Pitch Some Retro-Cool Camping Design at Home

After seeing Moonrise Kingdom, Wes Anderson’s most up-to-date film invention, I found myself with a nostalgic yearning for a summer camp adventure that I never had. It didn’t help that Camp Yawgoog, where much of the film was shot, is the exact same camp that my Eagle Scout husband moved to as a boy.

While I can’t call up memories of summers in a picturesque New England lakeside camp, I will let its style inspire my home and adventures. Here are 14 ways to liven up your home (or campsite) with rugged Scout-inspired finds and optimistic mid-’60s style.

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Stock up on camp blankets. These classic striped wool blankets can be utilised in so many ways that you will never have too many. Use them as bedspreads, throw them in the car for picnics and camping trips, or keep them to warm cold guests when you sponsor dinner al fresco.

And if you’re feeling especially crafty, stitch a fresh cover to provide an old armchair a fresh look.

Bluetime Collaborative

Display where the Scoutmaster sleeps. For a slightly more luxurious than normal spin on sleeping in the excellent outdoors, I really like the idea of building a screened shield just steps from the backdoor.

You can enjoy the sounds and sights of character, minus the ribbons and tent installment drama.

The Land of Nod

Camp Throw Pillow, Racoon – $29

Enjoy your woodland buddies. Equally fitting on the couch in your home or the built-in chair of your vintage Airstream, this tiny fellow brings campy cheer wherever he goes.

Birds are used so much in decor in recent years that it’s only fair to provide the raccoons, squirrels and other fuzzy creatures their particular turn into the limelight.

Etsy

Personalize a Postcard Pillow by Olive Handmade – $36

Send a postcard. Personalize this postcard cushion with text transcribed from an old post, or compose a new message for someone you love. In any event this handmade accent is sure to put in a heartfelt note to your home.

Tamar Schechner/Nest Pretty Things Inc

Insert a dash of flower power. The vibrant, optimistic floral prints of ’60s bedding can frequently be utilized for a few bucks at thrift shops and yard sales. A little goes a long way, so consider including a couple of pillowcases instead of an entire set of sheets.

Re-cover seats with fun prints. Another fantastic use for your vintage ’60s fabric finds would be to refresh a set of dining chairs. It’s fine to mix up the prints and colors; picking patterns of a comparable scale is going to keep the look cohesive.

Collect vintage paintings. Thrift shops, yard sales and internet sites like eBay are full of one-of-a-kind original paintings by amateur artists. Masterpieces they are not, but they have their own distinct charm and if collected can make a superb statement wall. Consider picking a subject (pictures, mountain scenes etc.) or time period theme to concentrate your collection.

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Source enamelware to your camp kitchen. There’s something amazingly cheerful about the sight of a classic blue-speckled enamel coffeepot on the stovetop. Enamelware may be a conventional area of the camp kit (and it’s still fun to deliver it camping), but it functions equally well in the kitchen. Try your local Army surplus or outdoor store for inexpensive enamelware.

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Use picnic tables to feed a crowd. If your summer kitchen seems to be crowded with children and visitors more frequently than normal, try including a picnic table for easier meals. If you have the room, put it directly in the kitchen if not, then it functions on the deck or patio just as well.

Etsy

Vintage Folding Camp Stool by Pine and Main – $24

Use camp furniture inside or out. Classic camp folding furniture of an older vintage (believe wood frame, not plastic) adds a rustic-chic notice to interiors, and can be folded up and toted along when the mood strikes to hit on the street.

Build your own low-key backyard fire pit. Sleek, contemporary fire bowls have their place, but if you would like to re-create the disposition of camp in home, a rustic fire pit is what you want. Straightforward wood planks placed on logs make an easy seating place where friends can hang out and roast marshmallows.

How to Produce a Stacked Stone Fire Pit

Live it up in an Airstream. These retro trailers have a cult following with good reason. Their sleek lines and streamlined interiors and the mystique of life on the street are an irresistible combination. Take on the street, then park it in the garden the remainder of the time for use as quarters.

See tiki decor ideas from this vintage Airstream

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Embrace rec room style. Painted flooring, framed posters and a ping-pong table are all you have to brighten up a cellar, a spare room or a garage. Stock a cooler with drinks and a cupboard with board games and puzzles for entertainment old-school fashion.

Seattle Staged to Sell and Design LLC

Locate a lake near you. Simply because you can’t go to summer camp doesn’t mean you can’t still encounter something like it. And let us face it, visiting a lake as an adult is bound to be a much more pleasant experience than the fact of camp if you’re a child. Enjoy it!

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