Foto finish-Things that fly

I have been off the blogging for a while. 

I have a lot of posts to write but this morning when I saw the foto finish. 

Things that fly.

Last summer in my garden flitting around my summer phlox was this beautiful butterfly.  I too many many pictures and it wasn't until I was examining them later that I noticed in many of them there was also the bee.  Beautiful and scary together doing the thing they do in peace and harmony.

Keep dreaming...Colleen

My very late May block for Block Swap Adventure sent out earlier this week.
Torturous block.  Kafe's shot cottons need to be starched to death!



Foto Finish-Patriotic

American flag, The Lump milepost 264.4 Blue Ridge Parkway, NC April 5, 2007

When I saw this I was sooo excited!  The fourth of July is a huge day in our family!  Lots of flags, family and friends, fireworks, food, and patriotic expressions everywhere.  But the first picture that came to mind was the one of the above flag.  I love to drive and hike the Blue Ridge Parkway in NC.  One of my favorite short hikes is called the Lump. 

 

Its is a round hill you hike straight up through a field and you get a 360 degree view of the mountains.  This was my first trip back to the parkway after having cancer.  About a year and a half later on April 5, a cold day-about 32F day .  I did a day trip driving from Fancy Gap entrance in Va to Boone in NC.  The air was crisp, cold, windy, and clear.  The water running down the rock faces was frozen.  When I got to the lump I bundled up, grabbed my day pack and camera and started up.  I felt rejuvenated after years of illness and recovery, I felt as if I had come home.  I walked between the high dead grass toward the low rocks I liked to sit on.  It was there I saw them. 

Two small flags stuck in the ground and blowing crisply in the wind.  It was so poignant a moment.  I took many pictures and even framed one.  Ive been back a few times since and every time I pack a small flag and leave it  stuck in the ground.  A tribute to our great country that makes such beautiful, natural places possible.

Keep Dreaming...Colleen



View from the top looking down on the parking.  See my jeep?



on the road

During Friday's roadtrip to Gatlinburg I made one side trip to this place

At the end of the Foothills Parkway in Tennesse was a sign pointing left for Gatlinburg and right for Holloways Quilts.  I went right, of course!  It was only .2 of a mile. 

It was a log cabin!  With a porch covered in quilts!

The ladies were wonderful and their store was amazing!  It was packed from top to bottom!  Traditional, batiks, novelty, 40's repro, civil war, panels, and more.

 

And then there was the stairs...

There were quilts everywhere for sale!

More on the sewcation later...

Keep dreaming...Colleen



I love this quilt hanging right at the register.



Sewcation part 1

I had a sewcation for the last week.  Well I also attended a conference and visited Gatlinburg, TN but it was my first sewcation as well.

I was in Boone, NC at the La Quinta Inn to attend the NC Reading Association (NCRA)Leadership Conference.  It was my first time attending and I enjoyed learning more about NCRA and its role in the world of literacy.

I alos enjoyed getting to hear and talk to author Carol Crane again.  She is one of my favorite children's book authors.

She is an inspiring person who has done so much in her years as an author and historian.  Especially travel.  I envy her travel experiences.

Her new book The Handkerchief Quilt is about a teacher who makes a quilt out of thevhandkercheifs she has received as presents over the years from her students.  It is based on a true story about her mother.

For the first time I took my sewing machine and supplies to set up in the hotel room.  I brought the projects I blogged about. 



I have a portable rigid design wall made with an
old piece of felt stapled to a triptic board.

I decided to finish assembling the cancer quilt top first.  I was working on designing the Bee blocks and assembly was mindless.  I did not get as much done in Boone as the conference days were long and I was tired.  I enjoyed meeting my roommate Joyce.  She is also a quilter!  We were bad girls and tended to stay up late talking.  He he!  It was fun.  I stayed one extra day in Boone before moving on to Gatlinburg, TN. 

Finished sewing the blocks together and started to sew the border.  I forgot some fusibles I need for the Bee blocks so had to go visit the two local quilt shops, darn!  Friday I drove south west to Gatlinburg for part 2, stay tuned.

Keep Dreaming...Colleen



Lovly Blueridge Mts in NC.



One Week One Thing

I took up Amy's One Thing One Week challenge.  I was supposed to finish my three Bee blocks.  I also had a few other projects I took with me on my sewcation in the mountains.  I will tell more about that in another post.  I am sad to say I did not finish my blocks due to technical difficuties.  My featherweight developed a problem on Sunday when I was trying to finish them.  I dont even have any pictures of them.  I did however finish another challenge I posed for myself for my sewcation this past week. 

I made my quilt top for the Kaufman Dusty Solid charm pack quilt my guild -TMQG -is sponsering for the next meeting.

We were to use a cham pack and one yard of bonus fabric.  I missed out on the free ones so had to find one on the net.  My plan was simple and yet complex.  I literally sewed the charm squares together as they came out of the pack to make to HST sets from each pair.  

Then the hard fun part came.  I played with the layout.  I had one in mind but wanted to see other options.

 

I really likes this one and may still make it but with a little more planned color matching.  I call it "two rights and a left".

 

This was what I finally decided on.  It was actually what I had in mind in the first place.  I had several fabric choices for background.  Again I played but interestingly enough the original one I chose was the one I used.

 

I guess I need to trust my original instincts.  One change to the design in my head was the sashing between the double rows. 

I think I am going to hand quilt it with pearl cottons though not sure what color.  I may use black. 

So I completed a challenge it just wasnt the orginal one I thought I was.

Keep dreaming...Colleen

Overview of Gaitlinburg where I spent part of my sewcation.