Hiring a company to restore your vintage trailer can save you a lot of time and potential headaches. It won’t be as budget-friendly as building out the trailer yourself, but you can rest assured knowing that everything will be made to last.
Sitka Concept, a design and construction company from British Columbia, recently turned their focus to vintage Airstream restorations. The owners, Annie and Martin, have backgrounds in construction and interior design as well as personal experience living in a renovated silver bullet.
The 1976 Airstream Landyatch showcased in their portfolio was turned from an abandoned trailer to a polished tiny home in only three months. Their meticulously detailed camper named Peanut has about 200 square feet of living space and sleeps up to five people.
“For this particular project, we restored it for our own family to live in it for 6 months.” Annie shared with Do It Yourself RV. “For further projects, we can either find the Airstream but ideally, the clients would provide the trailer!”
Like most companies, their process begins with discussing your needs, goals, and ideas for the floor plan and materials. Their refurbished camper was made with high-end materials and designed to be 100% self-sufficient.
“We used lots of raw & natural material, including walnut for counters and table, cedar for bathroom walls and countertop, pine wood for all walls, ceilings and corners. We incorporated natural slate behind the wood stove and high end tile for the bathroom. We adjust with clients need and customize every Airstream for a unique piece of art.”
They added a wooden shelf to hold dry goods and several cabinets and drawers for cookware. New curtains were draped over the windows and dome lighting was installed on the ceiling.
Down the hall, the Airstream now has a wood burning stove, a washer/dryer, and bunk beds for extra sleeping space. The bathroom is only steps away with a toilet, sink, and private shower.
The company is currently working on another Airstream masterpiece set to be completed in the spring. They also specialize in construction for commercial and residential buildings as well as fine woodworking.
Thinking about renovating your own vintage Airstream? “Be patient,” Annie advises. “Even walk away from it sometimes to come back resourced and fresh again!”
You can find a number of great resources if you take on the project by yourself. There are DIY books for design inspiration, lots of helpful Youtube videos, and websites like Air Forums where you can get tips from other Airstream owners.
Prices for their restoration work varies depending on the size of your trailer and material choices. You can learn more about the company and see their portfolio on their website SitkaConcept.ca.
This is just a free constructive critique of this Airstream masterpiece. It is really very beautifully done, and technically executed. But if you want to call it a work of art, or even a safe domicile, you have to address those sharp corners.
An Airstream is all about roundness and smoothness, and those razor sharp corners everywhere are not only artistically incongruous, but potentially dangerous.
Otherwise it is a nice job.
Pretty but not very comfortable – benches w/o backrests – ugh! And what’s with all the GLASS containers stored high and unsecured? Who needs that many drygoods? Can’t imagine living in this for more than 5 mins and I wouldn’t pull it around the block the way it is… but it is “pretty” but shouldn’t it be “pretty is as pretty does”?