I am one of those fortunate quilters living in
“The Great Outdoors.” For the last 25 plus years, we have lived near the
foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and spend a lot of time
visiting our favorite place…. Cades Cove. This is a valley with an 11-mile loop
you drive around sightseeing and making stops shown in the Tour Book of places
where early settlers lived and worked in the cove. In the springtime, we love seeing the yellow
jonquils blooming where old homesteads once stood with Dogwoods and Mountain
Laurel also in bloom. Deer can be seen in the open fields where crops once
grew. The black bears and their young cubs are a real treat and are beginning
to roam. There is nothing prettier than
a big Momma Bear running with her 3 cubs trailing behind. We take our RV to the
campground during spring and autumn. It’s these times of the year that I get most
of my ideas for my quilts or do hand sewing. Evenings we find ourselves sitting
by the campfire and I find myself thinking about future projects and what
fabrics I will be using but then it’s roasting marshmallow time. The view from my sewing room is looking out
at those mountains I love. Every moment
I spend in my sewing room I am in my happy place enjoying a quilter’s life.
Most of the quilts I make are donated to various individuals that have touched
my life. The quilt I am working on now includes memories of our time living in Fairbanks,
Alaska with the USAF. I am also into sewing small wall hangings of the
mountains using a rotary cutter, Ombre and landscape fabrics. I like to blend
and fade the colors into each other. This leaves a lot to my imagination and
with the mountains they are forever changing, one day more beautiful than the
next.
