Let's Go Camping :: Finish!

Recently Dave and I wanted to make one last camping trip.  Thanksgiving was a week+ away and we had just received 8-9 inches of snow on Monday... 

... and we were longing for warmer weather and an opportunity to ride some trails on our bikes.  

I had been working on quilting my Let's Go Camping BOM quilt during the snow storm... I had made progress and had hoped to be able to get all of the quilting done so that I could finish the binding while on the road.  Things were looking good for that plan... 

We had planned to head south to Texas on Saturday, BUT because of another storm front they said would move through that area over the weekend, we chose to leave a few days early and enjoy the beautiful weather that was predicted for Thursday and Friday.  The binding was not meant to happen.  Oh well.  It would all wait for my return... 

We had some beautiful days in Quitaque, TX!

Caprock Canyon State Park has some beautiful views...

On the Thursday we rode 13.7 miles on just the park roads.  We had to wait patiently for the Bison to get off of the road at one point (but who is going to argue with them?), we navigated a short section of 16% grade as we crossed the river at the bottom of the canyon, this also means we walked our bikes up a section of it since we didn't make it all the way to the top; we watched prairie dogs, listened to coyotes call out in the wee hours of the day, headed to bed at 8 p.m. and slept eleven (11!) hours with no problem.

On Friday we ventured a few miles down the road to a section of the trail system that uses an abandoned Railroad bed.  

It was well maintained with crushed gravel that was well packed.  We road 4.5 miles to Clarity Tunnel, which houses some bats...  

Ack!  It was just a short tunnel, 582 feet long, with a bit of a curve.  It was fine dust and was, no doubt, comprised of years and years of accumulation of bat guano... and it was a little stinky!  Gross!! 

Of course, Dave told me to stop for a few seconds to snap a selfie... you could hear the bats "chirping" as they hung from the ceiling. I didn't stay stopped long once I realized what I heard!  

As we rode the trail we saw lots of deer tracks, as well as tracks from the cows that grazed in the pastures on either side of the trail.  And then I noticed this...

Just what do you suppose could have left such a track???  

We did see one small rattlesnake on another section of the trail after lunch, but it was just a little thing... what ever left this behind must have been bigger.  I shudder as I think of how many snakes we may have passed in the grasses on the edge of the trail... which is why I stayed carefully in the center of the trail!

We rode a total of 15 miles on the second day.  Our bums were a little sore! 

Upon our return home, after getting caught up on laundry, I settled in at my sewing table.  I went to work on my feathered wreaths embellished with some vines and leaves in each block and free motion feathers in the open edge blocks.

It has been fun making these blocks, recalling many of the places we have camped, time spent around the campfire, seeing animals and their crossings; taking inventory of what to take and things you do, the food enjoyed while stirring the pot.  Thinking of all the things you can camp in, the various camping activities, as well as friendships made.

My free-motion quilting is far from perfect, but I have improved sooooooo much... and you cannot improve unless you make projects that don't require perfection.  I used a plaid flannel for the backing... perfect for an extra layer of warmth for those cool nights in the camper!

Somehow, I found myself involved in four different block of the month groups this year.  Maybe next year I will keep it to a max of two.  

How many BOMs did you participate in this year?

What BOMs have you heard about for 2019?  

Please share!  I would love to see some more options out there... leave a comment so I can go check them out.  

Sew Happy!

Melva

PS... I would love to continue my Quilters Through The Generations series.  Please, let me know if you are interested in participating by emailing me MelvaLovesScraps@nolanqualitycustoms.com or you can leave a comment below.

Linking with:

Main Crush Monday at Cooking Up Quilts
Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt
Moving It Forward Monday at Em's Scrap Bag
Oh Scrap! at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework
Friday Foto Fun at Powered By Quilting
Show and Tell Monday with Bambi
Linky Tuesday at Freemotion by the River
Color Inspiration at Cleave Chameleon Quilting
Wednesday Wait Loss at The Inquiring Quilter
Midweek Makers at Quilt Fabrication
WIP Wednesday with Esther
Let's Bee Social at Sew Fresh Quilts
Needle & Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation

November Color Challenge :: Blue-Green

Jen at Patterns By Jen chose Blue-green as the color of the month for November... one of my favorites.  I mean it is part of the blue family!  Blue!  What's not to love about blue... the various shades, levels and depths of life!  The sky, bodies of water, birds, flowers, etc.  

If you missed it, I recently finished a quilt inspired by Monet... I called it my Monet Mosaic.

Blue-green, or turquoise, is a common color found in the Southwest region of the United States and my Grandparents were all about the history of the Southwest and the Reservations.  They lived for a short time in Santa Fe, NM before moving to Tucson, AZ.



They had numerous "Indian Rugs" in their house and Grandma had a collection of turquoise and coral jewelry. 

And for the amount of jewelry Grandma had and the frequency that she wore her Squash Blossom necklace and Concho belt, you would think that there would be a picture somewhere!  But since once could not be located... you will just have to use your imagination. 

They loved traveling to the many canyons that were home to the Native Americans... places like the Grand Canyon, Canyon de Chelly and Mesa Verde are just a few that come to my mind.  I visited all of these places as a child and was unimpressed and under-whelmed. LOL! I do enjoy exploring similar places and learning about the history of the land and the people that occupied it now as an adult... in limited doses.   While my Grandparents would enjoy two or three days at Mesa Verde, Dave and I were content with one last year.   

I thought my block over this stock photo of the Grand Canyon worked well...   If only I had been able to make the trip myself!  😉

If you have a love for Native American hand-crafted jewelry go check out my cousin's page Silver Sisters Jewelry (Lori and I were close friends in school and then became family when she married a 2nd cousin.)  I am certain that my Grandma would have selected a few items from her inventory.



Some people can rock the turquoise and silver jewelry... I find most of it too big and chunky for my tastes.  But I can appreciate some dainty pieces... or pearls and diamonds. It's just the way I roll. 😉

Are you a fan of Southwest decor, jewelry and history?

Leave a comment... I'd love to hear from you!

Quilt Happy!

Melva

Linking with:

Color Challenge Link Up at Patterns By Jen
BOMs Away at What A Hoot Quilts
Can I Get A Whoop Whoop at Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Wishful Thinking - It's A "Wild" Life

I giggled when I saw this block designed by Carol at Just Let Me Quilt... Then I looked at it to try to figure out how to avoid aaaaaaaaaaaaaall that applique.  I considered paper piecing the trees but then told myself "just do the applique"! 


As I pulled fabric for the block I remembered that as a child we had an old hay wagon where my dad stored old lumber from various projects.  My brother once discovered a whole family of skunks living under it.  The babies were sooooooo cute!  We begged mom to be able to capture one and have the "stinker" removed and keep it as a pet.  My parents refused, even though they thought they were cute as well.  

We wanted to name it "Flower" just like in the Disney movie, Bambi.  But as with all "babies" they don't remain babies.  My brother was assigned the task of "removing" the family.  That is all I am going to say about that.  Well, I will add, that he never ended up smelling of skunk, to my recollection!

Once I got the sky, ground and trees done, I was less than enthused to begin the truck & trailer... and then I saw the "love" fabric sitting on the cutting table in the midst of the other black and white fabric I had pulled as options for the block.  It was at that moment that I decided that it was exactly what I needed for the truck and camp trailer!

Love was in the air!!!  I, for one, am grateful that the stench of a skunk is NOT in the air.


While Dave and I were still living in Illinois, one evening as Dave was returning home from work and our Yellow Lab, Samantha, ran across the yard to greet what she thought was our cat, Dotty.  Dave quickly realized that it was NOT Dotty. 😞  Rather, it was... you guessed it... a skunk!  I imagine that the look on the skunk's face was one of surprise... just like this one >>>



It was the middle of the winter so we couldn't simply leave her outside.  Though she really did love her dog house and kennel and would often prefer to "go to bed" outside rather than stay in the house.  


We took her into the basement where there was a bathroom with a shower.  We proceeded to use tomato juice and strawberry scented shampoo to try to neutralize the awful odor... it didn't really work, but it was certainly better than doing nothing!  I think...

For months afterwards (until she shed her winter coat) whenever she went hunting and retrieving in the Fox River or on the private pond where Dave hunted ducks and geese, she smelled the odd combination of tomato and strawberry.  It was a little gross...

This was before our knowledge of using baking soda, hydrogen peroxide and dish soap to remove the odor.  

More recently our Chocolate Lab-mix, Shelby, dashed across the yard after a cat... Dave thought it was a cat, anyway.  (We have never allowed her to chase after rabbits or cats in our yard.)  As soon as Dave realized what she was doing he yelled for her to stop.  And for once she listened!  We managed to coerce her into the house while he grabbed something to "manage" the situation.  

(I know, I know... this is not kosher to do in town, but we don't live in town and who really wants to worry that such a stinky creature is roaming in your neighborhood?  Animal control doesn't respond to such calls in the county... you just take care of it.)  He was able to handle the situation without setting off a 'stink bomb'... My Hero!  We actually believe that the animal was sick and could have been a threat to the pets in the area.

Well, there you have it.  My skunk stories... 

Have you had a close encounter with a skunk?  

Leave a comment... I'd love to hear from you!

Keep calm and quilt on,

Melva

Melva Loves Scraps - home of the Quilters Through The Generations series

Linking with:

Linky Tuesday at Free-motion By the River
Fiber Tuesday at The Quilting Room with Mel
Main Crush Monday at Cooking Up Quilts
BOMs Away at What a Hoot Quilts
It's A Wild Life BOM at Sew Incredibly Crazy

Art With Fabric - Monet Blue & Give Away!

Welcome to the Art With Fabric blog hop hosted by Alida at Tweety Loves Quilting and welcome to Melva Loves Scraps!  Details of the give away will be at the end of the post, along with the links for all participants in the hop.  Be sure to stop by each blog and see the amazing inspired art they present.

If you are a first time visitor, I hope that you will take a little bit of time to look around my blog... 

     You can learn a bit about me on the About Me tab at the top of the page...

          And you can get a brief tour of my studio on the Studio Tour tab...

               And finally, you can enjoy all of the Quilters Through The Generations stories that I have featured.  {{BTW, I am currently seeking quilters that are willing to share their family's story of quilting.  If you are from a family of quilters and interested in having YOUR story documented and preserved let me know!}}

This hop has the special theme of "My Favorite Color"... And my favorite color is blue.  There is such a wide range of shades!  

I did a  quick search for Monet and found that he used lots of blues.  So, with further research I found a 1985 Chicago Tribune article written by Larry Doyle that explained that it was likely linked to an eye problem...

"Late in his life, French impressionist Claude Monet, who died in 1926, produced a series of paintings most notable for the fact that they were very, very blue.

He may have been trying to make an artistic statement, or capture a particular mood. Or the reason the canvases were blue could have been because that was the only color Monet could see."

Dr. James Ravin, an ophthalmologist with an undergraduate degree in art history, has spent five years studying how Monet`s failing eyesight and visual difficulties affected his later work. He has consulted Monet`s letters to his eye surgeon, talked with art historians and examined a pair of Monet`s glasses.

In an article published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, Ravin discusses this influence on an acknowledged leader of the impressionist movement.

''The cataracts that blinded Monet were an important influence on the way he saw the world and the way he painted it,'' the article concludes.

Monet`s visual difficulties first became apparent when he was in his 60s, Ravin says, when his loose impressionist style began to blur even further. By 1918, Monet wrote a note to a Paris eye doctor to complain of the change.

''I no longer perceived colors with the same intensity,'' he wrote, ''I no longer painted light with the same accuracy. Reds appeared muddy to me, pinks insipid, and the intermediate and lower tones escaped me.''

My Grandma Teegarden was an artist.  Her specialty was china painting.  After her retirement from the University of Arizona she returned to campus as a student.  She earned her Bachelors of Art the same year that I graduated from high school.

As an art major she had to study all mediums of art, including watercolor, oils, acrylics, still life, portraiture, abstract, pottery, etc.  In the end, china painting was still her forte.  And our family has an abundance of china!  She too had cataracts in her advanced years.  Following her surgery in the 1990's she was in awe of the brilliance of colors and commented that she had not realized how dimmed colors had slowly become.

Monet noticed a dramatic change after the operation. The cataracts, which had formed a yellow-brown filter on his right eye, had been removed and now

''Monet was able to see colors he had not seen for years, particularly violet and blue tones.''

Ravin explains that similar to a person who has been in darkness for a long time and then goes out into the sun, Monet saw the new colors as brighter than they were.

''I see blue,'' Monet told his physician in 1924, a year and a half after he had cataracts removed from his right eye. ''I no longer see red or yellow. This annoys me terribly, because I know these colors exist.

''It`s filthy. It`s disgusting. I see nothing but blue.''

Here is a screen shot of my "Monet Blue" search...

And... here is my Monet Inspired Mosaic quilt...

The block pattern I used were 12" blocks and happens to be one I drew out myself while still in my early quilting career years.  

The pieces are designed to be off-set so that matching seams is not a problem.  In fact... I try to never have the same sized blocks opposite each other (I however failed in this one... can you see it?)  I didn't notice it until I was marking the lattice quilting lines on it!  And I was not going back to rip out one block to remedy the problem...

The border is made up of 4-1/2" and 2-1/2" pieces, offset again so that seams never match up.  I filled the border with free-motion feathers...

The back features blue butterflies bordered with bright yellow...

I love that the feathers pop on the back!

A few weeks ago my mom sent me a devotional that talked about a quilt being a useful work of art.  I have struggled at times in frustration because many people do not see quilting as art... They view it as a hobby or a craft... and then someone goes and calls a quilt a blanket... **ugh!** **deep breath**  I am sure I am not alone in this.

If you are a quilter, repeat after me... "I am not just a quilter.  I am an artist."  Thank you Alida for coordinating this Art With Fabric hop!  

You can follow this artist over on bloglovin', facebook or instagram or by email (sign up in the right side bar)... 

Now is the time to give the details of the pattern give away!  Simply leave a comment telling me what your favorite color is before November 12th.  

And don't forget... check out all of the other Art With Fabric posts!

Quilt Happy!

Melva

Monday, November 5th, 2018

• Heather: http://www.heatherquilts.blogspot.com/
• Tami: https://thriftshopcommando.blogspot.com/
• Moira: https://quiltedsnail.blogspot.com/
• Marian: http://www.seamstobesew.com 

Tuesday, November 6th, 2018

• Susan: https://desertskyquilts.wordpress.com/
• Terry: http://www.terryaskeartquilts.com/
• Lee Anna: http://lapaylor.blogspot.com/ 

Wednesday, November 7th, 2018

• Janeen: http://quiltartdesigns.blogspot.com/
• Carol: http://www.quiltedfabricart.com
• Andrée: http://quiltinglearningcombo.blogspot.com

Thursday, November 8th, 2018

• Bea: http://www.beaquilter.com/
• Irene: http://Irene.grimes.wordpress.com
• Wendy: http://www.piecefulthoughts.com/
• Judith: http://www.frimart.ch/

Friday, November 9th, 2018

• Melva: https://melvalovesscraps.blogspot.com/
• Barb: http://www.bejeweledquilts.blogspot.com
• Anita: http://quiltlovefordomesticfelicity.blogspot.com
• Alida: http://tweloquilting.blogspot.com/ 

Pick A Pumpkin Blog Hop & Give Away!

Welcome!  

And thank you for stopping by for the Pick A Pumpkin blog hop which is hosted by Carla at Creatin' In The Sticks!  We will, no doubt, see lots of pumpkin-y inspiration!

Fall is a favorite time of decorating for many.  It it kind of the "kick-off" for the many seasons of decorating...  Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, winter and Valentine's.  

The nice thing about Halloween and Thanksgiving is that many of decorations can carryover.  Anything pumpkin (with out the jack-o-lantern face) and leaves can serve as double duty.

It is for this very reason that I wanted to make a wall hanging that could be used from late September through November...  it features pumpkins of all sorts, flying geese and leaves. 

Last year I had participated in the Quiltmaker 100 Blocks blog hop where I featured my Pumpkin Log block and some yummy pumpkin recipes.  The inspiration for my pumpkin blocks came from this block...

As I made my variety of  pumpkins for my fall wall hanging I recalled the story of my Mom being tricked into eating sweet potatoes... You see, Mom is not a fan of sweet potatoes!

Shortly after Mom and Dad had been married she had enjoyed a Thanksgiving meal with Dad's family.  When it came time for dessert, which was "pumpkin pie" (one of my Mom's favorites) my Grandma Schleich >>> (who was an excellent cook and rocked an amazing apron) served up the pie and then watched her closely and asked if she liked it... she said yes.  When she was done with her pie it was revealed that the pie had been made with mashed sweet potatoes, NOT pumpkin!  Everyone had a good laugh...

And because I was influenced by my mom's taste, or distaste, for sweet potatoes, I never tried them.  








My first pumpkin was string pieced with scraps of orange...

When our children were young, and we still lived in Illinois, we participated in a fundraiser called Market Day where you could order a variety of food boxes for a reasonable price, AND support the group that held the sale.  One of the regular items I would purchase was a fruit and vegetable box.  The fruits were always good, as were the veggies, but not always vegetables I would choose to buy.  I sometimes had to be creative to use them...

One such time was when the box included sweet potatoes!  I recalled the story of the "pumpkin pie" and thought I would give it a try.

We LOVED it!  It was even better than pumpkin.  It had a creamier, smoother texture.  From that time forward I knew what to do with sweet potatoes.  :)  Pies!

The second pumpkin was just a patchwork of orange...

After moving back to Colorado in 1995, our family had been invited to visit a Ranch in Stonewall, CO for the day.  We enjoyed horseback riding and touring the ranch on a beautiful fall day.  When it was time for lunch we all balked a bit when we were told that sweet potato fries were part of the meal. Dave and I bravely tried them and with much surprise enjoyed them.  Their girls enjoyed them as well.  


Ok, another way to cook sweet potatoes!  And now that I have to follow a restrictive diet that did not allow for regular potatoes (they have since been added back in), sweet potatoes are now all we eat.  Wow!  Has my taste palette expanded and matured.  I have to say that white sweet potatoes are not as soft and mushy as the regular potatoes or yams.

I can still be a picky eater though...


The third block was a wonky log cabin... One of my favorite blocks to do since there is no worry of precise cutting for the width of the logs.

Recently one of Dave's customers brought us two winter squash.  It looked basically like a pumpkin, but looked as though it has some warts.  I knew that I would be able to treat it as pumpkin and use in muffins or breads... or even a soup.  I did a quick search for some butternut squash recipes.  I came across one for Butternut Squash Enchilada Casserole.  I was feeling brave and wanted to try it...

It called for corn tortillas, which I cannot have, so I substituted some grain free tortilla chips in their place.  I omitted the spinach since I didn't have any on hand.  It makes a large portion so I divided it in two smaller cake pans and froze one for a meal in the future...

When I placed the casserole on the table... Dave was skeptical.  Okay, so was I... We each dished up a small portion and ended up going back for seconds.  We ate half of the pan and saved the remainder for another meal.  It was just as good the second time around! I recommend it! 

For my final pumpkin block I just used a handsome looking plaid...

I had a beautiful day to photograph my quilt... It was reassuring to know that our dog, Shelby, was performing a security sweep of the various locations  in the yard... she gave the all clear. 😉

Thanks for stopping by!  I am offering another pattern give away.  This one is for the Blossoms pattern by Great American Quilt Factory.  Now, it looks a little old school, but I am certain that using modern, brighter (maybe even batiks... ooooh! That could be nice) fabrics would bring it to life.  

Simply leave a comment before November 10th letting me know... 

Did you know you that sweet potatoes could be subbed in for pumpkin??? 

Do you think this is something you would try?  Our youngest daughter would probably prefer this... she is a hater of pumpkin anything... Sweet potatoes though are a different story!

Be sure to visit all of the hop participants.  There is inspiration in abundance!

Quilt Happy!

Melva

Monday, November 5th

MooseStash Quilting

QuiltFabrication

Elizabeth Coughlin Designs

Just Because Quilts

Made By Marney

ShirleyC

Words & Stitches

Tu-Na Quilts, Travels, and Eats

Tuesday, November 6th

Life in the Scrapatch

Clever Chameleon

Songbird Designs

Kathy's Kwilts and More

VroomansQuilts

Vicki's Crafts and Quilting

Super Mom No Cape

Quarter Inch Crafter

Wednesday, November 7th

Just Let Me Quilt

Count it *all* Joy

MaryMack's Blog

DesertSky Quilting

Melva Loves Scraps

Hazel’s Daughter

Adventurous Applique and Quilting

Beaquilter

Thursday, November 8th

Selina quilts

Seams To Be Sew

That Fabric Feeling

Just Sew Quilter

Home Sewn By Us

My Sewful Retirement

Creatin' in the Sticks