Brigitte the Glamavan was a project I completed back in 2016, the motivation, concept and creation of Brigitte came about as a result of my long term love affair with St Tropez. Brigitte Bardot’s unique beauty and style embodied the spirit of the bohemian 1960’s with which St Tropez became synonymous. Despite the glitterati which has followed, for me St Trop, by which it is known to it’s locals, has never really lost that special boho chic vibe, it still exists, if you know where to look… so once again this year I will escape for a few precious weeks to live my boho lifestyle on my special beachside hideaway in Brigitte the Glamavan. Here is my original ‘Brigitte, the reveal’ post from May 2016
PS you can see more photos of Brigitte on her project page here
Brigitte the Glamavan
So after much time she is finally ready! The renovation and makeover of my vintage caravan is now complete, the scene has been set and the photographs taken, all that is now left is the big reveal, hope you enjoy looking at her as much as I do, I’m thrilled…..
For those of you who have been following her story, you will remember the motivation and creation of Brigitte came about as a result of my love affair with St Tropez and it’s Boho chic vibe. Immortalised by the french screen siren and former resident Brigitte Bardot. Brigitte or BB , as she is often referred to in St Trop., brought this small fishing town international fame, following her risque film of the time, shot in and around the town and beaches of St Tropez, ‘ When God created Woman‘ ‘Et Dieu… crea La Femme’ back in 1956. It tells the story of a promiscuous teenager in a small fishing village. The perfect roll for the ultimate sex kitten in the ultimate setting.
Brigitte's beachside home
After having spotted a gorgeous little hidden campsite, on Pampelone beach, the famous 1 mile golden stretch of beach of St. Tropez, we decided a few stolen weeks this summer just had to happen.
Our secret beachside hideaway...
A vintage caravan was definitely the way to go
This could have been easy, we could have just purchased a caravan, packed up and drove off, but wheres the fun in that? Besides if their is a vintage renovation opportunity I’m definitely not going to miss it! So a vintage van was definitely the way to go. I love the shape of the 70’s caravans and I soon found her on Ebay, my Abbey 1974!
Brigitte pre-makeover
The inspiration image
The name was always going to be Brigitte and initially my design concept for her was hippy chic so very St. Trop! So, after searching for inspiration images of Brigitte Bardot in St Tropez in the 70’s, I came across the perfect photo of BB in her beloved waterfront home ‘La madrague’ This was it, this was the concept image.
As you can see the space is cool and white and the gorgeous flowing plants and trees are the stars of this show. She has added rugs and furniture in natural jute, hessian and wicker and there is a touch of feminine pink and I would kill for that white embroidered dress she is wearing! .
B.B. in her waterfront home 'La Madrague' in St Tropez, circa 1970
The Sample board
Obviously I couldn’t hang plants everywhere in a caravan owing to space, so I decided on a leafy wallpaper to emulate the verdant effect. Originally I chose La Palmeral by House of Hackney but then I found the gorgeous Summer Tropical Bloom by Sian Zeng which would give the feel of ‘La Madrague’s’ gorgeous plant filled terrace and even has that touch of pink in the hibiscus flower, it also features the cheese plant as in the photo.
There is not currently a fabric in this design so with the help of Sian I managed to get the design printed onto a lovely linen/cotton mix. I’ve added a touch of gold to the mix as I think those are gold bracelets she is wearing and if not I think a subtle touch of bling adds a bit of BB class. I chose a wood effect floor, Church Pine by Harvey Maria, to represent the tree trunks in the image background and the Calacatta marble by Formica represents the stone paving.
Out with the old...
I removed the original bench/bed and the little cupboard you can see to the right which contained the porta Potty, yuk!
The original interior layout
And in with the new...
Made a permanent double bed, with lots of storage underneath, added a super compact shower and WC , no more communal loos 🙂 and repositioned the kitchen unit to the other side and replaced it with a little vanity unit with handy storage above and below.
The old and the new layout
New layout, with bed, shower, WC and vanity
Revamping the old...
The table and cupboards in the dining area were originally in rather ugly wood effect laminate, the upholstery very 70’s and very Brown! Certainly not very Brigitte.
the old brown upholstery and formica
Newly refurbished dining area
The laminate has all had a fresh coat of paint, the upholstery replaced with linen printed in Summer Tropical Bloom and the table recovered in another stunning Formica Hammered Brass from their DecoMetal range. A wicker lamp and blind completes the new look.
A New Kitchen
The Kitchen area was taken out to make room for the Vanity unit. We have relocated this over to the other side (seen here) where some old cupboards sat.
The old kitchen area was ripped out and relocated
The new kitchen area
We kept the original enamel sink from the old kitchen, as this was still in good condition and I love the retro style. We added a lovely new brass tap for a touch of glamour, a new fridge, oven and hob and created a carrera marble effect top and splashback with Formica, which I think looks fab!
So moving on outside …
It's a wrap!
Yes we had her vinyl wrapped in the same Summer Tropical Bloom design!
Brigitte exterior
A bespoke awning
Check out the amazing bespoke awning by Emma at Threadform I showed her this pic
Awning inspiration image
The new bespoke awning
And she improved on it!
I had great fun styling for the photoshoot last week, working with my eldest who took all the photos…
NB To see more photos head over to the Brigitte project page here
Brigitte's dining area
A new double bed
Ensuite facilites
Brigitte's interior
Macrame bedroom curtain
NB To see more photos head over to the Brigitte project page here
Now I must give credit and thanks to all the lovely people who helped me with their enthusiasm and talents to turn my dreaming into a reality.
English Caravan Company -The lovely Richard & Lynn Stark responsible for the replacement and repair of all the nasty bits, fitting of the shower and WC, all the new electrics, water heater etc..and all the carpentry
ItsaWrap – Full colour digitally printed vehicle wrapping, what a team, thanks guys!
Threadform.com – Bespoke quality Canvas structures, thank you to the lovely Emma who designed and hand made the fabulous awning from a photo I liked.
Sian Zeng.com – the wonderful Summer Tropical Bloom wallpaper and design for the fabric and vinyl wrap
Jane Berry – who worked so hard to get the seating covers made despite feeling poorly, thank you Jane.
Peter Briscoe – My darling multi talented Dad who tirelessly works on all the bits and pieces I throw at him on all my projects and tries so hard to get it just the way I want it, responsible for pretty much everything else!
Richy – My super duper husband who completely buys into my dreams and indulges me in them and I so love him for it, thank you darling MWAH X
And to B.B. for the inspiration X
Brigitte Bardot
Best wishes
