A chaotic enterprise. Part two

Some time ago I purchased a vintage caravan. I wrote an idyllic post explaining a few of my reasons and recounted the kooky experience getting it home. I was excited/ motivated/ inspired to kick things off and get into the project. I was ready to work. I was also certain that I would have the project complete within about two months.

So, here we are at the two-month mark. And things have somewhat stalled a little bit. To be completely honest, things have stalled a lot. I'm sure you're wondering what has happened that the project is at a standstill? The answer is two-fold really:

1. I have never done anything like this before and therefore don't have a very strong idea what I'm doing.

2. This vintage caravan is a big, fat, rotting mess.

Look at me hard at work - it started out so well!

In retrospect, I was probably kidding myself to be finished by now, especially with the festive season occupying the month of December. However, I really can't emphasise enough how bad the condition of the caravan is (although these pictures are pretty a pretty good example). It's not like I didn't have a plan - and I had help in the form of a wonderful partner who would do all the heavy lifting I couldn't do myself. Winning formula right?

The further in we got, the more damage was discovered

Not so much. Like I said, I was pretty idyllic at how much I would achieve in a short time. I might even be pretty close to completing by now if the impression I had of the caravan was correct. We started by gutting the caravan to a bare shell. My strategy was to remove all the inside fixtures. I wouldn't need them and I wanted to change a fair bit anyway. There were obviously some, ah, cosmetic issues that needed repair, but I thought 'how bad can it really be?'. Removing the fixtures was easy. A little too easy. The more parts fell away, the more problems appeared. It is literally rotting from the inside out. How this thing is still standing is beyond me.

Didn't seem too bad...

Except all the wood is rotting and that wall is barely attached to the rest of the caravan.
Quite the pickle.

It is here that I share with you a very important lesson, dear readers. Never, ever, agree to buy or spend money on a massively imposing, heavy, awkward item that you haven't thoroughly inspected and/ or had someone inspect. If I impart no other wisdom, please let this message be your takeaway. (Side note, why do no other blogs come with this public service announcement? They make DIY look  so easy!)

Where do I go from here?

HOWEVER. All is not lost, lovely readers! I'm a 'glass half full' kinda gal and currently exploring my options. I've even had an experienced renovator and personal consultant visit and give suggestions on the best course of action. Ever the consummate professional, he advised that I demolish the whole thing and try to recoup money by selling the chassis (a word I had never heard before - click here for definition). Thanks Dad.

So that's option A. Cut my losses. My dad, who is very pragmatic, helped me understand that the structural issues are too great to attempt a quick repair - if I'm going to keep this caravan, I need to start again. Rebuild from the bottom up. This is option B. Option C, try to piece together what is left, hope it looks respectable and doesn't fall apart on the road whilst travelling. 

Immediate plan though? Have a cup of tea and feel sorry for myself. Chat with husband. Trawl through Pinterest and convince myself I'm not a complete sucker. Take a breath. Either way, at least I gave it a go. Right? Guys??

What do you think readers? Is this too tough a task, or should I crack on? What would you do?

Taking stuff out is the easy part - putting it back together is a different story

Elouise x