A vintage trailer is treated to an adorable makeover, making it perfect for mom-and-daughter adventures. 

No wonder this pretty-in-pink camper is now affectionately – or should we say “confectionately” – referred to as Strawberry Shortcake. Rebekah Higgs, host of the Halifax-based TV show DIY Mom, and her eight-year-old daughter, Lennon, transformed the secondhand Boler into a camper that’s as sweet as it is petite.

Sweet Spot

“Boler isn’t making these campers anymore, but I found one of the last remaining fixer-uppers online and had it shipped here from Quebec,” says Rebekah Higgs. It’s now perched at her parents’ house, with views of St. Margarets Bay. Rebekah used specially formulated paint to coat the fibreglass exterior, and a Cricut Joy cutter to create a vinyl Boler logo sticker for the wheel cover. Sunny yellow vintage tulip chairs play host to sleepyheads in the morning and marshmallow toasters at night.

 

Photography, Janet Kimber

Flowers by Tiffany Cox, Curated Root Event & Lifestyle Design. 

“My daughter had a Barbie camper van that was purple. ‘Let’s paint it that colour!’ she said. We compromised and painted it pink.”

Sofa “To Go”

By the time Rebekah and Lennon embarked on their inaugural road trip to Cape Breton from their home in Halifax, the trailer was teeming with girly touches like floral wall prints and a cheery garland. At one end of the camper, a window-seat-style sofa offers a happy summer reading spot thanks to pillows and a throw. At the other end, the bed was sweetened up with cushy throw pillows in yummy berry-coloured stripes and bobbled vanilla tones. The tray is handy for snacks from the mini-fridge. On bad-weather days when dining inside is a must, the bed converts to a table.

 

Photography, Janet Kimber

 

Photography, Janet Kimber

Various PILLOWS, BLANKETS, THROWS, large rattan TRAY (on bed), Annie Selke.

 

Photography, Janet Kimber

COOKIES, Sugartime Cookies. 

 

Compact Cuisine

The teensy kitchen was already efficient, but Rebekah wanted to cozy it up, so she refinished the original fibreglass cabinet fronts with plywood and added oversized hardware. “That way, the handles double as towel racks,” she says. The melamine dishes are break resistant – a real plus, given all the toting in and out of the trailer at mealtimes.

 

Photography, Janet Kimber

Janet Hill Prints WALL ART, Independent Mercantile Co. Richelieu CABINETRY HARDWARE, Home Depot. Ecologie DISHWARE, vinyl rug, Kept. Dash & Albert FABRIC RUG, Annie Selke. 

“I had to laugh because as we’re driving, Lennon says to me, ‘I don’t know about this camping thing, Mom. I’m more of an indoor girl. ”

null