Top Tips to Spruce Up Your RV

This is my shelf over the bed.  When I pull the Murphy bed down, it's like a little hidden surprise here.  I picked up all of these things from Dollar General.
If you have a new RV, whether it is new to you or a brand new off the lot, most people want to personalize that space.  Three years after a complete remodel of Peggy Sue, we are starting over with a new canvas.  One person a few years ago said that she wished she had a used RV so that she could make it a little more customized.  I think you can customize any space you are in with some creative touches.  Where are my spots to grab the best decorative touches for our RV?


Many people I talk to say, "Where do I start?"  You can begin with one inspiration piece and carry that throughout.  Here are a few tips that will help you get going.  It helps to have a theme or main color that you want to use.  This will make the task less overwhelming.
  1. Once you have picked a color palette or theme, start with the largest items that you are going to be using.  If you are going to redo all of the curtains in a pop-up, start here.  Maybe you are only redoing cushions, begin there.  For us, we started with our bedding.  These largest items will make the most impact, and you can work around your large items.
  2. Use that large item and select 3 main colors to work with.  Pick either 2 warm colors and 1 cool or 2 cool and a warm.  This will balance out your interior.  Warm colors are red, orange, yellow and brown.  Cool colors are blue, green, purple, and black.  
  3. As you are shopping, tie in your theme by adding these colors throughout.  It will give everything a cohesive feel.
These three things will help you to kind of stick to certain colors or items.  It doesn't mean that you can't add in other colors or neutral tones.  Most importantly be willing to take risks.  If your space feels boring or drab, punch it up with color or a pattern.

When you are ready to start shopping, here are my go-to places that frequent for decorating.  

Wayfair

I bought bedding for two campers from Wayfair.  I love the selection of choices.  You can get anything from economical quilts to comforters.  This is also where I purchase our sheets.  In addition, they have tons of accent pieces that you can order.  However, their accent pieces tend to be a little more expensive.  I would stick to bedding or even towels from Wayfair.  They have good prices and quality.

I like bright bedding.  This was our bedding in Peggy Sue.

Our bedding in May Belle is similar.  I am still following Aquas, coral, and yellow.

Amazon

I'm a total Amazon girl for lots of items.  I'm really loving Camco's Life Is Better at the Campsite gear right now.  Plus, they have basically anything you need.  This is where I shop for toilet paper, water filters, my ice maker and more.  And really anything that is visible can become part of the decor.  This is why I love my ice maker that matches my interior.

If you know your towels are going to be visible, make them pretty and tie in with your color scheme.  
Even my towels are visible.  I have quick dry towels from JC Penny.  You can even purchase these from Amazon Basics.  They aren't those thin scratchy towels.  These are actually soft and wash up well.  Again, this is why I like pretty towels.  They are visible.

Dollar General

Dollar General is my jam!  If you shop here regularly, they have fun seasonal items.  But, check out their home section too.  I found all of the items for my little shelf above our bed from Dollar General.  These items are light and are not breakable.  The biggest draw for Dollar General is the price.  You can really stretch your budget here.  Check out their bath and doormats, decorative trays, table cloths and more.

Dollar General constantly has cute decorator items.  I would recommend checking back here often to find things that you can add throughout for fun.

Big Lots

This store has tons of gear that you can use.  This is where I got my original glasses and plates.  They are all hard plastic and have held up for 3 years.  Plus, you can find lots of decorative items there as well.   Their inventory is always changing.  Check back often if you don't find what you need the first time around.

These plates and cups all came from Big Lots.  They always have a huge selection in the summer of these items!

Walmart/Target

Both Walmart and Target have a large rotating inventory.  The decorative pillows on our sofa are from Walmart.  The time of year that is best to find fun pieces to both decorate and organize is when school starts. The dorm section of these stores has lots of decorative pieces that many times are lightweight and not breakable.

I also recommend checking out the Bullseye Playground at Target.  This is where I found camping themed pieces during the summer.   You can pick up decorative fairy lights and more in this area regularly.

These soft pillows came from Wal-mart's dorm section.

Target's Bullseye Playground had these camping themed items this summer.  I picked them up long before we purchased our new camper and have been saving them for this very moment!

My camping rules sign also came from Target.

ALDI

I am a new ALDI shopper.  I can't believe I haven't shopped at Aldi before now!  I am blown away by the things they have here.  I recently purchased a soft and comfy butterfly chair, a set of tv trays and a bamboo mat for an outdoor shower.  They regularly have kitchen items and camping-related gear.  If you have an Aldi near you, be on the lookout for things that you can use on the road.  The prices are amazing.  This chair was $30.  And the tv trays and bamboo mat were all $10 each.

This butterfly chair gives us a third seating option in our small camper.

I added three TV trays from Aldi to give us somewhere to eat indoor on cold or rainy days.  I have three.  One goes with the butterfly chair.  You just can't see it in this picture.

Other places that you can scout fun items for decorating are Cracker Barrell, Hobby Lobby and Kirkland's.  I have found items I still use from each of these stores.  The new camping lamp in our bathroom is from Cracker Barrell.

My new camping themed lamp in the bathroom can function as a night light.

Finally, don't box yourself into only items with a camping theme on them.  You can totally do boho chic, shabby chic or farmhouse decor if you so choose.  After all, it is your space.  I like camper related items because I'm not going to use them anywhere else, and they are fun.  But, that is not the only thing in our camper.  I try to balance it out with just fun things that I love.

If you are shopping for decorative pieces, think light, unbreakable and inexpensive.  Its a camper.  You don't want to invest a ton of money on pieces of gear with less function than flair.  Save your money for the functional pieces of gear you really need.

When you are done with all of your shopping, arm yourself with some Command Hooks Velcro Tape for hanging pictures and pieces on the wall.  And if you are worried about heat and humidity making your items fall, check out the new line of Outdoor Command Strips.  This will keep you from damaging your walls.

Where do you shop when decorating your RV?  There is no shortage of shopping locations.  I've even found items at flea markets, vintage stores, and Facebook Market Place.  The more creative you are, the more fun your space will be when you are finished.  After all, it's your little home on wheels.  I know that May Belle is going to be a welcome space at the end of our day!

Until next time...

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1 comment

  1. Great tips here! I recently found some decor items at Hobby Lobby and some wooden "pocket dump" trays at Poshmark. I'm using earthquake putty to secure the trays during travel.

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