MOTORHOME MODIFICATIONS *C* Chaises and Chairs, Clock and Bucket

I am going to start off the new year with posting three of our motorhome modifications at a time. I will post repairs, modifications, or neato things we have found for RVing.  I have lots of pics in my files so I will do them in alphabetical order.

Underneath that stuff, I will post my regular daily stuff..... kinda sorta fun, eh?

So here it goes, we are up to the letter C now!

MOTORHOME MODIFICATIONS 

STARTING WITH THE LETTER C

Chaises and Chairs for Camping:

Camping means relaxing.. and that is just what we do!  These zero gravity recliners are soooo comfortable, and we really like them enough to make space in our basement compartments to take them along.  They take up a LOT of room because they do not fold up very flat. But they are worth it for sure.

We bought them about 8 or 9 years ago when these style chairs were first coming out on the market. We got mine first and it was made with softly padded washable fabric.  There was only one left in the store, so we got a rain check for one for Steve. It took months before the store got them in again, and this time the material was a woven mesh kinda rubber coated and holds up well too.

We do not allow them near the campfire to avoid any flinging sparks or burn holes. We put them away every night, we never leave them out in the rain, and they are lasting a long time and wearing well.

We found these wonderful clamp on tables that swivel and move around for best positioning. The recessed cup holder can also fit the stem end of a wine glass!  The flat surface can hold a dinner plate, or scissors and thread and needles when working on my stuff.  The small clamping piece around the metal frame stays on the chair all the time, and the arm and tray both lift off and can be washed. The arm and tray can lay flat on the seat of the chair when folding it up and are ready for the next time it is set up. 

We do not let the grandkids sit in our chairs, or company if we can help it.  By just keeping them for us, they are kept in good shape and stored away when we leave so nobody ever walks off with them.

But we did find some nice sitting chairs for company and grandkids. They fold up really flat and we bought four of them at Walmart for about $8 each on clearance.  Works well and we have had them for about 4 years now and the grandkids all enjoy having chairs close to the campfire.

We watch out for sparks, but do have a few tiny holes in them from campfires.  At that price, we can replace them if need be down the road. But for the small space they take up in the compartment, we would replace them with exactly the same kind or find a way to sew new fabric onto the frames.

Speaking of frames... THESE are the favorite chairs for us to take along to other peoples campsites for a visit, or take to a parade or picnic or family gathering. They are more comfortable than the bag type chairs.  We bought the heavy duty, taller backed lawn chairs about 20 years ago. They had the wide flat plastic webbing on them.  I cut the webbing from the frames and wove on this pattern with macrame cord.

The pine tree pattern motif was inspired by the shutters we made for our last home, a log home on the banks of the Oconto River.

I stole that pine tree cut out pattern from a logging company in the UP of Michigan. It was cut into the boards on the front porch of their office. On a Sunday, I made my teenage daughter Heather hold up a large piece of cardboard while I traced the cutout design. She was mortified and embarrassed, but I was happy and got my pattern!  LOL

Yes, we take along 8 chairs in our motorhome when camping.  When camphosting or camping with family, we are usually full of company and visitors to our campsite. Having enough chairs along is a must for us.

Our frames have broken a few times over the years, but I have convinced Steve each time to let me unwind parts of the woven sections and let him repair the frames by sliding on new pipes over the old ones, or using new stronger bolts and nuts instead of the cheaper ones they came with. They are so comfortable and warmer than plastic webbing. The backs are taller than most lawn chairs and a bit wider for the butt too. LOL

Here is a link to my blog post about the fixing of the frame and re-weaving them to become useful again:

reweaving-woven-macrame-lawn-chair

These chairs are hard to do, and are a strain on my hands to keep doing them now as I age.  My sister and I have done a lot of them over the years....

Here are some links if you would like to make one yourself :

diynetwork Macrame Lawn Chair

deucecitieshenhouse.com Macrame Lawn Chair

and a You Tube for step by step instructions:

Clock for Retirement:

Our friend Seann has this clock for camping now that he got retired. I think we need one of these. Steve has started asking me what day is it.... he has lost track now of such things since being retired. 

Coffee table:
Steve made this sturdy little coffee table for our motorhome.  Having items to meet more than one need in an RV is a plus. Not only is it a great coffee table, but it is a multi use item because it is strong enough to be a bench to sit on if we need an extra spot at the table. 

Since this above photo was taken, we added rolling casters so I can set my table loom on it, clamp it tight and weave while sitting inside. Then if I want to get up, I can just roll it away from me to move around and pull it back up tight to the right position to weave again. 

Now that we put in the reclining loveseat, the casters let us push the table out of the way before putting up the footrests.

Easy Peasy! 

Collapsible bucket:
This is a handy item that we found in a camping store. It is wide enough to dip in our squeegee. It stores flat of course, but works well for quick wash that we try to do on the motorhome. Good for doing the front end windshield or back side from dirt and road grime.  I have seen some folks set them up as outdoor trash bins, and line it with a plastic bag.

Most campgrounds frown on washing your rig on your campsite, so we usually do it from our own water tank when in a parkinglot or wayside.

~~~~~~~~~

It's frosty cold outside in Wisconsin today, but the sun is shining! It's only 6 degrees, but the wind chill is at 9 below. brrrr we might warm up by the weekend and get some SNOW!  YAYYYY

We are looking ahead to camping this upcoming summer and making some plans.

Mid summer we have toyed with the idea of going out west through to the Pacific ocean in Washington... and taking a big block of time off from Steve's part time county driving job.  I would also like to do Alaska, but for that we would want a whole summer and pick up an extra RV that is smaller to take up there. Maybe a small B or C or a pickup truck and camper on back. We could then resell it when we come back. We don't want to beat up our big diesel motorhome going that far on rugged road construction and gravel.  Maybe in 2019 or 2020.

Our friends Roz and Gary went to the local RV show in Green Bay last week.  They learned about a nice private campground up near Munising MI and we are making some reservations for this summer, perhaps even with a Pictured Rocks Boat Tour! We usually boondock or rustic camp, but they don't, so we will do the fancy route and have hookups!  LOL.  Plus we could leave the dogs inside of the rig safely while we do the boat trip, knowing they have AC and fans blowing while we are gone. The campground looks nice and has some great reviews.   http://jackpinelodgeup.com/

In October, we usually take two sites for our family at High Cliff State Park for the big Halloween celebration there. Sadly, this year, all of the sites are already taken. I sat online at 1 minute to midnight on the first day available to make those reservations. I sat with credit card at hand, with two devices open, ready to book.... but the sites all got snatched up before I could get any of them!   So plan B is to take two sites nearby at Calumet County Park   We can drive over to High Cliff with all of the grandkids in their costumes for the trick or treating. We will still have our family fun camping with all of the kids and grandkids, and celebrate my birthday as well.

We are also thinking of a couple longer trips... perhaps in spring a loop down to Tennessee to see friends, and then over to another friend in Missouri and loop back home. Maybe 2-3 weeks.

Then in the fall, we are thinking of a jaunt out through Minnesota and see how far we go west, and then turn around and come on back for a 2-3 week span.

In the meantime, I will snuggle up cozy warm in our sticks and bricks house, sewing and weaving and spinning and knitting..... and looking out at the frozen landscape of Wisconsin.

MOTORHOME MODIFICATIONS *C* Chaises and Chairs for Camping

I am going to start off the new year with posting three of our motorhome modifications at a time. I will post repairs, modifications, or neato things we have found for RVing.  I have lots of pics in my files so I will do them in alphabetical order.

Underneath that stuff, I will post my regular daily stuff..... kinda sorta fun, eh?

So here it goes, we are up to the letter C now!

MOTORHOME MODIFICATIONS 

STARTING WITH THE LETTER C

Chaises and Chairs for Camping:

Camping means relaxing.. and that is just what we do!  These zero gravity recliners are soooo comfortable, and we really like them enough to make space in our basement compartments to take them along.  They take up a LOT of room because they do not fold up very flat. But they are worth it for sure.

We bought them about 8 or 9 years ago when these style chairs were first coming out on the market. We got mine first and it was made with softly padded washable fabric.  There was only one left in the store, so we got a rain check for one for Steve. It took months before the store got them in again, and this time the material was a woven mesh kinda rubber coated and holds up well too.

We do not allow them near the campfire to avoid any flinging sparks or burn holes. We put them away every night, we never leave them out in the rain, and they are lasting a long time and wearing well.

We found these wonderful clamp on tables that swivel and move around for best positioning. The recessed cup holder can also fit the stem end of a wine glass!  The flat surface can hold a dinner plate, or scissors and thread and needles when working on my stuff.  The small clamping piece around the metal frame stays on the chair all the time, and the arm and tray both lift off and can be washed. The arm and tray can lay flat on the seat of the chair when folding it up and are ready for the next time it is set up. 

We do not let the grandkids sit in our chairs, or company if we can help it.  By just keeping them for us, they are kept in good shape and stored away when we leave so nobody ever walks off with them.

But we did find some nice sitting chairs for company and grandkids. They fold up really flat and we bought four of them at Walmart for about $8 each on clearance.  Works well and we have had them for about 4 years now and the grandkids all enjoy having chairs close to the campfire.

We watch out for sparks, but do have a few tiny holes in them from campfires.  At that price, we can replace them if need be down the road. But for the small space they take up in the compartment, we would replace them with exactly the same kind or find a way to sew new fabric onto the frames.

Speaking of frames... THESE are the favorite chairs for us to take along to other peoples campsites for a visit, or take to a parade or picnic or family gathering. They are more comfortable than the bag type chairs.  We bought the heavy duty, taller backed lawn chairs about 20 years ago. They had the wide flat plastic webbing on them.  I cut the webbing from the frames and wove on this pattern with macrame cord.

The pine tree pattern motif was inspired by the shutters we made for our last home, a log home on the banks of the Oconto River.

I stole that pine tree cut out pattern from a logging company in the UP of Michigan. It was cut into the boards on the front porch of their office. On a Sunday, I made my teenage daughter Heather hold up a large piece of cardboard while I traced the cutout design. She was mortified and embarrassed, but I was happy and got my pattern!  LOL

Yes, we take along 8 chairs in our motorhome when camping.  When camphosting or camping with family, we are usually full of company and visitors to our campsite. Having enough chairs along is a must for us.

Our frames have broken a few times over the years, but I have convinced Steve each time to let me unwind parts of the woven sections and let him repair the frames by sliding on new pipes over the old ones, or using new stronger bolts and nuts instead of the cheaper ones they came with. They are so comfortable and warmer than plastic webbing. The backs are taller than most lawn chairs and a bit wider for the butt too. LOL

Here is a link to my blog post about the fixing of the frame and re-weaving them to become useful again:

reweaving-woven-macrame-lawn-chair

These chairs are hard to do, and are a strain on my hands to keep doing them now as I age.  My sister and I have done a lot of them over the years....

Here are some links if you would like to make one yourself :

diynetwork Macrame Lawn Chair

deucecitieshenhouse.com Macrame Lawn Chair

and a You Tube for step by step instructions:

Clock for Retirement:

Our friend Seann has this clock for camping now that he got retired. I think we need one of these. Steve has started asking me what day is it.... he has lost track now of such things since being retired. 

He really needs this, even at home, because he totally forgot yesterday was Monday and that meant putting out the trash bins last night for Tuesday morning pickup.  He does ours and the elderly widow next door.  Oh well, next week they will be doubly full!  At least it is not hot summer weather with stinky garbage? 

Actually yesterday he unplugged our illuminated bedroom alarm clock so he no longer wakes up and looks to see what time it is. He is learning to sleep until he feels rested, and getting up when he is ready!  LOL

I have two more C words to do before moving on tomorrow the D words! 

Coffee table:
Steve made this sturdy little coffee table for our motorhome.  Having items to meet more than one need in an RV is a plus. Not only is it a great coffee table, but it is a multi use item because it is strong enough to be a bench to sit on if we need an extra spot at the table.

Since this above photo was taken, we added rolling casters so I can set my table loom on it, clamp it tight and weave while sitting inside. Then if I want to get up, I can just roll it away from me to move around and pull it back up tight to the right position to weave again. Now that we put in the reclining loveseat, the casters let us push the table out of the way before putting up the footrests.

Easy Peasy! 

Collapsible bucket:
This is a handy item that we found in a camping store. It is wide enough to dip in our squeegee. It stores flat of course, but works well for quick wash that we try to do on the motorhome. Good for doing the front end windshield or back side from dirt and road grime.  I have seen some folks set them up as outdoor trash bins, and line it with a plastic bag.

Most campgrounds frown on washing your rig on your campsite, so we usually do it from our own water tank when in a parkinglot or wayside.

~~~~~~~~~

Along with most of the mid west, we are frozen this morning with glare ice and now fog and rain.  We do not have any need to get anywhere this morning. I have been ironing some pre washed fabric for quilting, and now Steve is working on cooking breakfast.  While I blog, I have Sewing With Nancy and then Fons and Porter Love of Quilting on PBS playing in the background.  Life is good. 

Yesterday we made a little change in the tv viewing in our house. A couple years ago Steve's brother had gifted us with a used large plasma tv. He had won a new tv in a raffle and didn't need two in his duplex at that time. It was really huge and took up a lot of space in our small livingroom.

Since we rearranged the livingroom a while back, we swapped it out with the smaller tv up in our bedroom which fit the corner better. 

The huge plasma went up to our bedroom, but we really didn't need one that big up there.  It does take up a lot of space.  Our house is old and the rooms are smaller than most. 

Now that his brother is building a new house, the lower level family room could use a big tv.... hmmmmm we offered to gift it back to him when the house is done!  Regifting the gift back to the initial giver in this case! hahahahah

We were walking past the Vizio tvs in Walmart the other day and found a nice small one for our bedroom on sale, and we picked up a mounting bracket to adhere it right to the wall. We chose to put it on the other side of the room.  Fifteen minutes later it was up and working! 

Steve has a strip that he is going to mount today

 that will conceal the power cord and antenna coax

 that I am going to paint to match the wall. 

I like it better on this side of the room for two reasons: 

1. I am a right side sleeper and now I do not have to twist around in bed to go to sleep after getting nice and drowsey watching some dumb movie (with sleep timer on)   

2. The tv antenna coax comes up through the heat register from down below. In the past we had to run it under a carpet, under the bed, and then under another carpet on the other side to get to the corner where the big plasma tv was on a stand. 

All is happy now in tv viewing in our home! 

Well, breakfast is done, and the blog is ready to post.  Wonder what trouble we are going to get into today?  I have two shipments to pack up to get out in the mail... if I get them done before 1 pm I can print up the postage labels myself and have the carrier pick them up from our doorstep. No need to go out today afterall!~ 

Motorhome Modifications - back to the letter C again

Yup, we got some snow, but not nearly as much as they predicted.  It was supposed to snow all day today too, but it looks like the storm moved on.  I think we got about 5-6 inches, but with all the blowing around, it's hard to tell.


Now back to the letter C....  

First on deck is a Collapsible Bucket.  We picked this up last year on a sale, and it sure is handy!  I think I paid $5 for it.  

The extending windshield squeegee fits inside it for washing the windows on the outside of the rig.  When dried out, it collapses down and slides into the little nylon sack for storage.  Takes up a lot less room than a five gallon bucket we used to use.  The only reason a five gallon bucket is nice to have along (if you have room)  is that it can do double duty as a step stool or a seat when turned upside down.

Good for Steve's s rig-washing brush, or even just a bucket to hand wash something with a rag. 
We have used it to soak sweet corn in before grilling. 
We have used it to haul water for filling my canning kettle. 
We have used it to haul apples picked off a tree on an abandoned farmstead. 
We have used it to scoop up dog food from a broken bag in the storage compartment. 

We have used to carry toddler toys to the beach, juice boxes and sunscreen too.

So that was a little handy hint for an easy RV accessory that has multiple uses.





Coleman lanterns, of course, are a staple among the camping crowd!  Especially when you camp in rustic campgrounds without hookups or boondocking out in the boonies. No streetlights for miles.   It is one of our favorite camping toys!

A small lantern from Coleman, SOOO much better than hauling around those bigger camping lanterns, breaking their glass lens, or their fragile mantles.  For many many years, since I was a child, we had those big white gas lanterns with the thin glass circular lens.  Can't tell you how many we broke, usually while in transit.  We even had the big maroon cases to help with breakage on the large propane versions.  But  we saw this one being used by our camping buddy, Bob Senior.  We had to go out and get one right away for ourselves. This one has kept the same mantle going all summer. 

I LOVE clearance Sales at our local Shopko store.  They had these neato containers that are rectangular in shape instead of circular.  Think... on a shelf... flat sides of containers stack next to each other better than cylindrical.  So we get more storage and less wasted space.    I bought a set of 8 of these great containers from Gourmet Living.

MY CABINET BEFORE                             MY NEW CONTAINERS 

They have vacuum seal lids by flipping down the little ring type levers on the lids, which create a suction.  We use the larger ones for flour, sugar, brown & powdered sugar etc.  The smaller ones for coffee, rice, pancake mix etc.  Less cardboard boxes and bags in the cabinets is good to avoid bugs when travelling in the southern states.   Here they are, all filled up and lined in a neat row. 

These are normally $15-20 a container ---  WHEW!  But they had a set of 8 pieces, all in the sizes I wanted for the mere price of $89.99  ... so that is down to $10 a container....  still a WHEW! --- You know me, a cheapie shopper.   Well, the set was on sale for only $39.99.  Plus I had a $10 gift card.  So $29.99 final price.  That comes out to less than $4 a container.  More in my budget range, teeeheeee  I just googled now and they are on sale again!   Here is a link to them:   Gourmet Living Containers at Shopko

Well, that is my three C's of Motorhome stuff for the blog post today.  

For a fourth C... Chelsea!   She is feeling better today, and has her 2 year old checkup this afternoon with the pediatrician.  Erin will get more reassurance from the doc that it will be okay to have the birthday party tomorrow.  She will be so happy to see all her cousins and little friends, and all the loving grandparents, aunts and uncles too.  

After her party, we are going to take the grandson, Jameson, back to our house for an overnight!   His mommy and daddy are having a romantic date night, so we are keeping him here.  Our Christmas gifts to all our kids/spouses were gift cards to a nice dinner out at a locally owned steak house called Mackinaws  http://www.mackinaws.com/   and then we included gift cards to a movie.  Of course, the gift also stipulated that they get free overnight babysitting too as part of their date. 

I am looking out at the snow, and yes, it looks nice to cover up all the yucky brown ground.  A few flakes are floating down here and there, but basically I think it's done for the day.  The river is starting to ice over again.  

Yes, Winter is here.    

Sigh. 

One Lttle RV Thing and some Loom Room stuff

I have one little photo that I wanted to post about an RV item we bought a while back. I had taken a picture of it a few weeks ago and forgot all about it in my camera!   It seems like a small thing, but we bought one of these collapsible buckets.  It stores flat in the little case, and saves on storage in the RV. Very lightweight but handy.  I think it was on sale for $4.99.

As you can see, it's the right size for Steve's telescoping window squeegee, but also for his washing brush, or even just a bucket to hand wash something with a rag.
We have used it to soak sweet corn in before grilling.
We have used it to haul water for filling my canning kettle.
We have used it to haul apples picked off a tree on an abandoned farmstead.
We have used it to scoop up dog food from a broken bag in the storage compartment.  LOL

So that was a little handy hint for an easy RV accessory that has multiple uses.



I was down in my Loom Room today. Now that it is getting cooler, I feel more like cocooning and staying curled up in my studio and working on my fiber art.  This is the scene that greets me each morning when I come down the stairs:

I get a nice view out the two sets of patio doors, overlooking the woods and out to the river.  

(Steve's boat is parked in front of one of my doors...ack! )

There is another large loom that will weave 5ft wide blankets out of sight to the far right.

Here are my two Union looms... they are old, probably about 1940-1950 vintage.  

One on the right has been converted into a 4 harness loom, the one on the left is a 2 harness, but very old. 

I was busy today cutting fabric into strips, winding shuttles, and finishing up the threading of one of the looms.  It's a comfortable large room in the lower level of our home, and the fully carpeted floor, plus the warmth of the sunshine coming in make it a cozy place. 

I am working on a cotton runner in two patterned fabrics on my smaller Union loom.   The black/tan fabric almost looks like an animal print when woven, and with the green/white sections, I think I will call these rugs "Leopard in the Jungle"?  

I figure I have enough fabric  to weave about 12 ft worth of rugs from these prints, so I could do one long runner, or three shorter 4 ft long rugs?  Hmmmmmm will see when I get there, hey?

On the larger Union loom, I have two big thick Birch Tree Rugs already done on there, soon to be cut off and hemmed when the diluted glue along the header dries.  The glue is just to hold the last few rows of woven threads in place until I fold them under twice and sew the hem securely shut.

This next shot is taken from underneath the loom.  These rugs are very thick and heavy.  They are loops of knit fabric, made from the big factory sock machine waste that normally ends up in the landfills.  Weavers buy it up by the pound, and chain it into long sections to weave into thick rugs.  I find these rugs remind me of the bark on my birch trees, thus I call them my Birch Tree Rugs!

I randomly add a single color for accent, on this rug it's caramel/tan.  

On the one underneath it's an olive green color for accent. 

Here is how I chain them up to make a thick chain to weave into the rugs.

On nice days, I sit outside and make up chains and more chains of these "loopers" ... a chore best to be done outside as they are linty and make a mess in the house!  Once chained, I shake them off over the deck railing, and the lint falls to the woods below, covering the ground like snow!

On my third rug loom, a Newcomb Studio Loom, I am just starting up another rug with the strips of denim and mattress ticking.  This rug is being woven as a twill, with some shaftswitching in a 4 end block weave structure sett at about 5epi with doubled warp threads.  (that info provided for the weavers reading my blog)

 Later, the long pieces of yarns will be tied into fringes along the edge of the rug. 

The rug I will weave will be something like this one I already did...  the striped fabric is the same as what is used for old fashioned mattress ticking.  I got a big bolt of from Jim and Norma, and I accented it with strips of denim that I had some yardage of.

My friend Hilary at http://crazyasaloom.blogspot.com/  always puts pics in her blog of her wonderful dog, Roy and the cats that reside in her studio.  So, in reply, here is a picture of our collie, Duchess (a.k.a. Dumb Ducky) being a Loom Doggie and hanging out by a basket of chained loopers ... all prepared for another rug.  Both of our dogs seem to enjoy hanging out in my loom room.  Sometimes I lean over and scratch their backs or ears with the end of a shuttle.  What a life! 

I have been simmering up a pot of chili this afternoon, so time now to end this blog, hit Publish and eat!!!  Steve has horseshoe league tonight, so getting a hot belly of chili will be nice in this cold fall weather.  It's 51 degrees out now, and going to be colder once we get to the outdoor horseshoe pits.  Brrrrrrrrrr

.