Airstream Before and After

Welcome to 3rd Bird Design! We are up and running out of the Airstream now! All the major work is finished, and now we're just waiting on fabric for the sofa and pillows. I have a temporary solution for both of those now. I'm not sure how long it will be until we get that part completed, so I thought I'd go ahead and share photos of our restoration. These are just photos taken with my iPhone, but I plan to have professional ones taken later as well. So here it is! Hope you enjoy!

Welcome to 3rd Bird! Come on in!


The sitting area before and after. This is where the custom fabric and pillows will go. For now, I have a sheet and two pretty pillows my mom made that will go back in my house after all this is finished.




Here's the kitchen transformed into my work space! It's so cozy you won't even believe it. I use the TV on the wall for client presentations. My wonderful father in law built the desk. Isn't it gorgeous?? And I could stare at the wallpaper all day long. Thanks, Lounge Interiors!




This is the little window I day dream out of sometimes. And if I'm lucky, a few pretty little birds will land on that fence post! My next DIY: Bird houses! I've got some good ideas:)



The food section slightly updated from before:) And a gorgeous lamp my thoughtful husband bought me for Christmas. I still can't find a good shade! Any suggestions on where to find a good one?




Yep. That's a fake fire/real heater. It's even cozier in here than you thought, right?


As most of you know, we always have a house full of people. So this works out when Casa de Singleton is all booked up! And it also works out when I need to rest my creative mind and take a little nap:)



This is my book shelf that's in the bathroom. Mainly because that would have been wasted space otherwise. I found that little ceramic origami bird at West Elm! And I haven't brought all my books out yet either, so the poor shelf looks a little naked now.


Here's the tiny bathroom before and after! The streaks on the window are from the product we used to try to buff the Airstream to a beautiful shine. We let it sit overnight, and it rained, so now I have streaky windows. Oops!



All of the cabinetry is beautiful and clean and white! I love it.


And last, but not least, a happy mistake! We didn't know that these metal panels were magnetic when we bought them! But I was especially excited when I figured that out!! It makes it easy to look over proofs throughout the day.


So that's it for now! I'm very excited to be working out in the Airstream. I could not ask for a better work space! I didn't put photos of this, but we made storage underneath the beds and sofa so I can store paper and extra supplies. Very handy! Hope you've enjoyed!!

Airstream Progress

Hello! I haven't updated about the Airstream in a while, and that's mostly because I want my fancy father in law hand made desk to be in there before I post the final photos. Other than that and covering the sofa cushion and getting a few throw pillows, we're finished! It might be the coziest most fun place to work that's ever been! And I haven't even started working out of there yet! I know, it's annoying that I'm not showing you what it looks like yet, but I will tell you that there's some really pretty wall paper involved. And I'll show you my office chair.



Isn't she a beaut? I was a little nervous about the silver, but once I got it all put together, I knew it was the perfect Airstream chair. And it reminds me of an Eames chair that is far out of my price range. I got mine at Overstock.com for a pretty good deal! They have a great selection, if you're in the market for an office chair.

Anyway, just wanted to let you know that we should be completely finished in the next few weeks! Stay tuned!

Getting Closer!

We're getting closer to the completion of my new sparkly office! We got paint up on the walls, and it is exactly what I had in mind! My drop dead gorgeous wall paper came in, and I found a perfect match for paint at my local Sherwin Williams who also has a lot of great online tools to use if you're painting a room or Airstream or something:) While I was there, I noticed their faux finish section and got all giddy inside when I saw the smooth metallic finish. That's what I had pictured in my mind but wasn't sure I could get it exactly how I wanted it. I'm pretty sure there's only certain colors you're supposed to be able to use with the metallic finishes, but the nice guys that worked there worked with me and tinted the glaze to perfection to match my walls. Thanks, Sherwin Williams guys! Click here to see my color.


Here's my wall color sans sparkle.

Here's a view of what each bed looks like on either side. We're going to do metal panels on those walls. Each bed lifts up so we have plenty of storage!

And here's my cute husband making my office
all shiny and clean! Thanks, Jonny boy!

Now all we have left to do is finish the trim around the sofa and walls, frame up the fridge and microwave, install the shelves in the bathroom, and build a little wall to cover the pipes. That's all we have to do construction wise. Then we put the wallpaper up, choose final fabrics for pillows and sofa cushion, then have them made. My father in law is working on my desk now. He's amazing. I sent him a sketch of what I had in mind, and I'm pretty sure he's building two separate tables for me to choose from. I can't wait to see what he comes up with! I know one will be stainless steel legs with a cedar top. I'm sure it will be wonderful like everything else he builds us. He built us a really nice cedar farm table with benches a while back, and we couldn't love it more. Let me know if you'd like to see photos. He can build you one too!

So, short but sweet post. I get anxious and can't wait for things to be more complete before I post! I'm going to hold off until it's completely finished for the next Airstream update though! Stay tuned!

Airstream Update

The airstream is coming along quite nice. Even better than I ever expected, actually. We have the trim up, all the divider walls, one bed frame, and all light fixtures installed. I've ordered wall paper for the office walls, then I'm going to match the blue in the paper for a paint for the rest of the walls. This weekend, my husbands drummer, William came and helped get the electricity working out there, so I got to flip the switch and actually have light today! So exciting. Today the guys are installing new screens and building the second bed, then all we'll have left to do is build the sofa and cabinets before the decorating starts! Here's a few photos of our progress:






Here's the pretty white trim




More trim and one of the walls


We have lights! This is the bathroom.


These are the lights over each bed.

And here's a sneak peak of some of the fabrics I'm looking at. Lounge Interiors is doing a great job of choosing the perfect papers and fabrics! I can't wait to see it all come together!



So that's all for now! I'll have many more photos to come once we get the papering and painting under way!

What a Difference a Floor Makes.

We've made some serious progress on the Airstream restorations! We've gutted the entire thing and started all over from scratch. The wood underneath all the ugly carpet was pretty rough, so we used plywood to build a new floor. Then got our new floors installed and started on the walls and ceiling, and next on the list is paint for the interior end caps. But first we have to paint it with bonding primer, sand it, then add the paint so it will stick to the plexiglass without chipping. We have to use spray paint so it wont streak, and that's kind of a bummer because I can't find the perfect blue I have in my mind in a spray paint can. So any suggestions for where to find a great selection of colorful spray paint would be greatly appreciated! Here's a few photos so you can check out our progress!


Here's how beautiful my yard looked during the gutting process.
It got worse too!



This is what it looked like after we gutted it.
We saved all the walls so we could use them as templates.



Here's what was left of the bathroom!


This is the view from the back with the new floor base down.


Jonathan with our new floors.


Adding the AC cover. We got the AC in it to work!
There was a huge bird nest causing it not to work before.


The floor installed! Hooraaaay!


The new walls and ceiling!! EEEEK!


Side view of the walls, ceiling, and floor:)

So, at first, we were going to white wash the wood panels we used for the walls, but once we got them up, we really liked the contrast of the raw wood to the aluminum ceiling, so we're obviously going to keep it that way and just use a natural colored clear sealer over the panels. I like how the silver screws in the wood help tie the metal ceiling in to the wall too. We're going to add 1 inch white trim between the wall and the ceiling and between the floor and the wall. Then we're going to add half inch wood trim across each seam of the ceiling. It is going to be GORGEOUS! I can't wait!

We've also gotten a new toilet and sink installed as well. I'm not sure why I don't have any photos of that yet, but I will soon! Can't wait to be working in my new fancy office! Feel free to send suggestions my way! Next time, I'll have a little diagram of where everything will go!

She's Home!

We got the Airstreams! They're both in decent shape. One is better on the exterior and one is better on the interior. We brought the one with the better exterior home since we're ripping pretty much everything from the inside out. These things are so adorable! And spacious too. Especially when we get the big ugly cabinets out of there. The trucking company where we got them was very interesting. A husband and wife owned and operated it, and they just collected really interesting old things. You could tell they were passionate about what they did, so that seemed like a good beginning to the new life of the Airstream. I'm thinking of naming her Bettie. What do you think? Bettie Sue? Bettie Draper? I don't know why the "ie." I'll explore that a little further. Here's a few kind of crappy photos of the shop.




So, the past few days, we've had a neighbor (AKA Ponytail Pete) helping (and by helping, I mean we're paying him) to take the back of our fence by the alley down and rebuild it back up about 6 feet into the yard so it will be easier to get it out if we decide to take it camping. I hate camping, but in the Airstream, it could be fun I guess since that's not really camping. I'm just not in to sleeping outside. Anyway, thanks to Sambo, we got it in the yard, and kind of level. We had to back it up on top of two blocks so it would sit more level. We may end up pouring concrete so it will be perfect, but for now, the blocks will have to work. Thanks, Sam!

Jonathan and I sketched out a few ideas we had for the remodel yesterday, but I'm not committed to anything just yet. I want to be sure it's exactly how I want it! I definitely want a desk area, and I think I may make a standing station as well. I like to switch it up a little. We're keeping the beds where they are so we can also use it as a guest house. I think it will be nice for guests to have their own space to relax. Unless I'm working, then they'll need to get outta there.

So, without further ado here are a few before photos of Bessie. (Just thought I'd try calling her Bessie to see how it felt...Not bad!)

Definitely a lot of work to be done, but I think this will be an incredibly rewarding project! We're starting with the cabinet removal today, so hopefully I'll have some afters sooner than later! Feel free to send me any ideas or suggestions! The more inspiration we have for this the better!

Can't Wait to Step Into My Office

We're packin it up for our short trip to Crossville tonight to get the Airstream! We borrowed a truck from a friend, and we have another friend (Sambo) who's coming to get us and help haul 'er back. (we have really wonderful friends by the way:)) I'm so excited and anxious to get it home! Tonight, we're driving to Crossville to Jonathans parents to spend the night, then we'll leave in the morning at about 7 to be at the truck lot by 9. Then we're going to decide which one we want to take home and which one we'll leave for the other restoration with Jonathan's parents or Josh, his brother. I can not WAIT to get this process started! We've already been to Home Depot getting inexpensive ideas for things we want to do first! I know it sounds gross and ugly, but they make this really great wood vinyl that's easy to trim to size that I think we may use. It looks much better than it sounds. And material that will be much easier to work with than even the snap in planks in such an odd shaped area. And obviously easily replaceable if anything were to happen to it. I'm excited to see our ideas grow even bigger once we see it in person. It will be much easier to visualize once we get to actually "step in to my office."

I don't think this one was the vinyl, but I really like this light color worn wood. We'll see how things change in the coming weeks though.

I'll be posting photos tomorrow to show you the before photos! Woohoo!

Adventures in Airstream Hunting

Since I graduated from O'More this past May, I've been doing some freelance work from my home office. AKA my living room on the sofa. Not the most productive place to work. Not that I'm complaining, because I LOVE working from home, but, my attention span does not. So, sometimes I'll be gettin in my design groove, designing away, then look up and see some dirty dishes. So then, I get up to put them in the sink and wash them and I'll notice that the floor is kind of dusty. So then I'll swiffer a little and think "These floors would be much prettier if I just went ahead and mopped. Also, it'll smell good and that will just be the greatest work environment EVER!" Then 2 hours later, I still have barely any work done, I'm out of design mode and I need a snack. Anyway, all that to say that I think everyone needs a designated work space to be at their highest productivity. We have a guest room and a studio for Jonathan, but we have so many house guests, I can't take over our guest space. And working in Jonathan's studio is a definite no go. SO! Our solution? A vintage Airstream!

I'd seen a few restored into office spaces online, and thought it was the most clever adorable idea I'd ever seen. And that retro vintage style and shape of those things could not be more up my alley. I LOVE them. I feel like every time I even start a project, my google inspiration search includes the words "vintage, fifties, or retro." So what better place to get my design on than a vintage 70's retro trailer?!?

So, Jonathan & I started researching, and let me tell you, these things are hard to find. People don't want to get rid of them! Especially the 50's models. They're much more rare than the 70's models. One night, we looked for hours online for the perfect one. Some of them were $10-15,000, and they looked terrible on the inside! Some were fairly priced, but seemed like too much of a project for us to handle. So the next morning, we get on Craigslist and SURPRISE! new Airstream trailer listed in Franklin! We called immediately, and the guy said it sold within 20 minutes after he had posted it... Bum city 2010! Anyway, all that to say, we kept searching and finally found, not one within our budget but TWO! For the price we were prepared to spend for ONE! We're both so excited about this project, that I think it might be a new venture of ours to buy and restore and resell. If we don't get too attached:)

We go to pick my new office up on Tuesday! And we're going to leave one at Jonathan's brothers' house, and he's going to start cleaning that one up and getting an idea of what we'll need to do to start that restoration. So, stay tuned for before and after photos! Until then, take a look at te exterior of my new office!