Good Design For The Great Outdoors: Nest Caravans

This new stylish compact travel trailer is the brainchild of Robert Johans. After years of experience with both RV designing and camping, he was inspired to create the Nest caravan, a 17' long and 6'8" wide, 2000 lb. light-weight, easy to maneuver, monocoque chassis trailer.



EXTERIOR
The infusion-molded composite shells are modern and stylish and available in a two-tone of silver gelcoat top over white, or they can be custom painted to match your midsize SUV, truck or crossover.







Examples of custom paint options:




Johans outfitted the trailer with some of the most-respected and best-performing features from the RV industry: Jalousie windows by Hehr International, MaxxFan deluxe rooftop ventilator and fan, radial ties with 16" inch six spoke HiSpec wheels, Dexter's Tor-Flex suspension axle, Fulton HD hitchjack with dual casters and chrome GoRhino detachable step-bumpers.



Exterior options include a Coleman Mach 8 rooftop air conditioner and heat pump, solar charging kits by Zamp Solar, Flamma Awnings, swing-away Yakima reciever-mount bike rack, a marine-grade transom shower unit, and a back-up camera.

INTERIOR

above: interior with queen size bed, stainless steel sink and backsplash and cork flooring

above: interior with queen size bed, stow away chairs, 2 burner cooktop, 3.0 cu refrigerator and cork flooring



The interior makes a great use of space and offers comforts like a standard full size queen bed with a pillowtop memory foam mattress and quilted cover, 2 fold-away stowable bar chairs, mildew-resistant Hulliner wall coverings, a 3.0 cubic foot NovaCool DC powered refrigerator, stainless steel sink, brushed nickle shower and faucets, a 30 gallon freshwater tank, Thetford "curve' battery-powered flush porta-potty, Ramblewood 2 burner cooktop, OlympiaWave radiant space-heater, natural cork flooring, LED lighting, 120VAC, 12DVC and USB power connectors.




Interior options include integrated solar charging capabilities, Silverleaf Electronics environment monitoring systems with bluetooth, Alde compact 3010 hydronic central heating and hot water system, CD/DVD stereo sound system with iPod or laptop connectivity, convertible bed-to-table and bench lounge set up, bamboo flooring and ancillary batteries.



Built in Bend, Oregon, every Nest is made to order. Standard package pricing is $29,995 USD and deliveries begin in Spring 2014. Pre-order one now for 2014 delivery and get 20% off.

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Nest Caravans

The All-Electric Aether Luxury Airship by Mac Byers Could Usher In A New Era Of Air Travel.

The Aether Luxury Airship concept is the final year university project by Mac Byers for his Transport Design BA (Hons) at the University of Huddersfield.



A luxury cruise concept based upon an airship platform, the Aether allows passengers to travel at high speeds in luxury and provides them with some of the most breathtaking views available. The airship is based on the technology currently being developed by Aeroscraft.



For the exterior design, Byers studied things like Thunderbird 2, Star Wars and the NASA Space Shuttle - things that appeal to the young adult generation, the generation that may someday be the target market for the Aether. Wanting to communicate the green credentials of the all-electric Aether, Byers used clean colours like white and formed the main balloon into an aerodynamic and wing-like shape. This also visually communicates that this is a new type of airship. One that is safer and cleaner than airships like the Hindenburg of the 20th century.





Lobby:

Bar:

Dining:

Kitchen:

Bedroom:





Storage:


For the interior, Byers wanted the same efficient aesthetic. To communicate that, he went for a lightweight theme expressed by such innovations as floating surfaces and cable stairways, influenced by strong suspension bridge cables.





This airship is based on the technology currently being developed by Aeroscraft, a company presently developing modern airships. This means it uses its engines as its primary source of lift, while using the Helium to simply offset the weight of the load. It also has an air ballast system allowing the crew to regulate the total weight of the craft by compressing air.



The modelling and rendering was done in 3DS Max with Mental Ray. After Effects was used for the exterior environments and smoke. Byers then used Sony Vegas for the final editing.

Designer Mac Byers is currently just about to graduate from the University of Huddersfield where he's been studying for a degree in Transport Design BA (Hons).  With a life-long interest in both cars and visual effects, Byers loved watching films like Jurassic Park and reading magazines like Top Gear. In the future he hopes to work in a field that allows him to follow his passion for both good design and excellent visual communication.

See more of his work here.

The Urban Campsite's Coolest Caravan, The Marquis by Eduard Bohtlingk.

Annette van Driel and Francis Nijenhuis are the initiators of The Urban Campsite, a campsite where camping and art come together for six weeks a year. From August 16 to September 30, 2013 Urban Campsite (located on the Vliegenbos campsite in Amsterdam) has one of a kind, artistic, unusual and sometimes just crazy mobile facilities in which you can stay overnight. Several of the mobile structures there have received architectural awards and honors, one of which is the expandable mobile camper designed by Eduard Bohtlingk.





Initially designed by Eduard Bohtlingk way back in 1985, the Markies (or 'Marquis' in English) is now one of the available camping structures at Amsterdam's fun and unusual Urban Campsite.




With foldable walls and floors, the camper/cottage is as mobile as a caravan. When parked at its destination, the floor space can be tripled.










The Marquis was nominated for the Rotterdam Design Prize in 1996 and won the audience award. It sleeps four and is available for €80 a night or €500 /week.
You can book The Markies / Marquis here.

Be sure to check out the other fun available structures at The Urban Campsite



Images courtesy of Eduard Bohtlingk
Official images courtesy of Airbnb