Some of us can only dream of having a little shop of our own. For others, like my friend, Aims Abson of Big Blue Barn Designs in Alberta, Canada, it was a dream years in the making. She and her husband have a very old travel trailer which they kept even after they upgraded to a bigger and more comfortable one with a proper bathroom. She knew she wanted to convert it into her travelling jewelry shop one day.
The old Trillium was originally made in the 1970's by a company in Ontario. It was named after the provincial flower. The fibreglass trailer was wildly popular in its day because it was drier than tent camping and very lightweight for car towing.
But the outside was damaged when it was too close to a fire. Way back in 2015, Aims told me :
It has a furnace in it and I've already redone the inside as we used it for travelling for years until it burnt.I can pull it with my SUV...already have the hookups and brakes installed - and I wouldn't have to buy a table then....wouldn't it create quite the attraction!
She was right! First she had to spend time fixing the damaged fibreglass herself. She explained :
I had to put 3 coats of fiberglass on one side and one on the inside to help repair the damage from the fire that happened 3 feet from it. I then put bondo over top of the fiberglass on the repair and on parts that had cracked under the heat. Sanded it all down and gave it a coat of special primer and then a couple of coats of the original colour. The previous owner had painted it white and I took it back to the original 70's green.
The hand painted flowers were the pièces de résistances! Well done, Aims!
It turned out to be quite the attraction at a small outdoor craft show she attended recently. The old suitcases she collects as well as the wood crates all came in useful for display. Even the trailer's open shelves perfectly accommodated her necklace and bracelet displays. The Christmas lights were a nice touch.
People were constantly stopping to take pictures both outside and in. They even asked if they could share on social media. Aims naturally said yes! Best form of social media marketing without Aims having to do anything!
Unfortunately on the second day of the show, an early snowstorm hit Alberta so that put a damper on things. But there is always the next craft show and in the years to come, Aims!
See links below for other unconventional jewelry shops.
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Original Post by THE BEADING GEM
I love this! It’s beautiful! And what a treat for shoppers! 💕
ReplyDeleteHow fun! and so cute and clever. thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely gorgeous. So artistic. I love the colors and the clever displays..flowers.etc. Everything just came together. I Love It !
ReplyDeleteWonderful story about creative, fun-loving people.
ReplyDeleteso much light inside, that was a pleasant surprise.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for posting about my little trailer Pearl! What I didn't tell you was that when the fire first happened and hubby's car burnt to the ground 3 ft. away, a fellow we knew at the Parts Desk of a RV dealership told me he could fix that fiberglass no problem. He had my trailer for 5 years and no matter how many times I asked him if it was done he always told me not yet. Finally I said I was going to pick it up and he told me it was $500 for 'storage' in his driveway. I figured he was sure I wouldn't pay and then he would seize my trailer. So I showed up with cash in hand and hooked it up, inflated the flat tires and brought it home. In 2 days I had it sanded and began work on it. Since we don't have a garage I had to work on it in our driveway and the following two summers the weather didn't co-operate for love nor money. But this past summer was perfect for fiberglassing and painting. I worked on it continually after our July long weekend (here in Canada) and did it all myself - all the fiberglassing and bondo work and sanding. I researched what I didn't know how to do and just got down to it.
ReplyDeleteCompared to what that fellow did in 5 years I have to say I zipped through it! I only stopped work when our weather turned from warm enough to paint to our first dump of snow. So many people told me the trailer made them feel like a kid again and that it made them very happy. It makes me feel the same! Every time I look at it I smile.
It's very gratifying to have a dream and to pursue it and have it turn out even better than you imagine!
What a backstory and what a tremendous effort on your part. Total respect!
DeleteI live in Ontario and I'm very sad to hear that guy charged you storage fees. Unbelievable! but I think it was the best 500 bucks you ever spent.
DeleteWishing you success and happiness on this amazing adventure. Love from Tess x
DeleteI’d sure like to see some jewelry from Amy Abson on Pearl’s blog
ReplyDeleteWhat a cute trailer!!!! I bet the jewelry is amazing too. Would love to see some up close. Is it possible to show us some?
ReplyDeleteNice article, what a great idea and perfect way to recycle vintage items. I'm sad that I didn't get a closer look at her handcrafted jewelry. If she has as much talent and creativity in remodeling this vintage camper. One can only imagine the gorgeous pieces of jewelry she creates. The prices are shown clealy but the jewelry is not. I'll have to find this amazing Artisan and get a closer look.
ReplyDeleteThe trailer is very cute, thanks for posting. It feels like only half posted because none of the jewelry was shown. I would sure like to see her work, any reason why it’s not shown?
ReplyDeleteThis post is about Aims' trailer. Aims mostly sells in person so there aren't many close up pictures of her work. But you can see some by going to her website through the link above or here - : https://www.bigbluebarndesigns.com/ I will certainly ask her for a future feature!
ReplyDelete