Learning to Live in a Space Before Making Changes

We used to move into a new space and rush to make changes, adding to or taking away what we thought would make things better.  Correcting mistakes further down the line that would end up costing us money and be, well just annoying. 

 So this time we didn't. 

We bought our static caravan brand new, although at the time of purchase it was a two year old design and model (hence us getting a really good deal on it, including a years site fees thrown in).  With this in mind we didn't want to change anything immediately so throughout our first year we used the van exactly as it came

I decided for once to take the time and learn to live in my new surroundings.  And while Alan, like most men, would have been more than happy to leave it exactly as it was permanently, I spent my time watching how we moved around the space, cooked in the kitchen, relaxed in the living room etc. with a view to the changes we would make. 

  I took a mental note of how we used it, what fitted in with how we live, what we loved about it, what annoyed me ... but mostly I noted what would make life easier on a day to day basis.

This was the first change, or addition, that I thought was necessary and that we have just implemented.

The worktop on the left hand side of the cooker was crying out to be more cooking friendly.  We don't eat many ready meals as we like to cook from scratch, and when you're cooking simple foods it's nice to have your ingredients and cooking implements to hand.

And a bit of space to use them.

So we made this.

Or rather I designed it and got the component parts, and Alan made sure it worked and would fit, taking measurements, cutting, trimming and painting wood.

Yes it's simply a piece of wood cut to size, edged with a nice trim then glued on top of a bought wooden cube, both of which were painted white with spray paint.  At the other side ... sitting slightly further back to give maximum preparation room nearer the cooker ... the shelf rests on a simple little drawer unit which cost me £8 from Asda.

It may not seem much but raising some things off the worktop while still being able to utilise ALL the space beneath the shelf will make a world of difference.

The plan is that the toaster will sit underneath the shelf, being pulled out when in use, a jar of something will sit in the open cube and a few more jars of dried goods will be on top of the shelf, providing inspiration for meals and releasing storage space inside the cupboards.

At the moment I'm waiting for the glue to dry so I can't start arranging and rearranging  ... there will be time to play very soon though 😀

Sue xx