The title was just for a little shock and awe 🙂
Yes, I did it. I went and painted the interior of a vintage trailer. An Airstream no less! It’s not that I wanted to but the original zolatone paint just wasn’t something I could live with and I tried, really I did. It had a lot of discoloration and no matter what I tried (trust me, I tried everything) to clean it, it just wasn’t going to come clean. I think it was simply age or perhaps someone smoked in it early in it’s life. Either way, I couldn’t save the zolatone. The more I cleaned it, the more original paint started wearing off and I couldn’t get rid of the discoloring. It was just a no win situation.
This is the second vintage trailer I’ve painted the interior on. You all may remember this post from awhile back. Sometimes it just can’t be avoided. Other times, some people want a brighter interior to replace dark or worn paneling. Painting to cover water damage is a no-no though as the damaged areas really should be repaired first. I’m not going to hide the fact that I’m not a big fan of painting interiors if they can possibly be left in their original condition. However, sometimes as you can see here it simply must be done. I thought long and hard before painting it and came to the conclusion that;
1. I intend on keeping the trailer long-term.
2. I’d likely never get out of it what I paid and put into it anyway so painting the interior wouldn’t make a financial difference.
3. I actually think this trailer is more appealing on the inside with the new paint rather than the worn out zolatone.
So here are a couple before & after photos. Not pretty huh? I scrubbed and scrubbed and if you look closely there are some areas near that riveted seam that I did manage to lighten up but the paint started to come off on my cloth. Plus my arm from all that scrubbing more or less felt like it was going to fall off. My attempts were futile.
Wow, what a difference! Even though the lighting is a little off in the “After” photo below due to that overhead light being on (the “Before” photo is more true to life for the colors…see the flooring? That is a more true representation of what the floor color is). But you can still see how it brightened and evened out the overall color. The area above the front window you can see how dingy and uneven it was. This is exactly what I was hoping for. Plus the paint color is pretty darn close to what the original was, without the zolatone speckles of course.
Here are a few more just showing the interior after being painted. Another thing I love about painting it is really brought out the rivets on the ceiling. Before, they sort of blended in with the discoloration.
Ahhh, Bliss…
What are your thoughts on the results? Do you like it or would you have lived with the original zolatone even as discolored as it was? Comment below and let me know. I always enjoy getting feedback from you all.
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I think it looks great. No need to defend your decision.
It turned out very nice. What color did you use as I have a 1957 that someone has already painted over. I was thinking of a light gray but fell in love with your color that is more authentic looking. Nice job.
Ww just psonted our 1963 Fireball interior. We used three different grays (walls, cabinets, and door/drawers) for a harmonious look. Just because so many vintage campers had the wood look is not relevant. Especially when so many used some teally ugly “oak” plywood! We also decided on laminate flooring rather than the typical (ugly and borderline crappy) vinyl tiles. New materials far exceed what was available back in the day. Wish I could add photos.
I think you did a great job in your color choice! It looks clean and fresh, but still vintage!
What else is left to do?
i love it ,its your trailer do what you wish to do and it does look nice. we painted our ceiling on our serro scotty but not before we rebuilt the whole thing. so it wasnt water damage, i wanted disney all that glitters paint in mine because mines a glamper. you did a good job, it looks very nice. keep up the good work!
I think it looks wonderful. I love the color you painted it.m I think it looks fresh and clean. Great job. Many happy trails to you.
It looks fabulous! It looks like you waved a magic wand and got the original color back. I love how the new color brings out the wonderful colors of the textiles you chose and the cabinets and great floor! I’m not a fan of painted interiors either when the interior is natural-toned wood, but for this, your paint looks so much like the original it seems just right.
You did the right thing. A good choice. Looks like the original to me , only clean and fresh. No guilt , please.
Of course I love it! I did the same thing to my 1955 Globetrotter – it had the original green zolatone and I wanted it all creamy whites w/creamy lace, chenille, etc. Besides, someone had previously painted the kitchen lower cabinets a green! Needless to say those got stripped and varnished back to what matches the original wood in the trailer. I totally agree it is much brighter, cleaner, and the rivets show better! Great job!
I would love to see a picture of your trailer!! Sounds dreamy!
Victoria, BC
Canada
Looks much better! Good decision!
I love it–big improvement!!
Hey Kelle, you did the right thing. It looks amazing. I can only dream of ever owning a vintage trailer, but living the dream through you and your blog. Love getting the e-mails every day! I open yours last as usually it’s something to drool over!
I am sure everyone agrees that sometimes painting is the only option! 🙂 Enjoy your revamping of the most amazing glamping trailer ever.
It looks great! And clean! That alone is worth the weight of the trailer:) It would bug me to no end to feel like I needed to clean it continually. Painting it makes it have a clean and calming appeal rather than a distressed or just stressed look. Painting it is perfect, and I’m not a fan of painting either so wouldn’t say it if I didn’t mean it:)
Enjoy!
I think it looks really nice, I have been scrubbing and scrubbing mine and in addition to just the old original surface the nicotine that keeps bleeding through is endless, im trying a primer now.
How did you put the curtains up by the bed area? I live a tiny vintage trailer too, and love this idea but I’m unsure how to put them up.
Gorgeous. I agree that the new paint makes those rivets look great.