A California Couple Turn a Dated Camper Into a Dreamy Family Getaway

Kele Dobrinski and Christina Valencia transform a blatantly beige travel trailer into a colorful tiny home that lets their family of five explore nature in style and comfort.

Mar 12, 2022 - 00:17
A California Couple Turn a Dated Camper Into a Dreamy Family Getaway

Kele Dobrinski and Christina Valencia transform a blatantly beige travel trailer into a colorful tiny home that lets their family of five explore nature in style and comfort.

Kele Dobrinski and Christina Valencia, of Sacramento, California-based Colossus Mfg., revamped a 2008 Starstream Starcraft camper that allows their family of five to comfortably explore nature in different landscapes for weeks at a time.

Kele Dobrinski and Christina Valencia spent a long time searching for a camper with enough sleeping space for their nature-loving family of five. "We’re always looking for ways to explore more of the world around us," Kele says. "Since Christina and I run a design shop, we wanted to rehab a camper that would let us take the kids on long trips over the summer, while being able to work comfortably from anywhere."

Kele Dobrinski and Christina Valencia, of Sacramento, California-based Colossus Mfg., revamped a 2008 Starstream Starcraft camper that allows their family of five to comfortably explore nature in different landscapes for weeks at a time.

Kele Dobrinski and Christina Valencia, of Sacramento, California–based Colossus Mfg., revamped a 2008 Starstream Starcraft camper into a tiny home that allows their family of five to comfortably explore nature for weeks at a time. 

Photo by Kele Dobrinski/Colossus Mfg.

Kele and Christina (who live in Sacramento, California, with their three sons Jack, age eight, Wyatt, age six, and Adler, age three) eventually discovered a 2008 Starstream Starcraft for sale on Craigslist for $10K. "I saw this funky camper with two pop-out tent sleeping areas, and I jumped on purchasing it," Kele says.

The couple maintained the camper's white-painted aluminum exterior, marking it with the name of their design company.

The couple maintained the camper’s white-painted aluminum exterior, marking it with the name of their design company.

Photo by Kele Dobrinski/Colossus Mfg.

The camper’s exterior was in good shape, but the interior left much to be desired. "Unlike the dated appearance of the interior, we actually loved the look of the aluminum exterior, so we didn’t change it."

The camper's original interior displayed a dated aesthetic with brown-on-brown tones.

Before: The camper’s original interior displayed a dated aesthetic with brown-on-brown tones.

Courtesy of Colossus Mfg.

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