I, for one, love personal DIY projects. You can test your mettle, skills, patience, and, at the end of the day, you can be really proud of what you’ve done because it was all made by you. A young and savvy 21-year-old from Cambridge, UK, took up a challenge to make herself a new home from a van. She was motivated by a personal tragedy: she lost a grandma that she was really close to. She’s made a choice that life’s too short to just pay the bills, and decided she needed a radical new change in her life, hence the van. And so she rolled up her sleeves and got down to business.
If I had to say so myself, she’s done it in a brilliant fashion, all the while logging it on her blog and socials, both of which received lots of attention from the netizens. Give her a follow, and track her path towards a new mode of living!
More info: Instagram | ameinavan.com | tiktok.com | youtube.com
This is Ame, her dog Gigi, and Gloria, a van project that she committed herself to after a personal tragedy
Image credits: ameinavan
Here’s the story in her own words: “So I came across the idea of tiny living and van life on YouTube almost 3 years ago, and I fell in love with it. I found van life when I was at a very low point in my life, my grandma (who I was extremely close to) had just died and it made me realize that life is simply too short to live to pay bills, I wanted life to be an adventure! So by living in a van I figured I could be debt-free, I could live everywhere and anywhere (adventure!), and be almost entirely self-sufficient, which is incredible, especially in today’s world.”
Let us invite you to Ame’s home
Image credits: ameinavan
She has a working sink and a stove
Image credits: ameinavan
Ame’s also supplied herself with tons of cupboards and a charging station
Image credits: ameinavan
This cool little nook can turn into a shower
Image credits: ameinavan
In case you wondered how she can power all that, she has a hidden water supply below the floor
Image credits: ameinavan
… And she installed a solar panel
Image credits: ameinavan
And last but not least, her Queen bedroom
Image credits: ameinavan
Image credits: ameinavan
Image credits: ameinavan
“I’m used to living in my van now, however, I still can’t believe that I finally finished the van build (and that I did it entirely myself!) and that I’m living the life I dreamt about 3 years ago. My van (and my life) really is everything I hoped it would be. It’s the cheapest yet best way I’ve ever lived, I’m in love with it.”
She can feel proud with what she has accomplished, and she is
Image credits: ameinavan
“Van life for me is about getting back to the beauty of life, the world is so fast-paced and structured so strictly that life can end up feeling somewhat like a prison and I didn’t want that anymore. Van life for some people is about traveling, for others it’s a movement, a stand against rising house prices, cost of living, and increasingly unfree society. Tiny living, in my opinion, is a movement towards a new world, a more beautiful world.”
Here’s how she’s done it
Image credits: ameinavan
The most challenging thing to install was my diesel heater (to be honest, this was mostly because it was raining and I didn’t want to go under the van in the rain)! I haven’t thought about quitting whilst living in my van, but during the van build I had so many moments where I didn’t want to do it anymore because it can be such a mental challenge building a van by yourself, but I knew that I wouldn’t actually quit.
Ame bought a Ford Transit for £5,000 GBP
Image credits: ameinavan
She stripped it all off, and got to work
Image credits: ameinavan
Image credits: ameinavan
The wooden panels cost only £14 GBP
Image credits: ameinavan
Image credits: ameinavan
Image credits: ameinavan
“I’m about to screw something up”
Image credits: ameinavan
All of the extra stuff cost her additioinal £2,000 GBP, which is very cheap, all things considered
Image credits: ameinavan
In terms of her own life, Ame has made her bed, both literally and figuratively
Image credits: ameinavan
“I’m currently traveling around France and I want to take my van anywhere and everywhere, my goal is eventually America.I’ve recently travelled through the South of France, which was incredible, you get to stay in places with million-dollar views for free!
The post After Losing Her Grandma, This Savvy Girl Turned Her Life Around And Built Her Own Home In A Van first appeared on Bored Panda.