As a few of my long time reader’s know my husband and I are in the process of renovating a 1968 Airstream Overlander.  My original Airstream post was lost in the migration to WordPress, so I wanted to re-introduce our big project and take  time to share our progress throughout 2011.

In November 2009, my husband and I decided we NEEDED a vintage Airstream to fix up.  At the time we were on the east coast.  He had just come home from a four month deployment and I had just finished a four month art program, studying classical drawing and design in Pennsylvania.  Alfred had been living in a wooden shack and I had been living on the 4th floor attic of a warehouse with four or five other students.  Neither one of our living conditions were what we were used to (to say the least)…it was then I decided we NEEDED a “home away from home.”   What could be better?  You design the interior to suit your needs/style and you pack it up and take it with you…it’s a win/win every time.

I started seriously obsessing over vintage Airstreams and by the time Alfred got home from his deployment, I had found the “perfect” one….a 1968 26′ Overlander, located in North Carolina (I was in WV at the time).  I found it on ebay.

This is the original photo from the ebay listing

We purchased it on ebay and that weekend drove to North Carolina to pick it up!

After we picked it up we spent a couple nights camping in Asheville, NC.  From there we drove it to Maryland to visit Alfred’s family, through West Virginia to show off our new prize to my family and began the long trek back to New Mexico, Airstream in tow.

In Maryland, visiting family

Along the way we learned there was a HUGE leak in the plumbing, which had apparently been patched with garden hose…not a good idea.

We also learned our car was not very well equipped to pull a 26′ Airstream.  We traveled 25 miles per hour up Mount Airy in North Carolina, getting passed by truck after truck.

We then drove 55 mph all the way across the country-through an ice storm.  In Kansas we found out the door had a hairline crack which allowed air to get between the door and eventually swung the door wide open as we were driving down the interstate…we had to duck tape the door shut for the rest of the trip.  It was an interesting trip to say the least, full of surprises and one we will never forget.  Our car was a champ the whole time and I now am forever a huge Nissan fan.

We have slowly been making progress throughout the year.  We have made a lot of progress, but have a long road ahead.  Here are a few highlights along the way…

 Demo Day, before Demo began…

Starting the Demo…

I started removing the floor, and Alfred started removing the furniture

At the end of a hard day’s work…gutted!

After the Airstream was gutted, Alfred began removing wall panels and repairing the bathroom floor (which was rotten due to leaky garden hose plumbing).

Repairing the floor has been a HUGE project, the most time consuming to date.  Alfred ran into problem after problem.  He found more and more leaky areas, had to cut the floor just right to fit the space and had to remove part of the exterior wall to slide the floor into place.  It has been very time consuming, but he is a champ and now it looks amazing!

Now that the floor has been removed and replaced, Alfred say’s we’re onto the FUN part!

All of the walls and insulation have been removed and it is time to replace the electrical, this is the start of putting it all back together!

I hope to keep you updated more in 2012.  Unfortunately, the Airstream sat untouched and alone  for a few cold months of 2011, but we’re back on track and looking forward to taking it camping in 2012 (hopefully).

To follow along with our progress check back on the Airstream page every once in awhile by clicking the Airstream photo on the sidebar.  All of the Airstream posts will be archived together.

Linking Up to:

The Blooming Hydrangea 2011 Year in Review

Southern Hospitality Top Projects of 2011 Party

Tatertots and Jello Weekend Wrap Up Party