much to it. We just used a nail to break through the middle of the lid, and then used some tin snips (but some heavy duty scissors could work probably?) and cut the hole just big enough for just the light bulb socket and wiring to slip through. Then we screwed the lid top (with the other part of the lid attached as well) to the cabinet or wall. Then, we are able just to hand screw the jar in place over the light bulb!
Hope this helped! haha Good luck!