Camper · built 1999 · lovingly restored
Herr Nilsson.
A Chausson Welcome 35 that earned the word “lovingly” — bamboo, sage, linen curtains, and a monkey on the door.
scroll · the whole story
A Chausson Welcome 35 that earned the word “lovingly” — bamboo, sage, linen curtains, and a monkey on the door.
When we first saw him, everything was dark: black seats, skull-print curtains, stickers from Zodiac to Downtown Tattoo covering the wardrobe wall. The countertop was baby blue, the floor beige, and the hood wore a Harley-Davidson logo bigger than the steering wheel.
But the engine turned on the first try. And when we stepped through the door, we didn’t see the stickers — we saw the floor plan. The space. The light falling through three big windows. We took him home.
We peeled off the Harley stickers, took down the skull curtains, removed the blue countertops. Then we began: cabinet fronts wrapped in matte white vinyl — three rolls, two evenings, one argument about corners. Bamboo boards cut and fitted for kitchen and table. New linen curtains sewn. Walls painted in white and sage.
The upholstery was done by a professional tailor — a calm grey fabric that feels like a Swedish wool blanket. In the bathroom we put up palm-leaf wallpaper and painted the adjacent wall sage green. We added a new rear window because we wanted to wake up looking at the fields. And we fitted a matte black tap in the kitchen — because the bamboo deserved it.
The first trip was the Dolomites — interior half-finished, bikes on the rack, and the feeling that none of it matters as long as the coffee is on the stove in the morning. Then the Netherlands, multiple times. Black Forest weekends with Cookie on the back seat and cream-cheese rolls at the edge of a field.
Herr Nilsson isn’t a vehicle you drive. He’s a place you return to — every evening, when you slide the door open, switch on the fairy lights, and suddenly the world outside doesn’t matter.
We loved camper life so much that we upgraded: a new Sprinter, self-sufficient for three days, doubling as a company car. Herr Nilsson is the one who started it all.
New exhaust system, new drive belt, oil change — all at a professional workshop, invoices available. Battery monitor retrofitted and rust removed by hand. Fresh TÜV inspection. Gas bottles full, tyres with tread.
Herr Nilsson isn’t a project. He’s done. You get in, turn the key, and go.
We’re selling Herr Nilsson for €29,499 OBO. Not because anything is missing — because we upgraded. We’d love to hand him to someone who sees what we see. Write to us; we’ll send the full listing and arrange a visit in Igel.