We asked Truck Camper Magazine readers to show us their reimagined camper interiors and holy smokes did they come through. Think all camper interiors are brown, tan or grey? Think again!
Are the monotone browns, tans, and greys in your camper driving you bonkers? Do you long for color, texture, and a little personalized pizazz in your demountable palace on wheels? Of course you do. You’re not a boring brown, a tedious tan, or a gloomy grey kinda guy or gal—are ya? Heck no! You’re a vibrant, fun, and chuck-full of personality truck camper.
We know this because we’ve been in a real camper or two. No, not the rows of campers we see on production lines or lining dealer lots. We’re talking real campers matched with real trucks with real people camping in them. Over the years we’ve seen thousands of camper interiors at rallies and expos—nearly every one of them reflecting the personality owners.
A few weeks back we had the idea of asking our readers to send in a few photos of their decorated camper interiors along with the stories behind the transformations. We knew we’d get some interesting entries, but we had no idea how wild and fun the submissions would be. We didn’t title this article, “Campers Interiors Gone Wild” for nothing.
Hey truck camper industry, there are some truly amazing ideas here.
Robert Dettmann
2019 Ford F-250
1992 Sun Lite
We bought our 1992 Sun Lite used and did a complete remodel. First, we stripped the 1990s wallpaper off and used different paints we had left over from other projects. We just dumped all the paints all together, and this is what we got.
We were living in Baja Mexico and had an artist friend from Oaxaca paint the flowers in our garden on the cabinets.
My wife did the mosaic backsplash behind the stove with glass tiles. Yes, it’s all her design.
I believe we got the cork board from a hobby store. They’re glued on—no special instructions there. We’ve decorated it with stuff we’ve found along the way; sharks teeth, pottery shards, sand dollars, cards, etc.
In addition, we also installed 370-watts of solar, three Battle Born 100Ah batteries, a 3,000 watt inverter, a new Dometic 12-volt refrigerator, a new Dometic heater and a stand alone refrigerator/freezer.
The camper sits on a 2×8 framed storage basement with sliding cabinets for easy access. My wife sewed snap-down waterproof panels covering the distance between the pickup bed and the bottom of the camper. This also created another storage opportunity.
Our camper weighs in about 2,800 pounds loaded up for the road. Torklift turnbuckles hold it all in place.
We’ve been all over Alaska, Canada, the United States and Baja with it. People on our travels get a kick out of our old camper. We’re just a couple of retired wildland firefighters having fun.
Cozette Christian
1996 Ford F-250
1991 Idle Time
We bought our 1991 Idle Time and 1996 Ford F-250 from a friend who had lived full-time in it for many years. It had leaks and damage, but the price was right. Surprisingly, everything worked.
My husband spent the summer caulking and replacing roof vents. I worked on cleaning and painting the interior. I just used blue Walmart paint.
I recovered the cushions with drop cloths and painted every inch. The curtains are just flat cloth panels with a sisal cord that’s looped over to allow them to pull up and down.
Because the floors weren’t level, I used Harbor Freight rubber mat squares. The mats were cut with scissors to fit the rough floor. Then I used rugs over top. I carry a small battery leaf blower to keep the floor clean.
The bathroom is hard to photograph, but we do have a wet bath. I added the covered toilet paper holder to keep it dry.
The kitchen has stick-on tiles from Amazon. They’re holding up pretty well.
I found the cowboy hat racks on Amazon and mounted those above the dining table. We like to go to music festivals and hat storage was an issue.
Claude and Michelle Gagnon
2008 RAM 3500
1992 Northern Lite 9-6
We purchased a 1992 Northern Lite 9-6 in January of 2026. We also have a fifth wheel trailer and wanted to try a truck camper to see if we liked it. The thirty-four year old interior was quite tired, so we decided we would give it a little update and refresh.
Collage created using TurboCollage software from www.TurboCollage.com
After cleaning the camper, we painted the interior, added a backsplash in the kitchen area, replaced the flooring, reupholstered the cushions, and replaced the mattress and all window coverings. In addition, we replaced the kitchen faucet and added a small television with a DVD player.
We are very pleased with results. The camper now feels so fresh and new inside. We are planning our first excursion to Newfoundland later in May.
Craig and Mary Carder
2025 Chevrolet 3500
2013 CampLite 8.6
Our latest CampLite 8.6 interior upgrade was installing a new countertop. The original top was a dark green color and the laminate had started to come off. The new top really brightened up the kitchen area.
While we had everything apart, we installed a new stainless sink and fixtures. We really like the built-in backsplash. We then added some peel and stick tiles to the sides and two inches in the back so it would flow together and add additional protection.
Next we decided to upgrade the plain aluminum floor. We installed a quality LVP (Luxury Vinyl Plank) for aesthetic reasons. It’s also gives the floor a little more insulation for the feet.
After our first trip, we realized we needed better seat cushions. An upholstery shop made new five-inch thick cushions and covers and a much lighter color fabric.
With plenty of Scotchguard, they’ve held up great for the last six years.
Chris Clemens
2002 Toyota Tacoma
1989 Sun Lite Skyhawk
This is my 1989 Sun Lite Skyhawk pop-up camper and 2002 Toyota Tacoma. I purchased the camper in 2018 and it was essentially stock from the factory.
I spent five months renovating the camper inside and out, and I’ve been living out of this rig for several months each year since.
The photos were taken right after my renovation. The camper is showing some wear and tear now after two Alaska trips and two winters in Baja. Right now I’m on the PanAmerican Highway in Central America, but pretty much it’s all the same.
Structurally it’s all stock. My step-dad and I covered the rear window hole where the previous owner installed an air-conditioning unit. In that back corner we built another cabinet that specifically fits my cooking pots, pans and dry food storage.
The kitchen with the propane heater and sink are the same, but I’ve now moved the shore power control panel to under the steps and I have more storage under the sink. I removed the old three-way fridge, turned the box into storage, and now I have a 12-volt cooler wired to my house battery.
A huge benefit of the old Sun Lite camper is all of the storage under the cabover bed. I live in this full-time and everything I own is here, so that storage was necessary.
I have a custom twenty-two gallon water tank under the step to the bed. Inside the step I have all of my Victron systems mounted along with my inverter and water pump. The small access doors to the truck bed hold my shoes, tools, and miscellaneous items. All of the truck bed storage has been sealed and weatherized with custom steel weather strips and locking doors.
I painted all of the wood surfaces white. The pop-up canvas and windows are all original. My mom sewed custom couch cushions as well as window curtains and a matching pillow.
I used wood-look peel-and-stick floor panels as well as a tile-style peel-and-stick backsplash in the kitchen. I left the kitchen counter and table surface stock, but all other surfaces were replaced with stained wood sheets that match.
In addition to the colorful flags above my bed, I used a battery powered light strip around the perimeter of the ceiling for ambiance at night.
Finally, on the old refrigerator door I have a map of the Americas. I’ve been using a marker to track my routes driving across North America, Central America and eventually South America.
Mel C.
2005 Toyota Tacoma
2024 Four Wheel Camper Fleet
I like to decorate my 2005 Toyota Tacoma and 2024 Four Wheel Camper Fleet for festival season. I hang macrame, preserved ferns, ribbons, and LED lights. I also use a LED light tree to hold jewelry, and battery-operated candles for ambiance.
At the risk of voiding my warranty, I’ll tell you that I have been known to hang out with up to eight party people inside this rig with only three in the cabover, but it could hold more.
Outside, I make a festive day/night living room with tapestry and solar lights. I use the steps to hang fun hats.
Audrey Ruccio
2015 RAM 3500
2018 Lance 1172
We bought a used 2018 Lance 1172. The inside was very brown.
On our first extended trip we discovered that the leatherette upholstery was well worn and starting to crumble and shed little pieces. After soul searching, we decided to have it reupholstered. The fabric was basically brown. It was eased somewhat by a fairly light colored floor, but the floor had a grey wash over it that made it look dirty.
First, I bought bright and cheery throw pillows and a throw blanket for the sofa. That helped.
Next I decided the two big blank walls on either side of the sofa needed pictures. I got two poster frames, and had two of my favorite pictures we took on an Alaska trip blown up to poster size. I painted the frames a cheerful color and mounted them on those bare walls.
I kept looking at the little table that went in front of the sofa. It was so small it could barely hold anything. I searched Amazon and found a good-sized cutting board, trimmed off the corners, sealed it, and replaced the original table. I painted the brown upper kitchen cabinets white with a touch of blue trim. Perfect!
While I was at it, I painted the big brown bathroom door the same color. That left the floor. I chose a nice light color, and spent about a week putting it down along with some wood trim to finish the job. I added some new carpeting for the stairs, a bold bright bedspread, and the brown was banished for good.
William Fisher
2022 Ram 3500
2003 Mountain Star by Travel Lite
In my 2003 Mountain Star, I decided it would be nice to change out the factory wallpaper border.
Next I had to add some quarter inch pine to the walls and make new curtains. It didn’t look right with the factory cabinets, so ended up making new cabinet doors and recovering the cushions.
I even made my own molding and cabinet pulls from branches off the maple tree in the front lawn.
Richard Jones
2017 Chevrolet Silverado 3500
2018 Arctic Fox 1150
The main interior project for our 2018 Arctic Fox 1150 was getting the dinette upholstery and valances redone, and adding the backsplash in the kitchen area.
The upholstery company that we used said that our dinette foam was still good, so we did not have to replace the foam. The material we used was a vinyl leather type.
We used the same material to redo the valances. My wife made the curtains. We wanted to upgrade the look. We think it did.
We bought the backsplash material from Amazon. It looks like tile and comes in sheets with a sticky back. It’s very easy to trim and get it lined up. So far it looks great and it sticks to the wall surface very well.
Probably one of the harder things with the backsplash project was the original coping trim at the bottom of the countertops. I had to cut that out so the tile would go all the way to the countertop.
We purchased the rods, hooks, and small buckets for utensils from IKEA. The shelves over the dinette we purchased from Amazon. I screwed them to the wall.
The truck camper picture that’s hanging on the wall is from a trip out west. We were in Oregon and crossed over the Columbia River to Washington state. We ate a lunch at a marina just on the other side. There were shops close by and a local artist had painted the truck camper picture. He signed it and the caption below reads cocktails for six, dinner for four, sleeps two.
