A FULL Day!

Have you ever been the first person into the hardware store?  Have you ever been back so many times that they start taking a personal interest in your project?  Both of those things were true for me today!  Who knew that Lowe's didn't open until 8:00 on Sunday?  I made multiple trips to Lowe's today; all of those trips ended up purchasing plywood.   I was not very efficient with my trips.  In my defense, I didn't think I would get as far as I did; thus the need to make multiple trips.

My first task today was to finish the storage boxes.  Once I had them in place, I installed the finger pull hardware.  I liked using the aluminum edging on the boxes.  It looks neat and it should help any warping, etc.  Next it was time to caulk and paint.

 I painted it the boxes and the lids black; nobody will see these because they will be under the mattress, but I don't do anything half-cocked.  If its worth doing, do it well.  That's something my Dad taught me and its stuck.

 I caulked the heck out of the storage boxes.  It's going to take 24 hours for all the caulk to set.

I tried using some paper to make a template for the mattress.  This didn't work out too well for multiple reasons.  Note the expert use of my shoe to hold the paper down!    I'll just end up measuring and marking the futon mattress when I'm ready to 'customize' it.

It's kinda hard to see in this image, but I added two chrome 'pulls' on the sliding doors.  The black and chrome look really nice.  The headliner, a charcoal gray, is going to look sharp with these colors.  I plan on installing the headliner on the lower half of the bulkhead as my experiment with the contact cement.  You can't see it in this image, but I did get the green treated piece of wood in place for the bulkhead storage area.  I drilled through the frame to anchor it, but it will take another set of hands to get it bolted in place.  I'll need to caulk this once it is in place.

Here is the first piece of wood in the galley.  Nothing is anchored or treated yet.  I have to decide how I am going to 'treat' it.  I'm not sure if I'll do paint or stain, or even just seal it as it is.  I have to do some more 'looking' and admiring galleys I like.

The side pieces and the wheel well covers rough fit into the galley.  Getting those 'arches' just right was tough.  Thank goodness I purchased some very, very fine jigsaw blades.  They cut the plywood cleanly.  I described my work today to my son as working with Legos.  I'm kind of trying out different designs to see what is possible.

Here you can see my 'Lego blocks' in place.  I'm thinking that I will have the stove in a special 'box' that will be on a pull out drawer.  The cooler will also be on a slider.  I really need to look at other galley designs to see how I can best utilize the tight space here in the galley.

I like the simplicity of the galley above.  I have the exact same stove and think that the way they have it stowed away is really cool.  I might do something like this.  I also like the natural wood look of the cabinets and silver hardware.

The two images above are from the gorgeous Camp Inn site.  I love everything about the way they lay out their designs.  Look at how the stove is tucked into the little nook on the left.  I also really like the way the cooler fits in the center nook.  The whole design reminds me of a very high quality yacht.  The natural wood and stainless steel are gorgeous!  I think the way the table folds in half and stores out of the way is an elegant touch.

I like the way the galley in the above image echoes the arch of the side of the trailer.  I wonder if I could carry this into my design?

 The cooler in the slider is awesome; but what really 'finishes the look for me is the doors that cover this part of the design.  I think I can do this with my design.

 I do NOT like the hardware on the cabinets, but I do like the way the cabinet is 'cut' from one piece of plywood and the doors are mounted flush like that.

There are two elements of the above design that I like.  I think the angled table is a good use of the side table and I especially like the drop down 'shelf' that is connected by chains.  In this way it can be used as additional prep space, or can be folded up and out of sight.  

There are so many designs out there.  All of them have to respond to the original design.  The original galley of the 1947 Tourette, had a gasoline stove, an ice box and a few small cabinets.

I'm pleased with my progress at this point.  My windows will arrive early this week, as well as the door hardware.  I'm very excited about the windows; I'm really hopeful that they will fit in such a way that the 'holes' from the hatch will be covered by the rubber gasket.  If they do, the window will look like it was there the whole time.  Once I get the windows marked and in place, the cabin will be watertight.  Things are coming along nicely.  After a busy, work-filled weekend, I'm ready for the work week!