I entered the 2006 HBS Creatin' Contest. The contest was to start with The Vintage Travel Trailer kit by Corona.
The kit contained splintery die-cut pieces of 1/8" plywood, some instructions, and a whole lot of potential.
For the contest, the rules were simple. Start with the trailer kit, use stuff from Hobby Builder's Supply or other sources when necessary (yeah right, and have a chance of winning?) and fill out the form and send pictures and have 'em postmarked by December 15.
"No problem," said I. I even started the project in February, thinking I would have plenty of time to finish it. All was going well, until sometime in March, when I applied some plastic siding to the whole structure. The instructions that came with the siding directed me to use silicone glue. I did. And it melted the plastic in places. It looked like my trailer had been hit by 1/12th scale softballs. Arrgh! "Pock-marked" was not the look I was going for. I shoved it aside and glared at it sitting on my workbench every time I went into my craft room. Then I stacked stuff on it, and pretty much ignored it.
Summer came and went, and I worked on non-mini projects. Autumn came, and I worked on non-mini projects. Then I signed up for a roombox workshop in Spokane in October. I had to move my unfinished trailer to the floor to work on the workshop roombox, which I was fortunate to receive before the workshop. After the workshop, I was motivated to work on miniatures! But I decided that instead of working on the new roombox, which needed a lot of accessories built for it, and needed stuff that had to be mail-ordered, I would try to finish another project. The trailer was 'it', since it had a deadline which could be met if I made it a priority and the trailer decided to start playing nice.
I spent the remainder of October and the first part of November working on a non-mini project that needed to be done, then I worked on the trailer every day, even lining up some hand-sewing for it that I could do while we were out of town during Thanksgiving, so that I could still be working on it while I was away. Throw travel and Christmas shopping/wrapping/shipping into the schedule. I don't know how I met the deadline, but I did. I even got the pictures in the mail on the 13th. Two days before the deadline! I guess I work well under pressure.
These are the pictures I sent to HBS for the contest. I could submit only 4 pictures, and the entry form said to shoot front, sides, and back of the project. The ones I sent were higher resolution than these.
"LUV USA" license plate. The camera angle missed the worst of the 'softball damage'.
The door is open, come on in! The exterior paint is metallic and pearl, but the photos don't show it.
Dinette, kitchenette, bedroomette, and bathroomette:
I am particularly fond of the screen door, and the sliding panel to access the door handle.
It was my idea, and my design. Will the contest judges notice details like this?
The form told me to describe the project, and where I got the ideas for it. This is what I submitted:
I chose to let this travel trailer be a trailer in which a family can travel. I did some research on vintage travel trailers to determine how to fit a realistic floor plan into it. My research brought up memories of my parents’ tiny travel trailer, and the fun we had camping with it. Then I thought about my aunt and uncle's motor home and how they had traveled around the country after they retired. My aunt once told me that she could not see the point of traveling overseas, since there was so much to see right here in our own backyard. Indeed, we Americans do have a beautiful country. What would be a better way to travel the United States, but with a home on wheels decorated with an Americana theme?With most of my projects, I strive for realism. Because of this, my trailer has a workable floor plan. I fit in a bathroom and a kitchenette, and it can sleep a family of 4. The sofas both convert to beds. The dinette would also convert to a full-sized bed, if I had not glued the cushions in place. The license plate is one of the Idaho plates, which are red, white, and blue. I chose the “Sacajawea” special plate, since we are currently celebrating the anniversary of Lewis and Clark’s expedition.
One of the most enjoyable parts of doing miniatures for me is building things from scratch from my own ideas, so most of the accessories were created by me. The trailer is uncluttered because items in a travel trailer need to be put away while the trailer is being hauled. When my trailer was photographed, the travelers had stopped for a quick lunch.
Bathroom, looking through the shower.
I stuck the camera into the trailer for this shot.
Looking through the window.
Lunch!
The tongue with propane tank, electrical wires, jack, and safety chains.
That's it!