Skirting the skirt aka upcycled jammies

What to do, what to do...

Tonight instead of settling down for a long Autumn's nap, I sprang from my bed to watch capsule wardrobing.

Taking a quick inventory of my partial fall wardrobe, I remained undecided.  And as The Clash played, "Should I stay or should I go" in my head, I started browsing through my vintage, boho, and edgy classic pieces. Right when I started to think "nothing gives", I found it.

Sometimes I just can't pass on the urge for a good thrift store hunting trip. The red skirt I held in my hand was from one of those hunting ventures, and once thought to be a gem. At one time I absolutely loved the flared bottom.

But the length was very much like something Goldilocks's would have encountered. Too short for a long formal skirt, and much too long for a sassy short skirt. Besides, the elastic waist looked frumpy. 

The fit was bad mostly due to the fact that it was not a top designer, but instead manufactured by an underwear company. At least it was cozy.

Even though the skirt should have been tossed, something inside of me was determined to make it a useful piece.

So I quickly pulled it over my head to see if it might be a better shirt. Come to find out, I actually liked the elastic waist...as a neckline.

My mind was made up. My game plan was to cut into the side seams to make holes for my arms. I was too excited to measure and chalk the cutlines and ended up cutting the armholes too long. But no problem, I just cut tabs, stretched the tabs, and knotted them like any other T-Shirt hack.

I now have a new red dress for bumming around the house in. 

Well, I guess I wasn't successful at reducing the number of items in my closet. As for reducing the number of items in my pajama drawer? Maybe I'll give Hubby back his concert T-shirt... nahhh!

And we all lived happily before and after 

Horse trailer renovating: inside The Sparrow

Now that we brought Sparrow home, it was time to get to know her.

I was hoping for a rain, and got it. This showed me any leakage.

The next day I paid a visit to a few hardware stores.  I bought a clear water sealant spray, peel and stick rubber striping for car windows, expanding foam sealant, clay sealing putty and caulking. Boy, I was like a kid in a candy store!

I climbed a ladder to spray sealant on the roof seams and added clay putty to exposed seams behind the exterior chrome trim.

It was a tough job. The heat index was 106 and my clay putty was getting sticky and unmanageable. I could only smooth it in crevices with wet fingertips. But if my 70 year old dad can lay brick for his landscaping, I was determined to do this. I would not recommend it. I nearly lost my voice and needed to rehydrate as I waited for the heartbeat in my head to calm down. I was able to finish before more rains came.

I had a hunch that more work needed to be done. It got cooler when evening came and Hubby hooked me up with some lighting. I could then work in the cooler evenings.

The time had come for the start of some elbow grease. Removal of old interior caulk.

Once the old caulking was removed, I used a steel brush and wiped away the residue before applying new caulk.

When the next rain came we were water tight. Except for a sliding side window. It wouldn't lock shut.  since we had plenty of other means to ventilate, I sealed it shut with expanding foam sealant. Ugly, but it worked.

Next job? Paint.

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Meet The Sparrow

One late Sunday night, I was once again drawn to the internet. Hubby and I had ended our weekend visiting what we thought might be our "brick and mortar" storefront property. But we quickly learned that a slum lord's patchwork job was all that we could fit into a "wise" budget. That night, I was still searching for options.

I ventured over to our local Craigslist page and there she was. "Travel trailer $1700", and she was within a half hours drive from home. Boy, did that get the gears in my thinking cap going!

She was a horse trailer that was converted to toy trailer for hauling a pair of motorcycles. To Sturgis. Funny. You would think if you had a motorcycle and went to Sturgis, you'd ride. Not roll the bikes in a trailer, sucking down gallons of gas hauling a few hundred miles, just to park nearby....and ride in. La-ame. Maybe I'm missing something here.

Well the owner would only budge $50 plus the removal of the bike racks.

I was totally depending upon Hubby to initiate any backing out on this purchase. I was starting to get cold feet over the caulking and rust. But the floor and trailer frame was good.

It was a beautiful sunny day, and Hubby trusted my lead on this dream. (Better than our brick-and-mortar pipedream). Besides. The owner swore she only leaked from the rear windows. Not thinking to run a hose over her, we hauled her home. (In a borrowed truck). Yup, we literally got the cart before the horse... sorta. And you guessed it. Two days later, rain.

But she was love at first sight.

I told myself that I only had three chances to find and seal up any leaks.

I was both excited and afraid. Pinterest  YouTube and Google became very quick education.