How a couple transformed an old school bus from the 1980s into their mid-century modern dream home
Monica Humphries  Â
- Christine Saldana and Kathy Mariscal purchased a 298-square-foot school bus from the 1980s they named Adelita.
- This summer they spent five months renovating it into their mid-century modern tiny home on wheels.
- The couple added custom-built furniture and estimate the entire skoolie cost $50,000.
Meet Adelita, a mid-century modern school bus designed by Christine Saldana, 28, and Kathy Mariscal, 34.
Last year, the couple decided they wanted to start saving for the future. After realizing that rent was their largest expense, they searched for ways to lower that monthly cost.
Saldana came up with the idea of living on a bus.
"We could save up a lot of money, get married, and use the money to start a family," Mariscal told Insider. "Living on a bus was the best option."
So, they set out to make the thought a reality and purchased a bus to renovate and turn into their mid-century modern dream home.
The couple purchased a 298-square-foot bus in June and hired contractors to help them transform it into their dream home.
The couple purchased the 1998 Crown Coach bus for $7,500.
At first, they wanted to do the entire renovation themselves but decided to hire experts with experience.
A contractor added the walls, AC, plumbing, and electrical systems, and they hired someone to paint the exterior of their home.
Fortunately, a family member has a furniture company, so most of their pieces were custom-built for the bus.
After renovations, the couple estimates the entire home cost them around $50,000.
After spending the summer renovating, the couple and their dog, Lolita, moved into their skoolie in October.
The bus features an open living room that connects to a kitchen area. It also has a bedroom, closet, and bathroom.
The entrance of the bus welcomes you into the living room area.
Image of side of bus with door open
When they were designing the layout of their school bus, they focused on creating a large living room.
The couple designed the entire bus themselves.
"We picked everything, down to the size, width, color, fabric," Mariscal said.
The couple added
They wanted it to be their biggest space since that's the area they planned to spend the most time in.
Inside the living room, a pink couch quickly became the focal point of the space.
Fortunately, Saldana's sister and brother-in-law own a furniture company, so they helped Saldana and Mariscal create their picture-perfect space.
The couple wanted the interior to feel timeless and settled on a mid-century modern design.
The living room also has a yellow corduroy chair and some shelving.
The living room also features a yellow corduroy co-captain chair, which is where Saldana sits when the couple travels to new destinations.
Lolita's bed sits in the living room, and the couple added some bookshelves for extra storage.
Behind the living room is the kitchen area.
For the kitchen, the couple focused on the essentials.
Mariscal said she does most of the cooking, and instead of using a stove or oven, she cooks on a hotplate and Crockpot for most of their meals.
The kitchen also has a full-sized refrigerator and sink.
The kitchen features wood countertops, teal cabinets, and a leather dinette.
The couple wanted to make sure their home felt as airy as possible, so they sacrificed things like upper cabinets to create an open look.
Across from the sink and cabinets, the leather dinette functions as the couple's kitchen table and seats four.
Behind the kitchen table is the bathroom.
A contractor added a bathroom, which features a small sink, compost toilet, and shower.
The couple chose to cover the bathroom with pink tiles.
While there isn't a designated shower area, there is a showerhead and the entire room is waterproof.
Across from their bathroom and behind the kitchen is the couple's shared closet.
The two women have to fit their entire wardrobe in a closet that's about four feet by four feet.
Mariscal and Saldana told Insider that downsizing was the hardest part of moving into a tiny home.
"Not all of the things we had in a regular apartment were going to fit in a bus," Saldana told Insider. "Letting go of a lot of our stuff was hard."
Finally, at the back of the bus is the couple's bedroom.
The bedroom area has natural light and a queen-sized mattress.
The bedroom area is about 60-square-feet, so just enough to fit their queen-sized mattress and two walkways on both sides.
They've kept access to the emergency exit in the back, the area is filled with windows so the room to get lots of natural light.
Lolita loves to join the ladies on the bed, and so far, the pup has learned to love bus life, the couple said.
The exterior of the bus also got a new look with a fresh coat of paint.
The couple said the color of their bus sparked quite a debate.
Mariscal wanted a pink color, while Saldana wanted blue.
At the end of the day, they chose a pink shade that matches their iconic couch.
Overall, the couple said they're proud of themselves and the work that went into their home.
"We made every single penny, nickel, and dime count for this bus," Mariscal told Insider. "It almost seems surreal sometimes. We did this."
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