Reorganizing The Van... Again

 Hey Y'all!

Work In Progress!

We had a day off, and decided it was past time to clean the van and reorganize the drawers & the garage.

I worked on the drawers, and cleaning the sand out of the rugs-seriously so much sand, and we just washed them. Chris worked on the garage, and garbage.

Here's a short I did during one of my breaks:

I started off by emptying all the drawers and cleaning them out. One was full of soap, so I figured I may as well scrub them all. It was the right decision, they were kinda gross (hair, sand, dust).

While I did that Chris worked on taking things out of the rear, to rearrange and move some items elsewhere, as well as getting rid of a few things.

Since he had all the bins out I was able to organize what I refer to as the bathroom bin. It holds sunscreen, shampoo, hair care, razon blades, first aid, etc.

We had far too many sunscreen in the drawers, and both were out of bodywash, but the bin had plenty.

The rest was just throwing away trash, and organizing what we have. There isn't any more space in the garage area, but there's more in there right now, and it's much better organized.

There's less in the drawers and things are much easier to find!

Vitamins, Meds, Toothbrushes, Deodorant

My hairstyling stuff, razors, lotion, body sprays, Chris' beard care items.

Sunscreens, Shampoo & Conditioner, Body Wash, Nail Care.

They're not 100% but definitely better than before.

You'll have to watch the video for the FULL TOUR:

Have a great day,

Craftin' Wife

Crafting in a Van | Van Life

 Hey Y'all!

In this blog I talk about the ease, and difficulties, of crafting in our 1991 Chevy G20, Brunilda... I still haven't made that decal for the windshield.

If we are connected to shore power (plugged in) somewhere using the Cricut Joy is easier, especially if the weather is nice. If not, space becomes an issue, but we're currently re-doing the interior to allow for more space, and even though it doesn't change a whole lot it opens it up a bit more, which already feels larger. If I have to work inside, I work on smaller projects, like tags, cards, single decals, etc. If we're not plugged in to power we have the EcoFlow, but I don't run the Cricut much, to conserve the power for other things.

My current go to craft in the van is coloring in our coloring books. Once I get the tote out I can use the lid as a table, and everything else is right there. I know there are digital coloring pages, but I haven't really found that I like any of them.

I recently started using the Fuji Film Instax Mini camera, and found doing a planner/journal/scrapbook with the pictures is fun, and takes up very little space, while still getting some creativity out. 

I sold all my jewelry making stuff last summer, and I'm glad I did. I don't think I could have done it in the space... not to mention storage of all the pieces.

I have  also noticed in our "downtime" I read more than craft. I'm sure there will be ebbs and flows with this over time.

Do you craft in a small space? How do you make it work? Let me know in the comments below.

Have a great day,

Craftin' Wife

Chris' Typical Daily Routine

 Hey Y'all...

This is a filler blog, I had a space to fill when I was creating the May schedule, and this is what I decided on. I know it won't be everyone's cup of tea, and that's okay.

*Pictures taken from several different places, and over a few days.*

Chris' Day:

Sometime between 7am-9am~ Wake up, go the the bathroom, etc.

In the morning~ Check email, etc, play on phone.

Between 8-9:30am~ Cook breakfast, if we're doing that. Some days we just have fruit or a protein bar.

As early as 9am, as late as10am~ Start whatever activity we're doing for the day. Sometimes that's going somewhere touristy, driving to our next location, working, or just hanging out.

Sometime between 12-2pm~ Lunch, which I usually make, and it's something simple like sandwiches, salads, applesauce or pudding, and maybe some chips. When we eat lunch it's usually on the go.

Around 5pm or so we try to be done with our activity for the day, find or get back to camp and get ready for the next day(s).

(This is moved to between 8 and 9 if we're doing the parking lot thing.)

6pm or so~ Prepare dinner, usually a joint effort, eat, then clean up. Followed by showers, daily chores, etc.

Afterwards- Move things around that need moved. (Soon to not be needed, as we are currently working on removing the old seats, and rebuilding our bed!)

Lastly, he will work on his computer some, watch TV, and get ready for bed.

Not all days look the same, but in general this is a more typical day.

Thanks,

Craftin' Wife

Life Updates-ish

  Hey Y'all!

What's new?

Nothing much that I haven't already written about here or HERE. 

This week we've just been relaxing. I've blogged, and we've posted our YouTube video, and did some social media stuff, but we haven't filmed anything, except the TikTok video on Outland Adventures I posted earlier.

We explored Daniel Boon Trail, downtown both Richmond and Berea, went to a few smaller parks, checked out several local thrift stores, went to Fort Boonesborough State Park, also Battlefield Park, and Battle of Richmond Visitor Center, read several books, people watched at the campground, went to a flea market, and grocery shopping, and had one of the top Mexican food meals ever- located in a gas station. 

So maybe we didn't rest all that much...

Other updates? We're getting ready to head to Indiana again, to remove the rear seats, and build a bed/storage. We've given ourselves a few weeks to get that done, then it's back to TN for more doctors appointments. 

In mid July we're on the road again, destination unknown... North, but other than that who knows. Any suggestions? Leave them in the comments below!

Have a great day,

Craftin' Wife

What Are We Doing Now?

  Hey Y'all!

As I mentioned in the previous blog closing happened on the 5th! Yay!

However we have to wait for the check to be cut, about a week- so not too bad... But that means all the van fixing plans are on hold until then.

So what have we been doing?

Enjoying the weather, rearranging the van, watching YouTube, reading, and cleaning. Doing all the things we can do for free in the van. Visiting local parks on days we have other errands to run as well.

How are we?

Excited to begin this next chapter! Planning, and planning some more- van layout, trips, budgets, returns to TN, etc.  A bit bored, we really can't start traveling until the check clears, and we get the van squared away. 

Other than that we're doing well. The van is more than comfortable enough and plenty warm on these past few nights when it's been in the upper 20s. The days have been in the upper 50s/lower 60s so I'm sure that helps.

We really have rearranged things a couple of times, and are getting it all figured out. Today we painted the rear tire mount, and then attached it to the rear drivers door. Next up is running lighting, and laying down the "area rug" now that we're sure on the layout.

What are you working on? Share in the comments below.

Have a great day,

Craftin' Wife

Van... Snow Storm...

Hey Y'all!

We got a little bit done in the van...

...and then...

We got quite the snow storm for NE Tennessee, right at eight inches in less than 24hrs. TN is not equipped for that. The roads are finally pretty clear in most places, however it is frigid cold (like highs in the 20's and lows hovering around 0F).

So needless to say, we haven't been doing anything in the van this week. We did post a few shorts on YouTube and TikTok:

linktr.ee/outlandadventures

Chris did a bit of filming outside the other day, here's that video:

We'll get back to van "stuff" next week when the weather breaks, until then here's what we've been doing the past couple days:

We're just beginning season 4 of The Middle. We've also caught up on all the cleaning and laundry. (That was easy, lol.) We've read, and played a few switch games, jokingly turned the LR into a walking track, and y'all we are bored!

Did you get that winter storm too? What's it look like where you are? Share in the comments below.

Have a great day,

Craftin' Wife

Just a reminder:

Van Storage Solutions

 Hey Y'all!

I'm sure it's a shock to no one that we had to downsize tremendously in the transition to van life. With that also comes the questions of  how and where to store things. Especially those needed for everyday living.

We knew we wanted (and could afford) as no build as possible in our layout. I'm sure it'll change over time, as do most van lifers vehicle layout.

We shared on Outland Adventures recently how we've situated the van so far:

 https://outlandadventures.blogspot.com/2024/01/situating-van-part-1-moving-in.html

Some of our storage solutions currently are:

1) Plastic 3 Drawer Storage- 

We like them because they're cheap, easy to clean, not much weight, and fairly durable. I had them in my craft room previously. To adapt them for van life we removed the wheels and secured the drawers from opening with Velcro closure. If we had to buy new I'd go with something just a tiny bit shorter, so they cold stack. I'd still do two of them, I'd just free up the floor space.

If you're interested in they organization of the drawers, there is a video included in the link above.

2) We're a big fan of... Totes of all sizes!

These smaller ones are great for holding our sneakers and shower shoes, we have another for the Blackstone accessories, another for craft supplies, etc. We also have a longer shorter one that has all our rainy day activities like coloring books, markers, sketchpads, etc. We use the shoe book size in the overhead (bed) storage which really helps keep that large open space a bit more neat.

3) Packing Cubes-

Organization is key, and these help. Ours are from T.J. Maxx and are prelabeled, which we don't like- but for the price we picked them up anyhow. (12pc for around $5USD.) We have one that is all first aid, one filled with medications, another with toiletries, etc. They really aid in keeping the drawers organized.

We plan to share more about our layout and storage solutions over on Outland Adventures if you'd like to follow along there.

Do you have any storage or layout suggestions? Share them in the comments below.

Have a great day,

Craftin' Wife