Kids Camper: Teardrop Trailer DIY

The cutest little kids camper! This camper DIY is just the right size for little ones and can be pulled behind a 4-wheeler or lawn mower.

How to build a child’s teardrop camper of your own and great tips for using reclaimed materials to make it!

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I’m guessing if you’re here, you have the same obsession with campers that I do.

What is it about them? I love them all – vintage, new, remodeled…

However, since everything is better in miniature, teardrop campers are especially adorable.

Well, imagine how stinkin’ cute a kid’s teardrop camper would be?

Don’t imagine it, take a look!

If you’ve followed my other site, Exploring Domesticity, you’ve seen that my dad is pretty much a master craftsman. There doesn’t seem to be an end to what he can do – desks for the kids, barndoor bedroom furniture, a gorgeous set of double bunk beds…

Well, he really outdid himself this time!

Also Read: Viking Pop Up Camper Remodel

Kids Camper

While watching the kids ride around on their 4-wheelers, especially Little Lady who drives slow and stops for frogs and to deliver play food, he got the idea to make a child’s teardrop camper.

It was either that, or spotting a bedframe on the side of the road that sparked the idea. Either way, he took that idea and ran with it.

The result is the cutest little pink teardrop kids camper you’ve ever seen pulled behind a tiny pink 4-wheeler!

Kids Teardrop Camper DIY

I’m no builder, so I can’t give you an exact tutorial here, but I’ll do my best to explain materials used in this kids teardrop camper DIY.

If you’re looking for plans to follow, this book on Amazon for building a teardrop trailer seems to have good ratings and could be sized down to build a child’s teardrop camper.

Also Read: Pop Up Camper Parts Everyone is Buying

Frame

As I mentioned, it all started with the discarded bed frame. The frame actually came from an adjustable bed and is very sturdy and strong. It’s also a great size for a child’s teardrop camper. The frame itself was something like 3′ x 5′ give or take.

Once the legs were removed, all it needed was a couple extra horizontal braces welded on for even more stability.

Then, the plywood was measured and the size and shape where drawn and cut. Both sides were able to fit and be cut out of the same piece of plywood.

Wheels

The wheels of the teardrop trailer are 12-inch replacement/utility wheels (think wheelbarrow) and are just the right size. The wheels were from Harbor Freight, but you can find similar wheels on Amazon too.

The trailer jack is actually made from two of the bed frame legs. It stabilizes the front end of the camper when it’s taken off the 4 wheeler. The crank itself is to complete the trailer look, but only pivots instead of actually cranking up and down.

While my dad is the wood guy, my husband is the metal guy. He helped him weld the supports through the trailer base, the faux handle and wheel crank, and the hitch.

The hitch was created simply out of a scrap piece of u-shaped metal. Another piece was created for the little 4-wheeler. Both pieces pin the kids camper and 4-wheeler together with a bolt and a pin.

Exterior

The exterior starts with just 1/2 inch sheet of plywood for the sides the floor. The curved top of the teardrop camper is framed out with pieces of scrap cedar deck boards. Then, a piece of inexpensive, flexible plastic interior wall panel was attached over the frame.

The material needs to be allowed to expand and contract in varying temperatures. So oversized holes were drilled and the plastic was loosely fastened with panhead screws.

Nearly all of this kids camper is made of reclaimed and found materials.

One of the finishing touches came straight from the trash as we’ve been cleaning out and fixing up an old resort cabin. (For the fun progress on that, check out our Instagram stories at @exploringdomesticity) The portion of the door that hinges and opens up is finished perfectly with a bit of adhesive material used for showers.

That same weekend as the trash find, my dad also spotted some leftover heat duct material from the carriage house, which happened to be the perfect size for the front of the teardrop trailer.

The windows are framed out in more of the reclaimed cedar deck boards around the Plexiglas. As well as the entire perimeter of the camper.

The fender skirts were assembled in a similar fashion as the camper itself and attached for the vintage camper look.

Last, there is a little extra support on the back corners, just like little kickstands. They are more of the reclaimed cedar placed on window hinges. They work great!

The surprise!

Just this past weekend we celebrated our anniversary COVID-style. We were treated to a fantastic dinner at my parent’s house.

Since Little Lady’s birthday is exactly a month away (from when I originally started writing this), and we live in Minnesota, our time is limited for outdoor fun. In order to get the most drive time out of this adorable child-size teardrop trailer, she got her surprise early.

It is the cutest thing ever!

She had no idea what to think and definitely wasn’t expecting it!

The kids spent the rest of the night driving the teardrop camper around the yard and setting up camp in different areas. They even hauled around their little Adirondack chairs to sit at the campsite.

So cute!

Fun Kids Camper Accessories

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