A Vintage Caravan
Thrilled with our feature in the current issue of Style At Home magazine, August 2023. Such a fun day shooting! There was a bit of stress in advance: we needed a sunny day in Dundee and our deadline was the end of March - doable, but we all needed to be available, me, Douglas, the owners, Jilly and her husband, David, who had to tow the caravan to the location!
There is such a sense of nostalgia about caravanning. Many of us will have childhood memories of squeezing in to one of these magical tardis-like vehicles with the whole family and a dog. The feeling that you can go anywhere and set up home, enjoying the freedom of a field, a river or a beach, eating outside or inside in the rain, and enjoy a delightful feeling of cosiness, knowing you are not in a tent.
Jilly and David have recreated this magic for themselves as a young couple, knowing that they can set off at a moments notice, in any weather and they will have shelter wherever they choose to stop and there is plenty of room for Daisy, their little chihuahua!
Jilly is a brand designer, you can find her on Instagram @jillyjillystudio and David has his own landscaping business @noblelandscapes so between then they had all the skills you could possibly need, both practical and aesthetic to transform a dated caravan they bought for £1,500 into the super stylish pad, on wheels, you can see in the images.
The gorgeous lime green, foldaway bistro set was gifted for the shoot by Primrose. It is perfect for al fresco dining on the road or at home!
Jilly chose the geometric wallpapers from the range at Lust Home, she applied some daisy wallpaper to the front of the fridge, another stunning original original feature along with the sink and hob.
The pretty tea towel depicting the lighthouse is from the Hare In Winter. The enamel patterned kettle and cups are from Jilly’s clients, Enamel Happy.
She made the bunting and the simple yellow gingham ‘let-down’ blinds herself, and bought the crochet blankets on eBay, the Daisy cushions from Dunelm.
The colourful fairy lights are from Cable Cotton and the ceramic door handles are from Rinkit. The stick on tiles behind the sink in the kitchen and the bathroom are from Dunelm.
The pretty painted scalloped borders and arched silhouettes on the cupboards all make the perfect finishing touches. The retro styling makes you feel as if you are time travelling, ‘we try not to bring iPads and laptops, instead, we read and play board games’ they say.
‘Both running our own businesses means that we really need to escape sometimes’ Jilly explains, ‘getting away really helps me to relax and switch off. We don’t go far, but being able to enjoy beautiful places nearby at a moments notice has been really fun.’
The caravan was in poor condition when they bought it, David had to completely dismantle it to restore it, but they were pleased to preserve lots of original features for the authentic look they wanted and to create a fabulous, colourful environment which honestly offers every comfort you could wish for!
Jilly designed the interior from her hospital bed, when she was recovering from an operation, ‘it was such a tonic dreaming up colour schemes and ideas, the whole process was extremely healing’ she shares. Ironicaly having designed it as an escape from work, some of Jilly’s clients have spotted it on her Instagram and have asked to use it as a location for their products.
We took a few shots on the day of the styling and shooting process, knowing it was going to be a memorable one.
I honestly think Doug and I look a bit like like the couple in Nuts In May, the Mike Leigh film, a hilarious ‘coming-of-middle-age’ movie about the earnest pairs’ adventures on a camping holiday.
Obviously Alison Steadman is my namesake and I have never thought I looked like her, she is an absolute idol of mine, but she has definitely caught something of me in this film!
