Day Tripping...

Welcome to the 3rd (or is it 4th? I've lost track) installment of tales of my Colorado journey!

Yesterday we took a road trip to Aspen for the day. If you've never driven over Independence Pass, you really should. It is quite the scenic and challenging trip. This is where I would normally insert an impressive picture that I proudly snapped with my little point-and-shoot digital camera. Unfortunately, I was too chicken to get out of the car or even ask mom to pull over...The scenery is huge, dramatic and stunning, and the road clings to the side of the mountain traversing switchbacks and sometimes dropping down to a mere 1.5 lanes for the traffic traveling in both directions. At the top you reach the Continental Divide, and like the rivers you flow in a different direction on the way down than when you were headed up. Pretty cool.

We lunched at the famous Woody Creek Tavern, the decor of which was not to be missed...

The guacamole and margaritas weren't bad either ;). Part way through the meal, mom leaned over and said, "Charlie Sheen made his last stand just a little way down the road from here." That got me thinking about what we might do after lunch...we settled for wandering around town and visiting a few shops. At Brett's insistence  we made a few purchases at Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory (ok, he didn't have to work it too hard), after which we bounced through The North Face and Radio Boardshop where Kit settled for a cool new tee after I refused to lay down $550 on a new snowboard.

Then, the 5 of us climbed back into the Rav4 and prepared for the looooooooong journey home. I was fortunate enough to sit in back between the two brothers (Kit is 14 and Brett 11). It was the best way to prevent bloodshed. We had lots of laughs, especially after Kit really got rolling after downing a coke at a rest stop. I've never seen caffeine and sugar hit someone's blood stream so fast before! (One of these days I'll dedicate a post to Kit and his humor. He'll be knocking 'em dead at the Laugh Factory before he's 25.)

We were pretty beat after the approximately 2 hour trip home and everyone retreated to the their books and electronic pacifiers. There was talk of a 7:30 a.m. hike, but somehow that never happened. Ah well...

What the Heck's a Yurt?

So here I am, back in civilization after 3 days off the grid. My little family of 5, plus 1 grandmother and 1 grandfather, returned yesterday afternoon from our stay in the yurts in Colorado backcountry. What's a yurt?... you might ask...In case my last blog entry didn't compel you to immediately google that fun little word (say it out loud--it's rather catchy) let me tell you a bit about yurts.

 One of the two yurts at our little compound

Yurts are round structures made of canvas stretched over a wooden frame. Under the fabric shell that you see in the picture above are walls made of a heavy-duty wood lattice and wooden trusses that support the roof. Their shape and unique design makes them strong & aerodynamic (no, they can't fly, but they are great for windy spots because the wind flows right around them). That's the Cliff Notes version of Yurts 101. If you're interested in learning more, you can visit Pacific Yurts website.

If you're fortunate enough to have a mother who hikes all over and finds cool places like this to stay, you too might be able to visit a yurt. They have more amenities than you find on your average back country camping trip. For instance, there are bathroom facilities...

OK, so it's an outhouse. But I can tell you 

that the setting more than made up for the smell.

And you get to sleep in real beds...

They were pretty comfy, but my 11 year old son can tell you 

that it hurts when you fall out of the top bunk in the middle of the night. :(

And you can cook inside...

Our handy propane cook stove. 

I used it to make "yurtcakes" (you know them as pancakes) our last morning there.

And they even have a heat source (it did get down into the 30s at night, but we just snuggled in under the covers and left the woodstove unlit).

I'm sure this comes in handy for those adventurous souls who stay here in the winter.

But by far, my favorite part of the yurt was the view...

 

It was a great experience and I have lots more to share, but it's rapidly approaching midnight here in the Rockies (I've been here long enough to stop thinking about what time it is at home) and I need to go have a visit with the sandman.

 

I'd love to get some comments from others who've had unique or challenging vacation experiences!

 

Don't be a stranger!

So here I am, enjoying my vacation 10,500 feet above sea level. Yesterday was acclimation day. If you haven't been to high altitude you probably can't relate to the sensation of climbing a single flight of stairs and arriving at the top breathless, feeling like your heart is about to burst. And then there's that strange sensation in your legs when they get the message from your brain that there' a heck of a lot less oxygen to go around and they're just going to have to get in line...But I did start this post by saying I am enjoying my vacation, and despite the lack of oxygen I truly am.

Yesterday had a nice slow pace starting with Coffee over etsy...some reading...hanging with the family. In the afternoon, mom and I walked and took in the scenery and planned and dreamed together. It was so nice to reconnect in that spectacular setting. We talked of plans for the house back east, and the new phase we're heading into as we begin the colllege search for my daughter.

Today will be my last post for a few days as we are heading out into the wilderness until Friday. We are going to experience yurt living in Colorado back country. There will be no electricity and no running water. No wifi or HGTV. Just us, the montains and more sky than I've ever seen in my life.

So I'm off to get packed up and ready to unplug. I'm sure I'll have lots of thoughts, experiences and pictures to share when I return.

Don't be a stranger!

Philly airport, 6:15 A.M. & what happens to your blog when you have a new iPad...

It's only 6:15 in the morning and I already have a sense of accomplishment. Kids up (including teens), luggage loaded, car turned over to valet, luggage checked and we're through security and at our gate breakfasted and ready to board in plenty of time. Not bad for someone who only slept about three hours...

That's how my ambitious, if slightly deluded, day started about 18 hours ago. You see, I arrived at the airport thinking that the new iPad my sweet husband bought me last week would be my ticket to staying connected (and particularly jumping into blogging with both feet). I didn't factor into that vision the appeal of said iPad to my 14 year old son who HAD to play Fruit Ninja and rent and download a movie before our flight boarded. I decided that I would set a good example in sharing and indulge him, because I was certain that while we were waiting for our connection in Chicago I could hop online and get right down to business. Who knew Chicago wouldn't have free wifi?

Next stop, Denver...deplane, find badly needed iced soy latte, grab bags off carousel (ALL OF THEM! God is good :), meet up with my mom, picnic lunch at Red Rocks (and I have to say WOW! I need to go back there when my daughter is feeling better and I can roam around with my camera), and then an hour plus in the car before finally arriving at Mom's in Leadville. All-in-all a really good trip that went very smoothly, but here it is almost 11:30 here (1:30 am in my body) and I'm finally finishing this post.

So all of the deep and inspired things I hoped to share today have been lost in a haze of fatigue and oxygen deprivation (elevation here approximately 11,000 feet). But I have met my goal nonetheless and completed another post. I hope you've enjoyed your visit!

G'night...

Don't be a stranger!

Preparing for Take Off

I'm not quite at the "tray tables locked and seat back in an upright position" yet, but tomorrow morning at this time I (and the 3 kiddoes) will be. It's off to the Rockies for us to meet God's creation in one of the most glorious places on earth and I can't wait!

I took this on one of our summer trips a couple of years ago

when we were doing some hiking and atv'ing. Glorious!

I'm anxiously anticipating time away with family and a chance to unplug (well...for part of the trip--more on that later). I can almost feel my blood pressure dropping already...

But not quite yet. Today is my last day to wrap up all the pre-10-day-trip projects and preparations and I'm feeling it...right in that spot where my head and neck become acquainted with eachother and I tend to carry stress. I have been deep in the throes of a highly productive creative time and have felt driven to constantly be in my studio indulging in the creative process. Add to that the desire to have items complete, photographed and ready to list in my etsy shop for at least a few of the 10 days I'll be away (in between chauferring the kiddoes and various other household duties) and you have a picture of what things are like here.

So I'm up, boarding passes printed, coffee poured, laundry sorted and iron heating...and it's off I go!

Don't be a stranger!

Collaborative Quilting With Women of the Past

As promised in my previous post Tying on the Feed Bag, this post is all about my latest quilting project. While poking around my favorite auction website recently I discovered dozens of handpieced quilt tops made with my favorite: feedsack! The prices and condition of these quilt tops vary widely and it took a bit of vision to see what some of them might become, but I decided to take the plunge and buy a couple to experiment with.

Here's my first purchase:

I was instantly drawn to the bold patterns and "wonky" piecing that reminded me of a crazy quilt. When it arrived and I layed it out I was mystified however, as to what to do with such a skinny quilt. The blocks were coming apart in places and clearly it needed some love. But like an old house it had good bones and I knew that if I stared at it long enough, and walked away and thought about it, and ate little chocolate, and had a glass or two of wine, and slept on it a few times (the concept, not the quilt ;) inspiration would strike. And it did.

First I decided that I would need to separate the blocks and rearrange them into a more practical configuration. I had a lot of time to ponder my next steps as I sat with my trusty seam ripper (I'm designing a holster for it) and carefully took the quilt apart. Once the blocks were liberated from eachother, it was off to the ironing board & then the cutting mat where I squared up the blocks in preparation for putting it all back together. I knew I wanted to wind up with a touchable, usable quilt as a final product and that would require adding fabric. I chose a cheerful cheddar yellow to accent and brighten the feedsack. Then, I was off to the sewing machine...

And eventually, hours, weeks, days, years, decades after the feedsack had first been cut and handpieced by a woman of the past....The quilt was complete!

If you are interested in purchasing this quilt or seeing other pieces I've completed, visit my etsy shop at
http://www.etsy.com/shop/ScrappyTudeStudios

Thanks for visiting!
Don't be a stranger!

Tying on the Feed Bag

I have a confession to make. I have an obsession with feedsack.

That may sound a bit strange, but I can assure you that I am not talking about the stuff the local farm gets their chicken feed in--well, not anymore at least. In the late 1800s through the early to mid 1900s however, that's exactly what it was. Cotton became cheap and plentiful and feed companies, as well as those selling flour, sugar, beans, etc. realized that it was more economical for them to ship their products in cotton sacks than the barrels they had been using. Initially, plain white cotton was imprinted with logos and the resourceful women of America began using this cloth to make quilts and clothing (try doing that with a barrel!). When manufacturers eventually caught on to how popular this "free" fabric was they started dying and eventually putting prints on the sacks. Trips to the feed & general store became almost competitive as women vied for their favorite prints. Feedsack frenzy reached it's zenith in the 1930s-40s during the Great Depression and tapered off as synthetic fabrics became more popular.

Now that you know what feedsack is, let me tell you a little about why I love it so much. Have you ever looked at something and felt transported--not just in space, but in time as well? That's what these fun, happy prints do for me. It's as if I'm suddenly in my grandmother's kitchen (the one who always had a bag of tootsie roll pops in the bottom drawer and ginger ale in the fridge). I get that feeling of being loved, treasured and spoiled right down to my toes. I also am filled with a sense of the peace that came with a simpler time in my life, which is how childhood usually seems in retrospect. But the time travel goes beyond that to a sense that I've been jettisoned into a whole other era and am suddenly planted firmly in the pre-WWII US. I know I'm idealizing an era, but these are the feelings that this practical textile evoke for me.

A sampling of my collection of reproduction feedsack...

One of my favorite pieces: vintage feedsack that my

grandmother used to make the kitchen curtains for the farmhouse

my mom lived in as a child. It now lines one of my favorite tote bags :)

Much to my delight I recently discovered that there are bunches of handpieced feedsack quilt tops out there just waiting for me to complete. Stop by later and see my first collaboration with a quilter I've never met who lived before I was born! I will be listing a reworked feedsack quilt top in my etsy shop at http://www.etsy.com/shop/ScrappyTudeStudios and blogging about my hand in it's completion.

Don't be a stranger!

nancy