Airstream Style: Fun and Function

I've posted about a couple of these before, but since I'm on a roll here, I'll revisit a few of them. I'll call this a category of small, fairly inexpensive things that solve some issues you might have with storage and regular daily living in your Airstream.

Problem 1:  Where to keep bottles of wine

Solution:  A the foot of our bed there's a hinged cupboard that perfectly fits two of these wine crates (well, two in front, and then two behind that) from The Container Store (called StorVino):

Problem 2: Towel bar is inside the bathroom, not near the shower…so where do you hang towels for easy reach after showering?

Solution:  These Ikea hooks in the hallway right outside the shower door. I love that you can fold them up and they look like sleek (albeit mysterious) hardware that came with the trailer.

Problem 3: We travel around in the Pacific Northwest during all seasons, and there's not a great place to hang GoreTex to dry when you come in from the rain.

Solution:  I installed two of these Command Brand hooks right above the door (and over the doormat) for hanging coats to dry before putting them in the closet. They're great…they match the interior, they don't damage the aluminum and can be removed whenever you want with no sticky residue.  The come in several styles:

The package looks like this (I've seen them at Fred Meyer and at Storables):

Problem 4:  We needed a good spot for keys, sunglasses, etc.

Solution:  Next to the door on the side of the over-the-kitchen-sink cabinet we installed on of these (from Chiasso):

Problem 5: I'm not quite tall enough to reach in or see very well what's in the cupboards over the stove and sink. 

Solution:  I found these bamboo shelves at Storables. (They come in three sizes.) Now I can have some items on the top shelf for easy reach, and the lesser used stuff on the bottom. (This is the tallest one…still easy to reach underneath it.)

Problem 6:  Flowers. I really like fresh flowers on the table when we find 'em.  But vases take up room.

Solution:  A couple years ago my mom got us this cool little folds flat vase by a company called Vazu. I only recently managed to see it at home and put it in the crate to go the Airstream and we used it for the first time on this trip.  OMG I love it!  They are plastic and weigh nothing and fold flat when you aren't using them, but with a whole bouquet of long tulips in it it's still completely stable when filled with water.  

I just bought four more of 'em.  They have all sorts of great colors and patterns, and they're about five bucks each. Go get some. (Thanks, Mom!)

(Posted by Laura)