Most of us could never hope to afford an RV in our lifetime. Even tiny trailers cost upwards of $10,000, and the most current RVs cost anything between $100,000 and £300,000.
That said, buying an RV to live in isn’t impossible… as long as you’re prepared to put in some work. You can get yourself a really good deal buying an old RV and making it look like new. If you’re looking for some inspiration, you’ll love these 50 RVs that have been redesigned into stylish homes by an interior designer known as the “RV fixer upper”.
The living room on the left belongs to the nineties! Sagging furniture, bland colors, oak shelving units and the dreaded wallpaper trim combine to give it an incredibly dated feel. The RV fixer upper ripped it all out and started again, adding a wooden floor and painting almost everything white. With modern furniture and a few standout prints, it looks much nicer.
Swapping out dark colors for light really does make all the difference from a design perspective. The main problem here was the most easily fixable – the color of the bedsheets and pillows. The RV fixer upper also got rid of the claustrophobic cabinets and replaced the old-fashioned bedside table.
Ugh, this old shower unit gives us a headache just looking at it. It did the job, it was practical, but it definitely wasn’t winning any awards for beauty. Thank goodness for its transformation into a beautiful modern piece of art deco. Even the dim orange light has been replaced with a bright white glare.
This redesign makes you realize that you don’t have to go to huge efforts to make huge changes. Many of the kitchen furnishings here are the same, but they’ve either been painted or modernized in some way. And with the white walls and light wood floors, the whole space looks spacious and modern.
5. A different living space
The sofa on the left is so typical of the old-style RV: green and questionably patterned. While it might have been the height of fashion once upon a time, it’s long outdated now. The RV fixer upper threw it out and replaced it with a modern unit and some stools. The floor became wooden, the wall was papered with fashionable print, and the old fan light was replaced with a more modern alternative.
Isn’t it surprising just what a coat of white paint can do? This kitchen took on a black and white theme that’s much more modern than the original orange-brown color. The fridge and microwave were fine how they were, and blend perfectly in with the new kitchen.
Before renovation, the kitchen in this RV was looking very basic and practical. It might be well-suited to life on the road, but it’s missing those unique touches. Luckily, it had plenty of those once the RV fixer upper had done their work on it. Now much brighter and more spacious, the kitchen even has room for a bench and chairs along the big window.
8. Those finishing touches
This before-and-after is proof that the best design features are the smallest ones. It’s clear that this person’s RV isn’t set to hit the road again, not with hanging bags of fruit on the wall and a pretty (if not easily wobbled-off) canvas! Now
this is a home we’d want to return to.
You can’t always count on the weather being nice when you’re living in a refurbished RV. For the times when it’s raining outside, this RV’s old dining space was transformed into something with much more aesthetic appeal.
The problem with painting everything white is that it can look quite clinical, but not in this case. With the rose gold accenting on the handles and cutlery, the white looks simplistic and chic. Just better not buy new cooking utensils down the line unless it matches to this level!
11. Cluttered to minimalist
RVs are typically designed to pack a lot into a small space. But that can often mean that there’s little space to just
breathe – there’s furniture blocking your way. In this RV living space, the RV fixer upper took out the tables, chairs and overhead storage and opened the room up into something much airier. You’d just have to be prepared to get rid of a lot of your stuff and live the minimalist life!
Here’s another utterly drab original living area: old-fashioned-print sofa, low cabinets drawing out the light, massive table crammed in one corner. The RV fixer upper got rid of everything and started afresh with modern materials: a cream sofa, a black table, and plenty of pot plants.
That orangey RV wood really doesn’t do any design favors, and the printed wall tile looks outdated. The RV fixer upper saved the day again with a beautiful redesign, swapping the old tiles for a modern white set and replacing the kitchen units with white units. The only thing that remained was the oven.
When you step into an old RV, you’re confronted with the image on the left: old, worn furniture and an excess of orange-wood storage space. In this case, the RV owners didn’t need all their seating
or storage, so the RV fixer upper created more space by replacing them with a simple corner table and chair and a sofa just out of shot.
This RV space had real potential – it’s just a shame that everything sat in near-darkness. Part of the problem here was the lack of big windows, but the biggest cause of the issue was the furniture. The RV fixer upper took all of the ugly dark browns out and replaced them with uber-stylish grey units, light wooden floor, and a couple of pot plants for good measure.
From drab to fab! The RV fixer upper used the brick paneling, and, in their signature style, painted it white, it gave this cute bunkroom more texture and interest. Even the slightly old-fashioned TV looks better against a plain white backdrop.
17. A pop of kitchen color
Modern design doesn’t have to be understated or boring. In this RV’s kitchen, those orange wood units were painted deep blue, and with their handles and worktops replaced, they look like an entirely new kitchen set. Add some modern tiling and a fancy new blind for the window, and this is a much cheerier space to cook at.
Working with a plain old RV bedroom wall is incredibly exciting, as there’s just so much you can do with it! The RV fixer upper chose to add some interesting wallpaper, topped with a modern print that cost less than $30. What a steal!
RV bedrooms are typically small and cramped, and the bed size is often sacrificed for more storage space. But the RV fixer upper knows the importance of having a big bed. After getting rid of the overhead storage units, they fitted a bed so large and high that it almost takes up the whole room! In the best way, of course – the bed is the most important part of a bedroom.
We love this before and after shot, because we can see exactly what has been changed from the original image. Though the layout of the room is the same, the bland units and plain walls have been given some life with baskets, hanging hooks and pot plants.
The most effective furnishing for a small space is white. Rather than make the room look duller, darker and more cramped than ever before, it brings brightness and airiness into a space. We love the wooden floor that’s been used in this renovation too.
Small pops of color do really well in a kitchen – though most of us wouldn’t be brave enough to go green! But the RV fixer upper did, and we love the extra interest the color gives to the overall black-and-white theme. This isn’t new, either – just painted very well.
The RV space on the left looks a bit sad: old-fashioned chairs, an ugly kitchen, and a plain old dining table pushed into the far corner. The RV fixer upper made much better use of the space with their refurbishment, modernising the units, moving the sofa across the room, and installing a much bigger and more beautiful dining table with a view out of the window for eating.
Here’s another example of how a small wall accent can provide the most exciting design feature in a room. Plants are amazing at giving life to a small space, and the green of these leaves against the white of the walls is a great style choice. We’re glad to see the back of that big, ugly TV, too.
The practical table-chair setup on the “before” photo is no longer needed for the owner of this RV, who plans to live in it without driving. So the RV fixer upper got creative and ripped out the practical stuff, replacing it with a unique wooden coffee table and a squishy green couch. The white rug adds a finishing touch.
The RV fixer upper doesn’t leave any feature of an old RV as it was – just look how outdated the doors are! The new pale grey paneled door is much more attractive, and, of course, the hanging succulent just adds to the appeal. We bet the owners of this RV didn’t even recognize their space after the refurb!
27. Beautiful bedroom space
Living in a room with the colors on the left would drive us crazy: they’re such an eyesore to look at. The RV fixer upper knows exactly which color scheme to use to make a bedroom look much larger than it is. The pinks and greens of the cushions match perfectly with the pale wood floors and white walls.
There’s so much beauty to be had in this RV bedroom refurb, but the thing we can’t take our eyes off is the wooden flooring. Talk about beautiful! And the way it clashes with the white walls and the pale pink bedding is just perfect. What a difference it makes to get rid of all the brown wood.
29. Fireplace appreciation
There was probably once a time when this big TV above the electric fireplace was the most modern feature of an RV. But it looks bulky and old now, and, let’s face it, watching TV isn’t at the top of the list of activities when you own an RV. So the RV fixer upper removed the TV and put all the focus on a beautiful new fireplace.
When you’ve decided to park your RV forever and turn it into a home, there’s a lot that can be done with it. You don’t need to worry about stuffing all your design features safely in a locked drawer – and that’s where the fun comes in. All the little design features in this kitchen, like the glass jar and the chalk board, make all the difference.
The interesting thing about the RV fixer upper’s designs is that sometimes they don’t even rip out the old furniture – they just repurpose it and give it a new life. Here, the kitchen units are largely the same, but they’ve been painted a sleek neutral color and have new handles. With the modern print tiles, the kitchen looks like an entirely different space.
Are these photos even of the same room? It’s hard to believe it. The bedroom on the left highlights the main struggle of living in an outdated RV: no natural light and only the orangy glow of an old lampshade to supplement it. After the refurb, the bedroom is so much brighter, which is helped in part by the white walls, and in part by a good, modern lightbulb.
33. Ugly living room no more
This old RV living room really had seen better times. Combine the faded floral print sofa-chair combo with the dark floor, horrible wooden accents and dated lampshade, and the whole thing looks unlivable. The room was transformed into something much more welcoming, with white walls, plenty of open space, and not a retro floral print in sight.
It’s the sofa that we can’t take our eyes off in this particular before and after shot. It’s black and faux leather, looking like it’s come straight from a design magazine. With a few well-chosen cushions and paired against matching curtains and a rug, it makes the room look completely modernized and new.
Wow – the old kitchen space in this RV was beyond ugly. Though the strange double-unit design might have been good for storage, it really doesn’t look attractive. The RV fixer upper said good riddance to the unusual second tier and replaced it with a shelf along the wall. Blue units with a white worktop were installed, and with pale wooden floor, the room looks much better.
Again, the best thing about this kitchen refurb, in our opinion, is the little details. The wood-topped storage jars, matching spotlights and tiny chopping boards are all a “yes” from us. Look at the faucet, too – totally unique!
The owner of this RV must have valued their storage space too much to want to get rid of it – so the RV fixer upper simply gave it a coat of paint and turned it into entirely new furniture. They couldn’t help getting rid of the ugly cabinet on the top right, though; all they ever do is block light and make a space feel cramped.
Here’s a different angle of the kitchen with the beautiful decor. With white walls and furnishings, the whole space looks so much brighter than it did before. And it looks much better with the sink on show rather than covered up like in a science lab.
39. Full living space view
We’ve already seen photos of these separate spaces, but just look at how they come together in their redesign! The whole space is bright, open and inviting. And for anyone that panicked there wasn’t a sofa in the living area, you can just see it on this photo – it’s hiding on the very right-hand side.
It’s a little weird to have a sink in your bedroom, but hey, in an RV, anything goes. Rather than pull the sink out entirely – the owners must have found use for it – the RV fixer upper completely modernized it by adding fashionable wall tiles, a cool towel hook and a big mirror.
We’ve already visited this kitchen renovation once, but seeing it from a closer angle gives a better idea of the hard work that went into the job. The only things that have stayed the same in here are the window and the oven. The bright white countertops are so much nicer to look at than that ugly brown.
We get the feeling the RV fixer upper is a fan of a big, comfy sofa! This one certainly looks much better than the original, which looks almost so worn that you’d struggle to get up off it. And the room looks much brighter now the overhead storage has gone.
43. A space to appreciate the view
The best part about any RV is the living space with the big windows that allow you to look out at the view. But you wouldn’t want your beautiful view to be partly hidden by ugly furniture like the “before” photo on the left. The sofa on the right is a much better furnishing to have against such a beautiful backdrop – it’s just a shame it’s facing away from the view!
This RV, as you can just make out on the “after” photo, is the one that had the pink-themed bedroom overhaul, so it’s nice to see that the theme has been carried on into the kitchen! Because who likes brown, anyway?
There are some parts of this original RV kitchen that aren’t too bad: the unit with the sink and the oven. It’s almost as if it had already had a part refurb… so the RV fixer upper finished it off, painting the walls and cabinets white and replacing the outdated kitchen lights. Much better.
In this case, this kitchen in question stuck with its natural wooden cabinets, but with the microwave gone and the walls adorned with white tiles, it looks like a completely new space. The rose gold accessories, the pot plant and the photo frame make nice touches, too.
Here’s another cluttered RV living space transformation. Let’s face it, it’s much nicer to have a single comfy sofa than several chairs next to a chair and table setup. It’s likely that this person’s RV has another dining space designed for eating, so they weren’t missing out to free up some much needed living space.
The old TV in this original RV must have been contributing substantially to its overall weight – just look at how thick it is! We’ve come a long way since then, and these RV owners decided they didn’t want a TV at all. We don’t blame them, with that view out the window! There are much better things to do with your time.
49. Pretty gathering space
The RV fixer upper has worked a miracle with this room, turning it into a modern space akin to something you’d see in a fancy hotel lobby. The unique furnishings, beautiful coffee tables and modern rug combine to look the picture of elegance.
50. Adding some fun to shelving
Unless you’re buying a bookshelf, it’s likely that not all your shelf space will be taken up – which means you can have some fun with wallpapering the back of the unit like the RV fixer upper did in this person’s bathroom! Apparently the shelves were from IKEA and the wallpaper from Target, too, so you don’t have to pay designer prices for designer looks.
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