Tom designed the layout and all the fitted furniture on a computer aided design tool and his mission was to create as much storage space as possible The furniture is made from birch ply while worktops are in a hard-wearing oak veneer.Tom designed the layout and all the fitted furniture on a computer aided design tool and his mission was to create as much storage space as possible The furniture is made from birch ply while worktops are in a hard-wearing oak veneer.
Tom designed the layout and all the fitted furniture on a computer aided design tool and his mission was to create as much storage space as possible The furniture is made from birch ply while worktops are in a hard-wearing oak veneer.

Take a look inside this DIY camper van conversion that sparked a new business

This DIY camper van conversion led to a new Dales based business making motorhome furniture
By Sharon Dale
Published 4th Oct 2021, 05:04 BST
Updated 4th Oct 2021, 20:30 BST

Travelling Europe in a campervan was a long-held dream for Tom Lane and Caitlin Green but with motorhomes costing a small fortune, they decided to DIY. The couple, both 30, bought a 2009 Transit that had started life as a DHL delivery van before being sold to builders who had used it for two years. With 186,000 miles on the clock, it had taken a battering and had certainly seen better days but at £2,100, the price was right.

Caitlin and design engineer Tom and his Caitlin began the conversion project in July 2019 with the help of YouTube videos and their own bright ideas, they created a marvellous motorhome spending another £2,100 doing it. The van took round them to Croatia, Greece, Italy and France, where they enjoyed climbing mountains and rocky outcrops and swimming in lakes and rivers, while spending as little money as possible.

"We didn’t stay at a single campsite and we budgeted 10 euros a day for food, though we allowed ourselves one meal out per country as a treat,” says Caitlin. Their year-long trip was cut three months short by the pandemic, but it was far from a wasted journey. Along with great memories, they came back home to Yorkshire with a fantastic idea.

Having tested and worked out how to refine some of the built-in furniture they had designed and made, they decided to start their own business, Contour Campers, designing and making bespoke fitted furniture for campervans. www.contourcampers.co.uk

"We didn’t stay at a single campsite and we budgeted 10 euros a day for food, though we allowed ourselves one meal out per country as a treat,” says Caitlin. Their year-long trip was cut three months short by the pandemic, but it was far from a wasted journey. Along with great memories, they came back home to Yorkshire with a fantastic idea.

From chasing the sun in Europe to a new adventure. Tom and Caitlin have now settled in the Dales where they run their bespoke campervan furniture business Contour Campers

9. Back home

From chasing the sun in Europe to a new adventure. Tom and Caitlin have now settled in the Dales where they run their bespoke campervan furniture business Contour Campers

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Tom and Caitlin designed and fitted the furniture in this smaller campervan

10. Compact and bijoux

Tom and Caitlin designed and fitted the furniture in this smaller campervan

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Storage, like this designed by Contour Campers, is the key to a happy live when travelling and living in a motorhome

11. Creative with space

Storage, like this designed by Contour Campers, is the key to a happy live when travelling and living in a motorhome

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