Landscape Quilt...

Hello, dear quilters...
    I'm working on a landscape quilt that has me tearing my hair out! The four trees are actually from a McKenzie Ryan pattern, "Rhythms Of the Sea", 'Ole Solo Mio'  I'm going to put together the pattern, but first wanted to test run/learn the best way to do the trees before messing up the real thing.

So, I'm visualizing Grandfather's Mountain in the Blue Ridge Mountains and looking off the side of the mile high bridge down into a little valley with the glorious Blue Ridge Mountains in the background. Okay, I admit it... there is a beautiful Golf Course, but honestly that's not what I'm looking at...(Gosh, what beautiful greens.)  I see, instead, the wonderful layers of terrain: rocks, rivers, golf course (knock it off), trees, creeks, mountains... I want to capture that view in a landscape quilt to give to dear friends.(Without the golf course)

   We all, including me, need to remember that I am a newbie in the world of landscape quilting. I'm learning the hard way. The seam ripper seems to be my most valuable tool. I've only just recently learned that I can use a regular glue stick to put pieces in place. That makes pulling something up which has been fused in place a lot easier!  I'm going to share pictures of what I have done and what I have learned.
 
 First of all, thread sketching pine needles on pine trees is not easy. Through trial, error, and ripping out,  I learned that it is not the individual pine needle I must stitch, but rather the illusion of pine needles! Wow, talk about an "Ah Ha" moment... this was it. My picture shows you a tree with boughs stitched in, and a free form tree with wavy boughs from each branch. I've got to say the second technique is my favorite! I'm a hazy wavy kind of gal.
 

 Next I learned that it is very hard to thread sketch autumn leaves on a far away tree. Once again, I went back to the "Illusion" ah ha moment and stitched autumn colors on to a bright green background that were wavy and free form. Guess what? I like it... would it win a prize... Hey, I'm just a beginner - give me a break! And... Just a thought here, but I may have put autumn leaves on what should be a pine tree. Oops. See, that's why I'm doing this trial run tree thing.
 





The third thing I learned is that variegated thread stitched in free form grasses can cover horrendous mistakes!! Yeah team :-)

I'm still working on the quilted wall hanging. I have more to add... like what on earth should I put in that rust autumn colored section right in the middle?

    I know our dear friends will love and appreciate this landscape quilt. They won't see the things that you and I worry about. They will hang it in their home and be thrilled that I made it for them... (Sometimes I wonder what planet I'm from. I hope they like it and I hope they will hang it in their lovely home.)
Keep stitchin' for the ones you love.
Hugs from Mary