Chickery's Travels

Chickery's Travels logo. A blue-green Earth globe with continents surrounded by dots with an arrow denoting movement or travel and "Chickery's Travels" as part of the dotted circle. Next to this is a photo of their blue and white Arctic Fox 5th Wheel with the awning out.

by Leave a Comment

Update the RV Kitchen – Backsplashes & More

This week only get the Healthy Meal Planning Bundle for only $37! It includes 1400 recipes and nearly 2 whole years of planned meals. Click here for more info!

If you’re planning to remodel your RV, I’m sure the kitchen is on the list. For most of us traveling in RVs and campers, the kitchen is basically in the same space as the living room so it is important for it to look nice. In this article I’ll share the changes we made to the kitchen in our Fifth Wheel, as well as ideas from others.

Easy RV Kitchen Remodel Ideas

Backsplash

For most tiny RV kitchens, the backsplash becomes the focal point and ours was no exception. I had been considering what to do with mine for some time. One idea that was done really well by RV owner Barbara Rodriguez is using Smart Tiles.

For most tiny RV kitchens, the backsplash becomes the focal point

My Backsplash

I was trying to decide which color to get when I saw my friend, Lisa Brown’s backsplash and fell in love! Click here to see it as well as a step-by-step guide on how she created it. I followed her lead and painted thermoplastic panels from Home Depot. Watch this video to see how it looks in the kitchen.

Countertops

I just love the cozy farmhouse style of Mountain Modern Life‘s RV kitchen!

Check out this cozy farmhouse kitchen remodel by Mountain Modern Life! Read about several options to upgrade your RV kitchen during your RV renovation.

One of the things they did to achieve this look was to build custom countertops out of flooring. They completed this upgrade in 2016, so I recently asked Katie how the countertops held up over time. She replied, “We are still really happy with our kitchen counters! My only recommendation would be to go with a higher grade of flooring. We went with the cheapest and while it’s held up okay, it would have been easier when putting it together and I feel like the higher grade was smoother. Also, we do need to re-oil the counters every 6 months since we sealed it with Tung Oil. Of course it can be sealed with something other than tung oil–it’s just important not to let water or condensation sit on the wood counters.” Watch the video below to learn more about this project.

And check out these faux marble countertops from Gypsy and A Pirate!

Update your RV's laminate countertops to look like marble without the weight! See this tutorial for DIY faux marble countertops.

Click here to see their tutorial on how to make them yourself.

Paint

I painted over the wallpaper in my RV kitchen and painted the backsplash (as you can see in the video). Many folks also choose to paint their cabinets. If you decide to go that route, click here to read 9 Tips for Painting RV Walls and Cabinets from RV Inspiration. You can also get a free Quick Start Guide to Painting Your RV Interior using the same link.

Organization

We all know that one of the best ways to make your RV look good is to keep it organized. I was fortunate that my RV came with a built in spice rack. To make it look a little more polished, I just purchased matching spice jars and put all my spices into them for a more uniform look.

If you don’t have a built in spice rack, consider following this tutorial to make your own magnetic spice wall from RV Inspiration.  Here’s a photo of the finished product.

We all know that one of the easiest ways to make your RV look good is to keep it organized. If you don't have a built in spice rack, consider following this tutorial to make your own magnetic spice wall from RV Inspiration.

Need Help? No Problem!

Create Space From Thin Air: Tips and Tricks for Organizing Your Camper, RV, or Trailer. Filled with color photographs of numerous RV organization ideas.I’ll be the first to admit that decorating is not my strong suit. That’s where friends and Pinterest come in handy.

I’m really fortunate that I was able to spend time at the same campground as my friend, Lisa Brown of Always on Liberty. She recently completed the most amazing Interior Makeover of her RV, and agreed to be my design consultant.

Another great place to find inspiration for your RV remodeling efforts is Pinterest. I created an RV decor board to help me keep track of things I like. There are many great tutorials that provide step-by-step ins instructions on Pinterest as well.

Finally, another terrific resource is a website called RV Inspiration. It is full of ideas and projects to help organize, decorate, and renovate your RV (motorhome, Fifth Wheel, travel trailer).

Have You Seen The Rest Of Our Remodel?

Click the links below to watch our progress.

Planning An RV Remodel

Painting Your RV Interior

Updating Your RV Window Treatments

RV Organization & Storage Ideas

See these DIY RV Kitchen remodel ideas. Options for an RV makeover include backsplashes, painting cabinets, and much more for motorhomes, fifth wheels, travel trailers, and campers.
SaveSaveSaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

by 2 Comments

Painting Your RV Interior

In an effort to brighten up our RV and banish the brown, we’ve decided to give it an interior makeover. Painting, will obviously be a big part of our design plans. We’ve turned to a few friends for some guidance and have come up with these top 5 tips for painting your RV interior.

Top Tips For Paining Your RV Interior

Pick Your Palette

Choosing the color palette for your RV interior remodel can be tough. So many renovations shown on Pinterest are in white, but what if that’s not you thing? How do you choose colors you’ll love? How do you know if the colors you do love will work well together? Here are some design tips from my friend, Lisa Brown of Always on Liberty, for choosing a color palette for your RV. Click here to read her Guide to RV Interior Design: Prep and Pain. 

  • Find a source of inspiration. Look to a colorful pattern in your room. It could be curtains, a rug, or even a colorful bowl. Take the colors you really love from that item to use throughout your room.
  • Want bright, but not white? Consider a lighter shade of a color you love.
  • Don’t fear the bold colors! Everything doesn’t have to be painted the same color. Select colors that add depth and texture to a room.

In the photo below, you can see my curtains. I’ve selected the light gray in them for the walls, and the teal for the trim.

In an effort to brighten up our RV and banish the brown, we’ve decided to give it an interior makeover. Painting, will obviously be a big part of our design plans. Read these 5 tips for RV interior painting.

Sheen Is Important

The finish of your paint, or sheen, will have a major impact on your walls. Gloss, satin, egg shell – with these options comes many considerations. High-traffic areas do well with gloss or satin as they hold up better to touching and can be cleaned more easily. But, they can make wall imperfections (wavy drywall, patched areas) much more pronounced. A more matte-like finish, such as flat, will not clean as well or endure touches as well, but you won’t see imperfections as much. We went with an eggshell finish. 

Try Samples First

No need to guess how good (or bad) a color will look on your wall. Grab a handful of the color card swatches and post them up around your RV. Take it a step further and purchase sample pints of your favorites and try them out. For a fraction of the cost of a gallon of paint, you can judge how a color will look in your space. It’s better to spend just a few dollars on a sample than big bucks on gallons only to find out the color won’t work.

Take Time to Prepare

Preparing for the actual painting of the RV interior can be time consuming. You’ll need to tape off areas for sharp lines, move furniture, repair and patch any imperfections, protect the floors, and remove things like switch plates. If you’re anything like me, you’ll spend 1/2 of your time doing these tasks. I promise you though, it will save you in the end.

Don’t Forget the Primer

It is very important to prime your walls, particularly if you are drastically changing the wall color or painting over wallpaper. Gripper primer works really well for the latter. Primer will not only cover up colors and stains, it add a layer to allow the top coat of paint to better adhere, giving you a much better result. We chose the Glidden Gripper Primer because Lisa used it with great success. 

Mistakes to Avoid

Click here for a great read about 12 Common Painting Mistakes Made by RV Owners (and How to Avoid Them).

Other Uses For Paint

Don’t forget that there are other uses for paint in your RV décor. Breathe new life into your furniture and cabinets with paint. Paint jars and cannisters in coordinating colors.  They can be both decoration and useful if you use them to help organize your small space. I’m painting the wood trim on my valances in a bright color. 

A key component of RV remodeling is painting the interior. These 5 tips will help you prepare for your RV interior painting.

Read Our Other RV Renovation Articles

Planning an RV Remodel 

Updating Your RV Window Treatments

RV Organization and Storage Ideas

Ready for an RV makeover? These 5 tips will help you prepare to paint your RV interior (motorhome, 5th wheel, travel trailer, or camper) for a true glamping experience. #rvmakeover A key component of RV remodeling is painting the interior. These 5 tips will help you prepare for your RV interior painting.

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

by Leave a Comment

Planning an RV Remodel

After almost 4 years of full-time RV travel, we decided to complete some renovations to brighten up our RV interior. This project included an interior makeover, as well as changing out some of the furniture. Before we got started, we made sure to plan it out and set a realistic budget.

Remodel Vs New RV Purchase

Before the remodel, we had been talking about downsizing for about a year. So why did we decide to remodel the RV instead of trading it in for another? The main reason was financial. We were on track to achieve our goal of being debt free by the end of this year. Buying another RV would have kept us from that milestone, so instead we carved out a bit of the budget to remodel our current RV.

Since we are always budget-minded, we looked for ways to save money as we worked. We also fully documented all our actual costs, so you can see how much it costs to makeover your RV interior.

Scroll down to the bottom of this page to see all of the individual projects and the final costs. 

Need Help? No Problem!

Create Space From Thin Air: Tips and Tricks for Organizing Your Camper, RV, or Trailer. Filled with color photographs of numerous RV organization ideas.I’ll be the first to admit that decorating is not my strong suit. That’s where friends and Pinterest come in handy. I was really fortunate that we were at the same campground as a friend who had recently completed the most amazing interior makeover of her RV. She provided some much needed design advice and inspiration.

Another great place to find ideas for your RV remodeling efforts is Pinterest. I created an RV decor board to help me keep track of things I like. There are many great tutorials that provide step-by-step instructions on Pinterest as well.

Finally, one of my favorite resources is a website called RV Inspiration. It is full of ideas and projects to help organize, decorate, and renovate your RV (motorhome, Fifth Wheel, travel trailer).

So What Was The Plan?


Our plan included 4 main categories for our remodeling effort:

  • Paint – We just wanted to paint the walls (not cabinets). No more weird beige pattern wallpaper! Yeah!
  • Fabrics – We’re adding curtains and valances in the living area. We’ll also be adding fabric over the black faux leather cornices in the bedroom and garage.
  • Furniture – We’re ditching the long dark brown sofa in our living room and replacing it with theater seating and a table/chair set.
  • Personal Touches – This is where we’re going to have a lot of fun! We’ll add great splashes of color throughout the RV with a backslash and wall art.

The “Before” Tour

Here’s a video I filmed last year after 3 1/2 years of living and traveling in our RV full-time.

The “After” Tour

Here’s the after portion of the living room/kitchen remodel.

Specific RV Makeover Articles

Painting Your RV Interior

Updating Your RV Window Treatments

RV Organization & Storage Ideas

Update the RV Kitchen – Backsplash and More

RV Remodel Costs 

Try these ideas for an RV makeover on a budget. Use these tips to plan a modern DIY renovation for your motorhome, Class C, 5th Wheel, Travel Trailer, or Camper. From paint to decorative touches for the kitchen.

SaveSave

SaveSave

Signup to receive weekly updates and exclusive free content only available to subscribers!

Privacy Policy

Travel Schedule

Recently
Cape Henlopen State Park, DE

Currently
Front Royal, VA

Next Stops
See our RV show schedule

Notice

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

top rv blogs