I regularly receive emails from fellow caravan enthusiasts (from the UK, all the way to Australia) with questions about Dolly 1 and, more recently, Dolly 2. Very often, they’ve stumbled across my DIY caravan blog posts — or Pinterest pins — and ask for tips on decorating a caravan.
I’m asked what is the best paint for interior caravan walls. How to paint caravan cupboards. And what we used to hang the wallpaper. So finally, I’ve decided to make a little list of tips for decorating a caravan interior.
It’s super simple and the look that can be achieved is fabulous.
I’m going to split each DIY project into various posts. Painting and wallpapering the interior. Then all the fiddly bits like sinks and fittings, the upholstery.
And, finally, revamping the exterior.
There’s way too much content for one post — and there’s also a LOT of photos!!
Whether you have a vintage caravan that you’d like to freshen up or a static caravan that needs an overhaul, these tips should help you create the old ‘new caravan’ of your dreams!
Caravan renovation can seem daunting initially. But over the years, I’ve discovered that if you treat it in the same way that you would any other home DIY project, you can’t go far wrong.
Hopefully, my tips for decorating a caravan for beginners will help you on your way!
Quick View of What You'll Find on This Page
Insider Caravan Inspiration
Whether you have a motorhome, a camper van, or a caravan, you can transform your recreational vehicle into the perfect tiny house on wheels. Ideal for family holidays and weekend getaways.
With a few simple updates (and a little bit of elbow grease) you can turn your van into a cozy place, to kick back and relax.
Keep reading to find out what caravan interior paint to use,
Decorating a Caravan » Part 1
Painting Woodwork and Veneer Covered Walls
The interior of most older caravans and travel trailers — even some new ones — seems to be a sea of brown. Or — worse — orange wood.
In some cases it’s real, in a lot of cases it’s chipboard; covered in a plastic wooden-look coating. The doors in both our vans have been solid wood but the surrounds have been constructed from a veneered MDF.
Either way, it can all easily be given a fresh, clean look with paint. Painting a caravan interior is one of the quickest ways to overhaul a tired-looking van.
How To Paint Caravan Cupboards
You can read my method for painting caravan cupboards plus all the woodwork here in this post.
You’ll find all kinds of info, including on what paint to use for painting caravan cupboards.
Annie Sloan chalk paint would also probably work well if you were after a flat, matt finish.
Especially as it seems to cover most surfaces without the need for priming. That said, although I’ve used it on furniture I’ve not tried it myself on a caravan, so don’t quote me on that!
Painting The Walls and Ceilings of a Caravan
We used the same cupboard makeover paint on the walls — and ceiling — of Dolly 1.
But for Dolly 2 we decided to try a different approach and although we used the cupboard makeover primer to undercoat the walls and ceiling — we did the second coat in standard white emulsion.
This was a triumph.
It saved us quite a lot of money and looks amazing — especially on the ceiling. It gives a lovely matt finish.
You’d expect it to flake or crack but a couple of years on and it still looks fabulous. I’m so delighted with the finish.
We painted all the plastic struts with the cupboard makeover paint first. Tthen went over the whole lot with the emulsion paint and a roller.
Decorating a Caravan
Now, there will be a point — probably when you’re half way though the renovation — that a sense of panic will begin to set in.
Don’t worry!!! This is perfectly normal!!!
Decorating a caravan is fun but can be a bit of a messy job. Particularly as you’ll be working in a very tight space.
Plus it doesn’t help matters if you’re a bit of a chaotic worker (like me). I don’t do things in order. I always start with the very best of intentions. But invariably things start to look like a total bombsite; as I don’t work in a logical sequence. It drives Mr D nuts.
Opening the door to chaos can be a bit overwhelming but — trust me — just work through it. Keep painting. It will look amazing eventually.
To give you a little spoiler alert — these are the kind of scenes that you may be faced with when you’re midway through decorating a caravan.
Not pretty.
And definitely alarming.
When you’ve spent a substantial amount of money on purchasing the van in the first place, it’s a slightly scary prospect to see looking like this.
But stick with it.
Give everything a couple of coats of paint and — bit by bit — the sea of orange wood will begin to diminish.
Eventually you’ll have painted every surface. Apart from the ones that you plan to wallpaper (if you’re going down that route).
Wallpapering a Caravan Interior
We’ve wallpapered both of our vans. Not sure what made me think that wallpapering a caravan was a good idea but it is.
It totally works.
I went for a shabby-chic feel for Dolly 1. It has been said (on more than one occasion) that it looked like Cath Kidston had thrown up on her. But I take that as a compliment.
Here’s how she looked before her makeover.
And after a little bit of elbow grease — a lot of paint — and one roll of wallpaper, she looked like this.
I went for a more graphic Orla Keily-esque look with Dolly 2 and used a range by Layla Faye from Wallpaper Direct.
Pop and have a look at the original post for more info.
What Tools Do You Need For Wallpapering a Caravan Interior
Wallpapering a caravan follows the same process as papering anything else to be honest.
I used standard tools — ruler, scalpel, brush, sponge and a papering table. And on both occasions I used a standard wallpaper paste; Polycell Maximum Strength, if memory serves.
The trickiest thing about wallpapering the interior of a caravan is trying to cut around tricky angles. But apart from that it’s no different from wallpapering a room in a house.
I wallpapered the ceiling in one of our bedrooms a couple of year’s ago so it’s something I’m quite confident doing.
I also quite like working on small surfaces — as opposed to large rooms. So in some respects I find it easier than wallpapering a house.
Some Tips For Decorating a Caravan
Here are my top tips for painting a caravan interior.
Make sure the walls are grease free.
Caravan walls can sometimes get a little greasy, due to cooking in such a tiny space. So making sure you give the surfaces a good wash down with sugar soap is always a good idea.
Paste both the wall and the paper. I always hang the paper from the top edge and trim the overhang at the bottom.
Make sure you smooth the paper down well and buff out with a dry wallpaper brush. This will get rid of any bubbles.
It can look a little bit alarming when the paper is wet. But the bubbles tend to settle down and disappear when the paste is dry.
I remember feeling so nervous when I wallpapered Dolly 1.
Would it be a waste of a £30 roll of paper? Will the paper stick? Would it last?
I had visions of the opening her up after the first winter to find the wallpaper hanging off the walls. Or peeling paint everywhere. But that never happened.
We had Dolly 1 for almost 6 years and the paper and paint looked as good when we sold her as the day it was put on.
So there we have it! A few tips on decorating a caravan. Next time I’ll talk about painting a caravan exterior.
Thanks so much to everyone who’s got in contact about Dolly 1 and Dolly 2. I love receiving your emails and would be thrilled to see how you get on with your own van makeovers.
Please do drop me a line with any before and after photos! Caro xx
Some More Posts on How To Decorate a Caravan
Looking for more tips on how to decorate a caravan? Check out these posts below.
Caro Davies is a former art-director turned writer and content-creator, and editor behind UK lifestyle blog The Listed Home. She writes about home-related topics, from interiors and DIY to food and craft. The Listed Home has been featured in various publications, including Ideal Home, Grazia, and Homes & Antiques magazines.
This may be the cutest thing I have ever seen! I’d love to stay in a caravan like this. And you own her!! Big green eyes here x
I love the fabric you have used. Can you please tell me what it is?
Hello Dee :) It’s Dotty by Clarke and Clarke, in Powder Blue. I bought a job lot of it and used it for both vans :)
Hi! Have you got a link to how you did the rest of the interior? And covering the funny shaped seats ?
Hi Laura, I haven’t written the post for the upholstery yet! It’s in my drafts — watch this space! :)
Dolly Too is A-mazing! We have just bought a caravan, and it’s interior is very much like your before pictures. It’s pretty dismal, so I’d like to give it a make-over. I was wondering if you have ever wallpapered onto a textured surface in a van? All of our walls seem to have a slight raised pattern to them so I’m wondering if wall papering would work or whether I should maybe stick to painting.
Hi Amy! Aah thank you! :) They’re always pretty grim aren’t they? I would image not, but you may be able to, depending on the texture. Can you email me a picture? caro@thelistedhome.co.uk — I’ll have a look and let you know! Cx
Just wondering did you just cover the original cushions? I want to cover mine but have no idea where to even begin !!
Hi Olivia! YES! I did — both times — with Dolly 1 and Dolly 2! Much, much cheaper than getting them professionally done. A proper upholsterer would probably have a fit if they saw how I’d done it but it’s fine for our needs. They look fab — if you don’t look too closely!! ;) I have pictures of how I did it and will do a post when I have time, but essentially I did it almost like wrapping a parcel. With velcro on one side so they can be removed for washing. Cx
Love Dolly 2…
I’m in Denmark and have a question.
The primer is it oil or water based?
Thanks so much Lone! And thank you for stopping by!! :) The primer and eggshell I used were both water based. You could use oil based paint if you wanted though, I don’t think it would make any difference :) Hope this helps! x
Hi, we’d just started renovating our first caravan and I happened to stumble across your post. Our van is the same model as yours but a two birth. I’ve found the information you’ve shared incredibly useful but wondered how you did the rest of your van E.g light fittings, taps, the bathroom and exterior. I know it’s a massive amount of information for you to recall but any advice would be amazing! ?
Hi Jasmine!! Our original van — Dolly 1 was the 2 berth version! https://thelistedhome.co.uk/caravan-makeover/
Re all your questions, I’m going to be writing more posts about everything else, so keep your eyes open for an update! Cxx
I want to do this with My caravan we bought one just like your colours inside . Got it in September want to update it . Where is that pink green flower wallpaper from I’m thinking that will go with my green curtains etc.
Hi Annemarie! The pink floral paper is Antique Rose by Cath Kidston — good luck!
Hi There
We have been inspired by you too! My other half is worried about wear though, we have two boys, (4 & 2) and he’s worried that the paint will mark and we’ll be forever touching it up, how did Dolly fair? thanks Fi
Hi Fi!! Aah that’s lovely, thank you! Our twin boys turned 5 this week, so lots of rough and tumble but both Dolly 1 and Dolly 2 have seemed to wear pretty well.
The paint has marked around the door but that’s not down to the boys — that’s more to do with us dragging furniture and caravan supplies in and out at the start/end of each journey.
To be honest, I don’t mind touching up here and there, as it’s infinitely better than it was to begin with. I’d much rather have to touch up scuff-marks — as and when they appear — than put up with the sea of brown that we had to begin with :) Good luck with whatever you decide! xx
Hi there. Both your Dolly’s are fantastic! We are away to start decorating our “Daisy” and while we are not nearly at this stage yet we were wondering if you painted the exterior of your vans and if so what method and paint did you use plz? Thank you. X
Hello Gill!! Thanks so much for your lovely message :) Yes — I painted the exterior of both vans. I’ve got a blog post in drafts, explaining the kind of paint I used and how I did it. It’s not quite ready to publish yet but watch this space!! ;) xx
Hi Caro, we are about to take charge of our first caravan in a couple of weeks. It is abut 15 years old and I am buying it from a friend. I can see from the pics she has sent me that it would really benefit from a make over as it is coming in its original form.. I am terrified at the prospect of prettying it , though ! Wondering about starting with the exterior first so looking forward to reading your post on this. And thank you for sharing your tips with such honesty!
Hi Rona!! Aaah don’t be terrified! Look upon it as an exciting project!! I would start with the interior first — there’s less pressure, as you can start small (and people can’t see what you’re doing!!!). I plan to publish my exterior post before the summer is out, so watch this space! x
Hello
My partner has taken down the original plastic type wallpaper down, he wants to paint over the left paper but I’m wondering if he needs to cover it with paper first and what paint we should use thanks x
Hi Charlotte! So sorry, your message was caught in the spam — I’m so sorry for the late reply! I wouldn’t have bothered taking the original paper down, I think I’d have probably just painted or papered straight over it.
If there are remnants of old paper left, it might be wise either wallpapering over it, or putting lining paper up if you’d prefer a painted finish. I know from experience that if you’ve not got a nice clean finish, paint doesn’t sometimes work too well. Let me know how you get on!! Apologies again for the delayed reply!
Hi i have just bought a rapido folding caravan its in really good condition can i paint the interior walls.
Hi Beverley, Congratulations on your purchase! Exciting times ahead and lots of adventures :) I would imagine it would work, on principle, if the unit is watertight and built like a traditional caravan? But as I’ve never painted one myself, I wouldn’t like to say 100%.
If you were keen to do it, you could paint a small unobtrusive section — then leave it over a few months (preferably over the winter) — to see how it withstood time and atmospheric conditions.
The painted surfaces in both our touring vans has never peeled and lasted well over years but as I’ve no experience of folding caravans I just wouldn’t like to say. I’m really sorry! But if you do it, let me know how you get on!! I’d love to know :)