Monthly Recap | February 2022
This definitely wasn't the most productive month we've had. We took it kind of slow these past couple weeks, which has its perks and disadvantages.
With February coming to an end, we are preparing to kick it up a notch to get the bus all wrapped up next month. It will be a lot of long days, but that's nothing new for us.
Despite all the fun we had, we were able to squeeze in a few more projects on the skoolie. Here are the highlights.
Front Dash Countertop
A long time ago, Matthew ripped out the dash of the school bus to make room for shoe storage. This also gave us the opportunity to make the front of the bus look more homey. We didn't like the look of the bulky plastic and it served no purpose since we were no longer using the heating system that it concealed.
It wasn't until recently that we figured out what to do for the top of the new "dash". We debated using more butcher block to match some of our other surfaces but didn't want to overuse it.
We ended up using some nice plywood and a scrap piece of fir from our pocket door to make our own countertop. We then added a vertical grain fir veneer to the top. We also added trim to the backside and painted it black so it would close off any awkward gaps behind the cabinets and look seamless from the outside.
Since we are still working on some wiring in the dash, we aren't able to put the countertop on yet. Once we get it in place, it will be pretty difficult to remove without damaging it, should the need arise.
Resized Our Headboard
With the wallpaper now up in the bedroom, we are able to start doing some more work to the room.
We have our bed on gas struts to make it easier to access all the storage we built under the bed. When we raise the bed, we need it to be able to slide right past the headboard without interference. Unfortunately, the headboard was too thick in its original condition.
To fix this, we disassembled the headboard, and flatted the back side of the pillars that are on both sides. We were then able to retrofit them back on and make the pillars shorter while we were at. it.
There are still a couple more things we have to do before it is ready to put on the wall though, so no pictures of it finished yet.
We also got the last of the walls up in the bedroom! By doing this, we finished enclosing the cabinets in the back of the bus where we have our piano door. We still need to add a mahogany veneer to the wall, but it is nice to see the walls up at least.
Handles
This wasn't really a huge accomplishment but definitely an exciting one. It's always fun getting to add finishing touches to things!
We got the handles on our kitchen cabinets and even found some unique knobs for our game cabinet.
We went to Earthwise Architectural Salvage in Tacoma to look around for something special and were not disappointed. We found several knobs that we liked but sadly didn't have a match. After some digging, we finally found a pair we loved. They matched well with another handle that we found at Habitat for Humanity.
Fold Out Table
This was a project that took a lot of brain power to figure out what exactly we wanted to do and then no time at all once we actually did it. We've found that this is how a lot of the projects have been going recently.
You may have previously seen that we got our dinette table installed. What's new about it is that it now folds out to seat 3 more people. We have two fold-out chairs we will bring out when we have guests and someone can sit on the couch at the end of the table if needed.
The hardest part was trying to figure out how to attach a table leg once the table was folded out. We didn't want anything too bulky or that would leave visible holes where a table leg would snap into.
Matthew figured out a really cool system that is easy to use and is hardly noticeable.
We used piano hinges on the table itself since they were the least visible option we could go with. Once the table is folded out, we attach the table leg using a peg system. We store the table leg under the couch so it is close by and out of the way.
Backpacking in Olympic National Park
Like I always say, we gotta take a break from work sometimes and get out to enjoy nature. Matthew and I made super last-minute plans to do a 3-day backpacking trip in Olympic National Park along the coast. It was cold and sometimes rainy, but it felt so good to be out there.
The waves were incredible and each night had a beautiful sunset that we got to enjoy all to ourselves. We also got to see starfish and anemones in the tide pools.
To hear about how the trip went and what we learned about the trail, check out this post.
On the one hand, trips like this make it a lot harder to get back to work. Then on the other hand, it makes us want to finish the skoolie even faster so we can hurry up and get on the road! It's definitely a balancing act between emotions and reason trying to be productive but not overwork ourselves.
