We won't be able to truly start on building our caravan until after Memorial Day weekend, so right now we're just planning and researching. Fortunately, there are a lot of people who have documented what they've done with similar caravan projects.
Bow Top Caravans
Gypsy Caravan—One of the first blogs I found about building a caravan using The New Gypsy Caravan book, plans, and template. Also, probably the most detailed when it comes to adaptations made (an air conditioner unit!) and the building process in general.
SuperTroll's Bow Top Vardo—A variation of Lemke's bow top. There are a few pointers in his message board thread, but most of the documentation is in the photo album in the very first link.
Small Adventures—Yet another vardo builder following the plans from Lemke's book. He's at roughly the same stage we are at the moment: planning. (The Vardo label is just posts about the project; the rest of his blog is about SCA involvement.)
Woodsong's Vardo—A bow top with a twist: it folds down when not in use, as a result of space (and neighborhood) limitations.
Canvas Caravans—
Other Style Caravans
Rachel the Goatwoman's First Vardo—A pop-up, Ledge-style vardo. Her first one, which eventually lead to...
Rachel the Goatwoman's Second Vardo—...a second pop-up vardo. This time, designed so that just one person can raise it.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Monday, April 19, 2010
A Bow Top Caravan
The caravan we plan on building is in the bow top style, which is what most people think of when you mention the phrase "gypsy caravan." There are actually six different types of vardo, most of which resemble a box on wheels. The Reading style is the prettiest, but makes me think more of a traveling circus wagon from the early days, than a gypsy caravan.
The best description of a bow top I've found is at Journey Folki, taken from the pages of a book I really want to read: The English Gypsy Caravan by C.H. Ward-Jackson & Denis E. Harvey. It's out of print, so no luck yet finding it at a reasonable price. Fortunately, that's what inter-library loan is for! We do have a copy of Timothy Limke's The New Gyspy Caravan, which will be very useful for the exterior build.
The sketches from the Ward-Jackson book of a standard bow top layout are going to come in handy, when it's time to furnish the interior. (Lemke's book doesn't really include anything other than the bed in terms of furnishings.) Inspiration will also come from Ditchwater Sal's yellow wagon from the movie Stardust, and the GypsyWaggons.co.uk's gallery of bow top interiors. I don't think our decor will be quite on the same level as some of those images, though. Geeky, naturally. Elaborate, probably not.
The best description of a bow top I've found is at Journey Folki, taken from the pages of a book I really want to read: The English Gypsy Caravan by C.H. Ward-Jackson & Denis E. Harvey. It's out of print, so no luck yet finding it at a reasonable price. Fortunately, that's what inter-library loan is for! We do have a copy of Timothy Limke's The New Gyspy Caravan, which will be very useful for the exterior build.
The sketches from the Ward-Jackson book of a standard bow top layout are going to come in handy, when it's time to furnish the interior. (Lemke's book doesn't really include anything other than the bed in terms of furnishings.) Inspiration will also come from Ditchwater Sal's yellow wagon from the movie Stardust, and the GypsyWaggons.co.uk's gallery of bow top interiors. I don't think our decor will be quite on the same level as some of those images, though. Geeky, naturally. Elaborate, probably not.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Origins
Once upon a time, a little girl was captivated by Gertrude Chandler Warner's book The Boxcar Children. Who wouldn't want to their very own house to live and play in, without any adults around? While having a boxcar in the back yard wasn't feasible, a gypsy caravan—another of her fascinations—was, so she thought. Unfortunately, her parents didn't quite agree.
Years later, she was still enamored of the idea. Not being a huge fan of sleeping on the ground, a caravan seemed like the perfect solution for going to outdoor, weekend-long events that would otherwise mean camping. No one, however, was willing to help make that idea a reality. It can't be done, they said; it will be too expensive. No one, until someone by the name of Kyro came along.
How much do you really want a vardo, he asked. This sounds awesome! A little bit of research & one late night conversation over tea, and the dream started to become a reality, with one condition: the door had to look like the door of the T.A.R.D.I.S. Being a bit of a geek herself (why else would she go by the nickname "Leia"?), she agreed.
This is the story of our project, the Geek Caravan. A bow top-styled vardo built by a pair of geeks, because why not?
Years later, she was still enamored of the idea. Not being a huge fan of sleeping on the ground, a caravan seemed like the perfect solution for going to outdoor, weekend-long events that would otherwise mean camping. No one, however, was willing to help make that idea a reality. It can't be done, they said; it will be too expensive. No one, until someone by the name of Kyro came along.
How much do you really want a vardo, he asked. This sounds awesome! A little bit of research & one late night conversation over tea, and the dream started to become a reality, with one condition: the door had to look like the door of the T.A.R.D.I.S. Being a bit of a geek herself (why else would she go by the nickname "Leia"?), she agreed.
This is the story of our project, the Geek Caravan. A bow top-styled vardo built by a pair of geeks, because why not?
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