Budget Breakdown: A Woodworker Couple Make $10K Go the Distance Renovating a 2006 Camper

Following a flurry of work during the pandemic, Casey and Brandon Smith refashioned a ho-hum trailer as a ’70s-inspired home-on-wheels—and then hit the road.
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Path Design turned out to be a fitting name for Casey and Brandon Smith’s new furniture company. Shortly after founding it in 2019, the Bayonne, New Jersey–based wife and husband charted a new course for themselves, striking out in a Road Runner trailer they purchased and retrofitted for less than $10,000. In the summer of 2022, it served as their only accommodation for more than 7,000 miles.

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Brian Libby
Dwell Contributor
Brian Libby is a Portland-based architecture writer who has contributed to Dwell since 2004. He has also written for The New York Times, Architect, CityLab, Salon, Metropolis, Architectural Record and The Oregonian, among others.