Welcome, Camp Preppers! Today, we’re exploring the many ways to personalize your trunk for summer camp.

Why Should I Decorate a Trunk?

Essential to the summer camp experience, camp trunks are the quintessential means of storing all of your summer camp gear and providing a makeshift dresser that campers can ‘live out of’ throughout their camp stay.

They also serve as a way to express your personality and style. One of the best ways to personalize your trunk is by decorating it.

Your camp trunk is an expensive investment, so how you decorate it is worth careful consideration. There are many ways to decorate your trunk, from stickers to paint to unique trunks offered right here at Everything Summer Camp. With our lifetime repair warranty, your trunk will stand the test of time, and if it doesn't, we'll fix it!

Three Ways to Decorate Your Trunk

Here are some tips and ideas to help you with your trunk decorating to truly make your trunk YOUR OWN!

1. DIY Trunk Decoration

With a bit of imagination and some simple materials, you can turn your trunk into an eye-catching piece that speaks volumes of your personality. From stickers to fabrics to paints and more, there are many ways to personalize your trunk and make it stand out in the sea of trunks at summer camp. Roll up your sleeves and explore some fun and easy DIY trunk decorating ideas!

 

Stickers/Decals

Stickers are a classic and cost-effective means of camp trunk decoration. They’re easy to apply, and many campers love to collect stickers from places they visit, sticking them on their trunk as a collage of mementos of adventures past. Find personalized stickers at Everything Summer Camp!

Getting Creative

Depending on how creative you’re willing to get, the sky’s the limit when it comes to your trunk decorating. Some campers have been known to use fabric and lace decoration. Others use felt and ribbon to decorate their trunks.

Painting

If you're looking for a more unique and personalized look for your trunk, painting it is always an option. People use stencils and tape to create designs, or you can freehand your own artwork. Choose colors that reflect your personality and style, and have fun with it! Just be sure to use paint that is appropriate for the trunk material, and allow plenty of time for it to dry before packing.

2. Hire a Professional Painter

Take your trunk decorating to the next level with a professional trunk painting job. Not only will this route give your trunk a unique and personalized appearance, but it can also help ensure that your trunk stands out from all the others at camp. But before you send your trunk off to be painted, here are a few trunk painting tips to help you through the process.

How to Prepare for a Professional Paint Job

Create Your Design

Research and read reviews so you can choose a company that provides quality work and excellent customer service. You can consult with the company you plan to use to get some design ideas or work with them to create your desired image and they’ll make your vision come to life!

Clean Your Trunk

Preparing your trunk for its paint job means a thorough trunk cleaning. Remove any stickers or residue you might have on the exterior surfaces. Some companies may require you to sand down the surface of the trunk or prime it before painting.

When you’re done doing that, be sure to blow off and/or vacuum the trunk exterior so you don’t risk any of those dust particles getting stuck underneath the layer the paint job. Be sure to follow their instructions carefully.

Ship Your Trunk

Once you’re ready to ship your trunk, you’ll want to pack it carefully to avoid any damage in transit. You may also want to insure your trunk in case of loss or damage. The painting process can take several weeks, so being patient is necessary. Once it’s been painted, the company will ship your personalized trunk back to you.

3. The Everything Summer Camp Way of Decorating

For the most dazzling trunk decorations, leave it to us—the trunk experts—at Everything Summer Camp. In addition to offering stickers and decals as well as nameplates for your trunk personalization, we also provide a range of stylish and durable trunks with the decoration literally built right into the construction.

Take a closer look to understand what I mean and learn about the myriad of options we offer so your trunk stands out as YOURS at summer camp!

 

LidSkinz

The largest of our trunk accessories (before getting into our trunks themselves), our LidSkinz cover the entire top surface of your camp trunk. Create your own design before your very eyes on our website with our awesome LidSkinz designer tool. This is no decal! It gets printed on a metal panel that is secured with hardware on the top of your trunk.

Trunk Options

First of all, it’s worth noting that our Traditional Steel Trunks are already dressed in your pick from 20 available color options—more than any other trunk manufacturer. Our Black Trim Trunk option is an easy way to add a stunning, distinguished effect to your trunk. We also offer the Create-Your-Own Footlocker that grants you power to apply any of our color options to any of the 10 steel panels of your trunk so you can create a theme or just go crazy with random patchwork. It all looks great!

Designer Trunks

Revolutionizing the camp trunk, our Designer Trunks portray an amazing print that covers the whole camp trunk. It’s an impressive spectacle, the likes of which you’ve never seen before. Choose a trunk design that speaks to you from Mermaids and Unicorns to Aquariums and Llamas—whatever you like best! We literally offer hundreds of different designs.

Make It Yours

Ultimately, however you choose to decorate your camp trunk, remember to have fun with it and make it your own. The possibilities are endless when it comes to making your trunk uniquely your own. Remember, your camp trunk is more than just a storage unit! It’s an extension of your personality—a reflection of your individuality!

Don't be afraid to let your creativity run wild and explore different options to make your trunk a true expression of who you are. With these trunk decorating tips and ideas for personalized trunks, you're sure to make your trunk one of the most memorable and talked-about items at summer camp.

Hey, Camp Folks!

Of course every item on your packing list is important to bring along when you’re packing for camp—that’s why they’re on the list. But there are certain items commonly forgotten or overlooked that you definitely don’t want to forget! Being sure to pack essential items on your packing list will help ensure that your camper has a safe and enjoyable summer camp stay.

Here are the top six most important items to bring to camp:

#6 – Comfort items
You’ll need to replenish all the energy you can throughout your nights at summer camp which means making sure you remain comfortable. Remember to pack cozy bedding, a warm blanket, a fan, and a stuffed animal for camp.

#5 – Extra socks
Of course you’re going to send your camper with some cotton socks—who isn’t? But make sure they have a couple pair of nice wool socks as well! Some camps even specify to include wool. Playing around in the outdoors, there’s no telling when you camper might need to change out their socks for a fresh pair.

#4 – Toiletries
Floss, toothbrush, toothpaste, soap… These are all essential items that you’ll want to make sure you have along when it’s time to head out for summer camp. They will help you remain hygienic so you’re not offensive to others.

#3 – Water Bottle
Hydration is crucial during the summer season—and even more so when you’re engaging in particularly physical activities. You definitely want to be able to bring water on your person throughout all the different events of your jam-packed camp days. Make sure you bring your own reusable water bottle.

#2 – Medication
This one doesn’t require much explanation. And, of all the items on this list, it’s the only one that’s an absolute necessity (potentially for your survival). It may have been the #1 item, except I reserved that for…

#1 – Camp Trunk
No, I’m not just saying that because we’re Everything Summer Camp—the home of C&N Footlockers. I’m placing this as the most important item that you bring to camp because not only does it provide safekeeping for all your other gear, but it’s your own personal dresser space throughout your camp stay.

Keep track on your packing list of what you have packed. Double-check and then triple-check  so you can be sure you have these six most important pieces of camping gear. Also, make sure to go over all the items as you pack with your child to make sure they have everything they need and know where to find it.

Help your camper get the most out of their summer camp experience by making sure they're packed with all the right stuff. As always, thanks for reading. And, Happy Camping! 

 

- John

Hey, Camp Folks!

Once summer camp comes to a close it’s Back-to-School prep and it’s not long after that that the holiday season rolls around. Here we are now one month into the new year and getting ready for summer camp is probably the last thing on your mind. It’s a little early to be thinking about summer camp right now anyway, right? What’s there to be done for camp this time of year?

LOTS!!!

Work in Advance
There’s plenty to cross off the camp prep list. And many summer camps fill all their available spots SEVERAL MONTHS before Opening Day! If you wait until late May to get your child signed up, the remaining spots available may only be found at second-rate camps. You want the best you can manage for your kid, no doubt, so don’t procrastinate and try to get your kid signed up for camp by April!

Where to Camp
While it would be best at this point if you knew which summer camp you’d like you’re child to attend, don’t fret if you haven’t figured that out yet. You have time, but it’s something you’ll want to get moving on quickly. Speed up your search by looking for camps whose directors have a long tenure, whose staff is comprised of mostly former campers, and whose camper return rate is above 75%!

What to Do
Once you’ve identified the right summer camp for you and your camper, there’s plenty more to cross off your to-do list—things like scheduling a physical exam, acquiring all the items on your camp’s packing list, preparing your camper and yourself against homesickness/childsickness, making logistical plans for Opening, Visiting, and Closing Day, and even more.

Life gets busier and busier all the time. Make sure to do your child and yourself the favor of acting now on looking into the camp that’s best for you. Be sure to include your child in the camp prep process every step of the way to give them a sense of ownership over their camp stay and give them a feeling of control while they’re away! 

 

- John

Welcome Back Home, Campers! 

With the camp season starting to close, now is a good time to assess how the season went. Take some time to ask your child and reflect on the camp stay. Did your child meet the main goals of summer camp? They almost certainly had fun, but can you notice any athletic, artistic, intelligent, or personal growth? What about their social skills? Did they learn from a positive role model? 

Gear

Go through the gear your child brought back from camp. Now is a great time to check over gear while your kid’s stay is still fresh in their head. Ask them what worked and what didn’t… Did anything break? Does anything need its batteries replaced? Does anything need to be repaired? Did your kid understand how to use everything? Did they have everything they needed?

Guidelines

Do your best to gauge how certain arrangements worked out for everyone. Was the stay too long? Too short? Was the camp too far from home? Too close? Did the travel go smoothly? Did your child attend a coed camp or all single gender camp? Was it the best fit for them? Did your child have the opportunity to do the activities they really wanted to do? Was going to camp with a friend a good idea or not? 

Go Again

Did the summer camp season leave you disappointed and unimpressed? While this certainly isn’t the norm, it’s not unheard of for children to have an unpleasant summer camp experience. However, I cannot stress this next point enough—just because your kid didn’t like their summer camp, doesn’t mean that they don’t like SUMMER CAMP. 

If you didn’t pick the right camp for your kid, there’s still hope to find a different one that your kid will enjoy next year. Finding a dud camp stinks for that summer visit, but it doesn’t have to ruin summer camp for the remainder of a childhood. 

Be sure to put in further preparation and research on a camp before settling on the right one! Check out ‘The Summer Camp Handbook’ for better guidance on finding a great summer camp. As always, thanks for reading, Camp Folks! 

 

- John

 

Hey, Camp Folks! 

Your kid is going to be coming home from summer camp and I’m sure you’re wondering what their return will be like. Really, there’s no telling what to expect. Summer camp experts, Chris Thurber and Jon Malinowski mention just how unpredictable your children’s behavior can be upon their return in their guidebook ‘The Summer Camp Handbook’. 

Check out what one parent had to say about their child coming back home. Lori C. submitted this to us following the camp season of 2019. Here’s what she had to say about her son’s stay at Camp Westmont: 

“My son just came home from camp today and he couldn't stop talking about all the fun he had. From learning to swim at the pool and then being able to swim in the lake. Playing Tennis and on the Ropes Courses. All the friends he had made and what he had accomplished during the summer. Bobby received two awards from camp. One was the kindness award for his bunk division and the other was an award for swimming. Before camp started my son had a very hard time trying to learn how to swim, but the staff at camp helped him be less fearful and he learned! He was very fearful of almost everything he did or didn't want to do. But as he's telling me everything he did at camp this summer, I am very grateful for the experience he has gained. He said he rides when they went on their trips, he learned to ride his bike without training wheels, he climbed the rock wall, and I was told by one of his group leaders that he is one of the best tennis players in his division! Again I am very grateful for this opportunity that he had. He can't stop talking about this summer and is already talking about going back to Camp Westmont next year!” 

Hopefully your camper enjoyed the summer camp experience as much as Bobby. Peruse the rest of our submissions from summer campers throughout the years by clicking right here and, as always, thanks for reading! 

 

- John