Tiny Living

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Curtains, and a Toasted Wall

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We returned to pick up the dog from the care of my parents, and Dan decided to build the bathroom wall/headboard over the weekend while I figured out where to go next.  

Dan got some cedar boards, and gave them a toasted finish.  First, he cut the boards to fit the space.  Then, he used a blowtorch to char the surface of the wood.  To bring out the texture and character of the wood, you want to burn deep enough that you get some good blistering on the top layer.  Finally, he used a wire wheel on his drill to scrape away the soot, and we were left with a beautiful deep brown color and nice wood grain texture.  So pretty, and instead of smelling like wood stain, our house smells FANTASTIC!

We've got a curtain up for a door right now, but soon Dan will be building a real door (design pending...) You can also spot the curtains I made in this  picture, and our amazing handmade quilt that was a wedding gift from Dan's mom.

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It had been super bright in the mornings, and while I love the light during the day, I wanted a way to cover the windows at night.  There's also that issue of living 10 feet from your neighbors, or right on the street that makes curtains essential.   The curved wall of the Airstream made curtains particularly challenging.  We didn't want any hardware to stick out too much, or curtains to be so long that they would drape on our future kitchen counter top.  In the end, I got a light-blocking curtain panel from Target, cut it up, hemmed the edges, and then installed snaps on the four corners.  We bought this snap kit from Amazon, and had more than enough for the three windows.  

When we got back, we had a pile of packages, most of which were wedding gifts from our wish list (thanks everyone!) One of the first things I did was vacuum all that $%*& sand out of the house.  We are super excited to use all our new things next week with electric hook-ups, a working fridge, AC, and the dog! 

Luna says: Let's go! 

Luna says: Let's go! 

 

Our Maiden Voyage: Cape Henlopen State Park, DE

Dan and I have both taken off about a month to spend some time together NOT doing work, exploring the great outdoors, and testing out living in the airstream.  Dan has been working non-stop to have the airstream be road legal with a passed inspection and registration, but we still have a few months of work to go before everything is completed.  By the wedding, we got the floor, woodstove, bed, toilet, and curtains finished.  The AC and fridge are also in and work when we have an electric hookup, but otherwise, it's a big fancy metal tent.  For our first trip, we packed up and drove out to Cape Henlopen State Park in Delaware.  

Cape Henlopen is at the corner of Delaware, right where the ocean meets the bay.  It's about 15 minutes from Rehoboth beach and historic Lewes.   The park is an old military base, with two beach areas, lots of bike trails, dunes, and pine forest.  Cape Henlopen is dog friendly for camping, even allowing dogs on the beaches!  We weren't sure what to expect on this trip, so we left the dog at home this time.  :(  We'll bring her if we come back again. 

We got over to the park a bit later than we hoped, but were able to catch this awesome sunset on the longest day of the year:

Sadly, the weather was not as cooperative for a week at the beach as it had been for our wedding (pics coming soon).  On Tuesday we saw three thunderstorms, and Thursday called for the same thing.  Temps stayed around 80 all week, not quite warm enough for us to go swim in the ocean, but otherwise very pleasant! Tuesday and Wednesday we hung out at the beach until Dan got tired of all the biting sand flies (who were ignoring me).  Dan also attempted to install some screens in our windows with limited success.  On Thursday we caught a movie and drove over to a local Starbucks to soak up some WiFi and charge everything up while placing an Amazon order for a few essentials.  We also poked around Rehoboth, found an awesome coffee shop in Lewes, and got ice cream at a dairy farm. 

Things we've learned:

  • We need a vacuum.  The sand got EVERYWHERE, and no matter how much I swept, it kept coming back.  
  • We are super reliant on our electronics and the internet.  With just a tiny battery and no electric hook-ups all week, our phones, computer, and other gadgets were left uncharged so we could run more important things like the lights and the fans.  Dan even tried to power the airstream battery with his truck, but it didn't work.
  • There are zero Targets in Delaware.  Zero. 
  • Dan is apparently super attractive to sand flies.  I'd be jealous, but mosquitoes feel the same about me. 

We are very grateful for our new hitch (thanks parents!) Didn't blow off the Bay Bridge! 

Also, Luna was very happy to see us again. We'll be taking her on our next week long trip out to the mountains!  Stay tuned!