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Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Trash Bathroom

Melody wrote:
Woo hoo! I made it in under the wire too. Guess what I made today? I needed a
toilet for my Greenleaf travel trailer. Yes... I managed to make walls and put
in bathroom in it. My travelers don't like the public washrooms. Soooooo.... I
needed a toilet but know trailer toilets are not like the normal porcelain types
usually seen in dollhouses and also usually don't have tanks like the modern
plastic toilets you can now buy for dollhouses. They are more like chemical
toilets or whatever... So.... I looked at every shampoo and lotion cap in my
home and finally found a white one in an old bottle of cream that is probably
toxic by now (right?). It has the flap/snap kind of lid. It is white and oval...
about 1.5 inches high. I drilled the hole bigger -- a hilarious and unsuccessful
event with the wee cap spinning around on the drill then flying... I eventually
got it bored out with a combo of paring knife, Exacto knife and shears. In the
process the existing "hinge" snapped off. Pooh! But that ended up being a
blessing because it enabled me to see that sideways... with the narrower end of
the oval against the wall, it was too perfect too believe. So there it is... one
trailer toilet. I'm going to make a ring seat from white foamie and also put an
oval in it inside the lid to give a "cushioned" look to hide the little dot
there that once helped seal the bottle.

The bathroom is, in its entirety, a shower. I drilled a hole in the floor and
used half a dome fastener for the drain. I also put a smaller dome in the drain
of the jam packet sink. I used cut off bits from some tile flooring I used in a
bigger house for the floor and some up the walls too. A plastic baggie will be
the shower curtain/door. A small mint tin will be the medicine cabinet with a
bit of Mylar for the mirror. In my quest for a toilet-like lid I also found some
travel shampoos and such. One has a lid the right size for a toilet brush. I am
going to glue a cat-shaped button on the front to give it character and insert
long bead with pipe cleaner "brush" in the cap. Another lid will be a trash
receptacle.
How I make "the rest of the toilet":
The toilet I made with the shampoo lid was the "chemical toilet" type so no tank. However, I was looking in an old mini mag and they showed cool toilets made with one of those square dental floss containers for the "tank". I'd known about this technique, but had not remembered what they used for the "bowl". In this example they used the leftover spool from scotch/sticky tape. They also used a dental floss container for a clothes hamper. mmmmhmmmm.

In other trash news... my trailer campers needed flashlights. Old electric connectors turned out to be perfect. I filled one end with clear hot glue and it looks great. I also made a bigger one with a crystally plastic bead in the end. Now there will be no stumbling in the dark en route to that trashy toilet LOL.
Did I tell you about my kitchen sink in the trailer? Take one jam packet for a sink. Take a small off cut "tongue" from tongue in groove flooring and cut a piece about 1.5" long. Find two tiny screws and a cup hook... there! tap and faucets. I had to re bend the hook a bit but it's awesome.
Now I'm thinking "cooler". I see an aspirin bottle with a rectangular bottom. I'm thinking some strategic cutting and a piece of foam for the lid? White bottom... coloured top? I'll keep you posted. I know off cut bits from plastic canvas make perfect ice. I bet those leftover glue gun gobs could be cut up for ice too :-)

Barb K wrote:
Hey Melody!
You had me at "bathroom talk" all week. I could not get your trailer toilet out of my mind. That's when I noticed the flip top on my Tropicana orange juice jug. Yep - its bright orange but its the perfect toilet seat and lid for a camper's toilet. I remember getting deodorant (have to find that one) with an oval lid. It is going to be my base. One of those chemical type toities or Port-a-Potties. heck we still have one at the cottage for those winter weekends when the water's shut off.

So, a little Gesso and a little white paint and I think I'll have my Toitie too.

Thanks for the inspiration.