Cleaning up ...

So much happened since my previous post.  Life has been very busy!

We've started more serious prepping for our big adventure.  

There was mould on the canvas, which I wanted to clean before departure.  

We remembered cleaning the D9 camper with a high-octane product and baulked at using the same this time round.  The product was effective but we didn't like it's fumes.

I'd read of Milton being used as an alternative solution and we opted to try that.  We purchased one bottle at the supermarket and then converted reward points to a $50 BigW voucher, which funded another four bottles.

There was some trial and error getting the ratio right but we settled on a 50/50 approach.  The five bottles were sufficient to treat all the walls and the underside of the front and back window awnings.  Some areas received a double treatment - and everything was thoroughly hosed down afterwards.

We only treated the outside, didn't bother with the roof (which only had a few light marks) and were really pleased with the end result.  It was far less fumey, so much easier to work with - and definitely cheaper, even if we hadn't used the voucher.  

Flash snacks!

Life's been busy lately, hence the lack of posting here.  Most of what we've been doing isn't within the scope of this blog but I was very chuffed with these cheese platter boxes I assembled for a recent "city lights" hike.

Our local Council organised a guided night walk, to a lookout within a conservation area, that is usually off-limits after dark.  I booked four tickets, cos we had family visiting.  

We'd called into the Mt Coot-tha lookout following Nissa and Mark's arrival at Brisbane Airport, so the more local night hike would give us a distant view of the city, from a different direction.

Due to the timing (and exertion) of the 8km hike, I felt we needed something more substantial at the half-way rest/viewing point than just a muesli bar or piece of fruit.

Nick and I bought the cheese platter provisions from our local supermarket.  

The 820ml divided Sistema containers seemed a good size for my plan, so they were purchased at the same time.  

In filling them with goodies, I discovered the cardboard packing from two of the cheeses were the right size/height to use as extra dividers. Bonus!  Two containers of mixed crackers were packed, using some of the original packaging for extra protection in transit.  

The two cheese packs were transported in one of Vaughan's old insulated lunchboxes.  Four juice boxes just fit into another, narrower lunch box.  I did a customised box for each couple and that worked well, given limited seating at the lookout.  Nick and I shared one box while Nissa and Mark shared the other. And yes, other hikers were quite envious of our flash snacks! 

This particular event was alcohol-free but I reckon baby bottles of bubbles might work on a special/private occasion, probably at some other location.

Power to choose ...

We planned to install a 12-volt system in our previous Spacevan but didn't achieve that goal before the van was written off.  

A nice young fellow visited us in February, to discuss our power needs for this camper.  He later provided us with a shopping list of components, which would provide a good system within our budget.  

We had lots of fun shopping (in person and online).  Once all the items were assembled, we organised to deliver the Spacevan to our young friend's home - where he could fit the 12-volt system around his work and other commitments.

Everything was done within a week and we are so very pleased with the new set-up.  How good does it look?!

Spacevan interior (completed) ...

Our second two drawer units arrived and Nick fitted them during his most recent time off.  

After discussion, it was decided to use a sheet of plywood to make two tops for the units, to give a bit more stability to them when being used as benches.

We bought the ply as a sheet, which Nick cut to size.  He rounded the front corners and decided to use an all-in-one stain and varnish product for sealing the sanded plywood.

I thought it might be cool to do a photo collage on each top but am still thinking about that - and we might well have many more photos to include after this year's big trip!

There was enough stain finish for a full coat on both sides and then a second coat on the top, visible side.  Brass bolts were used to attach the tops to the bases - and it all looks quite schmick!

I'd already chosen the red dirt coloured cord for Bandit's bed without much thought to the final benchtop colour - and we didn't consider it when choosing the stain - but all co-ordinates very well together.

While at Bunnings we picked up two packs of their interlocking foam mats, which are a bit smaller than other versions.  Nick used them to cover the usable floor on the upper, bed level of the camper trailer.

We've found the mats great for trapping dirt when camping and think this extra set will be even better for keeping dust etc out of our bed! 

The final tally for the drawer unit project was $788.20, which we are very chuffed about.  (The full cost was another $70.00 but we used Nick's work Christmas voucher to discount the price of the first drawer unit).  

For comparison, we have access to Cub's September 2022 pricelist and their 8-drawer tallboy unit was then priced at $1,523.00.

Light and bright!

When we bought our initial camping equipment in January 2009, we didn't want to use gas so chose a dual-fuel lantern and three UFO camping lights. At that stage the UFO lights were almost $17.00 each and the RRP of the lantern was $150.00 (without case).

The lantern reminded me of the pressurised kerosene lamps that had featured during my childhood - along with primus stoves and a quick-boil kettle. 

Our dual-fuel lantern was well-used on many trips and did great work till around 2016, when we upgraded to a newer model.

This post from late 2014 mentions our lighting set up.  There's another reference here from that same trip.  We acquired more 12-volt LED lights in 2016, during our 18-month stint of caravan living, while in transit between Victoria and Queensland. 

Those LED lights are still doing well and are being used in our current Spacevan.  We called into the 4WD Supacentre very recently, hoping to get an extension - but the current versions aren't magnetic and won't pair with our existing set.

On our February trip to Stanthorpe we used some cheap Kmart "bulb tent lights" inside our new Hub screenhouse.  (Those bulb lights usually stay in our shower bags, cos some cubicles are only dimly lit).

After returning home, we took advantage of Anaconda's summer sale to buy two Ultra Slim, battery operated lanterns for use inside the Hub.  We can hang them or they'll sit on the table.  They have three settings and emit nice light.  

Years ago I made basic covers for the UFO lights but I crafted much better protection for this pair, using a lightly quilted silk scarf for the outside and some dark fleece inside.

Let sleeping dogs ...

I've sewn all sorts of things over the years - including many curtains and some bedding but I have limited experience of making other furnishings.  

Many years back, I made cushion covers for Erin's bedroom space in a small "bubble" van.  Those covers were quite simple and were finished with hand-stitching, to avoid the need for zippers.

Fast forward to now, when I've had a lot more experience of zippers, albeit on small-scale zip pouch projects.  

After a fair bit of YouTube research, I felt reasonably confident of creating a zip cover for Bandit's custom dog bed. 

Given my level of confidence, I decided to make two covers - a waterproof under layer and a soft corduroy top cover.  Yep, call me keen!

Nick cut the foam cushion to size, from the mattress that came with the Spacevan (which we chose to upgrade).  

Another piece of foam had been used to fill the gap between the Mahindra's two rear seats, to give Mr Dog more room to stretch while we are travelling.  

No purchases were necessary to create the dog bed.  The under layer was made from an upcycled waterproof sheet and the outer cover used fabric from my infamous stash (a bargain opshop purchase from quite a few years ago).  The shorter zips were also opshop buys, sourced from the stash.  The longer zips are upcycled from rooftop cargo bags that deteriorated.  Had I bought the four zips from Spotlight even with a coupon, they would have been $25.00.

Some of the cover construction was new to me, so there was a lot of muttering as I battled through the first one, with constant reference to the YouTube tutorial - while eating jelly snakes! I did better on my second cover (and now know a lot more about altering zippers) but even so, I needed to finesse/fudge a little. I'm pretty chuffed to have finished though - and really like how the two covers work together.

Most importantly, Mr Dog seems happy with the new arrangement and we're hoping he likes sleeping there a lot more than crowding in with us!

Getting our money's worth!

At some stage in late 2013, we took advantage of a Ray's Outdoors sale to buy four grey camping chairs.  They had already done a fair bit of travel before our stint of caravan transit life, when they were in daily use for 18 months.

They've had some more camping trips since we relocated to Queensland but Nick and I found them less comfortable on our very recent Stanthorpe break.

We're planning a two-month touring adventure later this year and decided a chair upgrade would be good preparation for that - and as luck would have it, Anaconda was having a great sale!

Of course, if there hadn't been a sale - we would have waited for one, cos we do love getting an excellent bargain!

We had mis-remembered where the grey chairs came from, so happily bragged to an Anaconda fellow of how well they'd lasted, thinking they'd been an earlier purchase from one of "his" stores!  Hah!