I was able to sneak in a bit of sewing on Sunday evening, which is a bit of an unusual activity for me on the weekends anymore. And since it’s been a few months, I thought I would go ahead and update / tell everyone about the biggest Work in Progress that I am collaborating on with my husband at the moment: our Expedition Truck project. (Feel free to skip to the quilting WIPs content below.)
Paint Scheme Idea – Image Made in Photoshop
My husband and I have taken on a large vehicle build project. We travel quite a bit in the US and sometimes internationally. We go on backcountry photography trips in our Wrangler/Autohome setup. We like our little jeep setup, but it is definitely camping, and it only works for a few days max. We are looking to significantly expand our trip capability with more internal volume. We are planning extended (4-6 weeks) trips in the western US, Alaska, and Canada in the coming years, and we are building a new custom vehicle for that purpose. It will be something we will feel comfortable living in for extended periods of time. We use our 4×4 to access out of the way locations (often in snow, sand, mud, and flooded roads), but we don’t intentionally seek technical situations. Our expedition vehicle will be highway capable, but we are in no rush, so cruising along a highway at 55-60 mph is fine with us.
We considered many types and sizes of vehicles for the base of this project. In the past, we have taken comfort in having a capable 4WD vehicle on our trips. We don’t intentionally plan to “rock crawl”, but we often go to places that exclude Sprinter vans and conventional RVs. We have always loved the idea of tiny houses and the simplicity that comes with that lifestyle. Basically, we were searching for a capable 4WD vehicle with enough bed space for an 8×12 custom camper with available parts in North America. After viewing and driving Steyr, Fuso, Unimog… we came to the conclusion that a surplus military, American made Stewart and Stevenson M1078 LMTV fit our vehicle size, capability, cost, and part availability needs.
It’s a pretty big truck.
Expedition Vehicles, Expedition Trucks, and Overland Vehicles mean different things to different people. Expedition Vehicles are often taken on long duration trips to remote locations (Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, to Tierra Del Fuego, Chile) or used as a means to securely visit diverse places like Africa. Expedition Vehicles come in many forms, but it is fairly prevalent, especially in Europe, to take NATO-era military trucks and build custom campers for the back.
We are building an Expedition Vehicle with a ~110 square foot living space on a 21 foot long M1078 chassis. When complete, the vehicle will be capable of remote operation for several weeks without supplies and will be registered as an RV and drive-able with a normal Class C driver’s license.
Truck in Current Configuration
As I said earlier, we’ve had the truck for about 2 months now, and it is pretty torn apart as the image above indicates. We are hoping in another 2 months the chassis and cab will be painted. So, evenings and weekends are devoted to a new kind of Work in Progress. If you have any desire to follow along with what we are up to, you can follow our Fuchsia Fox Expedition blog. And I promise I won’t post much more about it here except for maybe the occasional really big milestone.
Current Quilting WIPs
If you made it this far, thanks! I also have a large backlog of quilting WIPs that I thought I’d list out (gulp):
- Blue Snowflake Shimmer Quilt – Status: Fabric Selected
- Secret Sewing Project #1 – Status: Ready to Quilt
- Paintbrush Studio New Block Blog Hop Charity Quilt – Status: Need to make 1 more block and piece quilt top together
- Mini quilt for Joanna (Patreon Reward Quilt) – Status: Piecing Started
- Mini quilt for Mary (Patreon Reward Quilt) – Status: Not Started
- Mini quilt for swap with Renee – Status: Material collected
- Mini quilt for swap with Kitty – Status: Not Started
- QuiltCon 2017 Charity Quilt – Status: Design Complete
- Banner Plus Bee Block Quilt – Status: Blocks Received, need to plan how to assemble the quilt top
- Star Light Star Dark QAL – Status: Fabric cut, next instructions August 1st
- Meadow Mystery QAL – Status: Fabric selected, next instructions August 4th
- Baby quilt for Lucy (my second niece is expected in December!!!) – Status: Not Started
- Me/We Statement Quilt – Status: Fabric received
- QDAD QuiltCon Challanege Quilt – Status: Fabric on hand
- Secret Sewing Project #1 – Status: Fabric received
Sneak peek of Project 2
Start of Project 4
Fabric for Project 13
Fabric for Project 14
I don’t tend to list out my projects like this on my blog; I keep a scratch pad of paper on my desk by the computer (as a reminder to get up from the computer and sew!) and another in my sewing space to keep track of notes for each project like the time I spend working on different portions of the project or notes to modify patterns or tips and tricks to suggest for my Quilt Along! Somehow numbering these out makes it a little bit more intense, although I can tell just by looking at the length of my current list that I have a lot to keep me busy.
So how is that for someone who used to only work on one project at a time?!? Are you staying busy this summer or are you taking a quilting break?
For a person who sews one thing at a time that is an impressive list . Do you find the list gives you focus or does it do that sharp intake of breath , chest tightening thing ….
I’m off now to follow your “other” blog
I have joined the truck blog, and am SO interested in how you will outfit this. Welldone to be innovative, adventurous, and go a little bigger. Over many years we have had tents, actually started with just sheets on the grass and a tarp for cover!!! Then a small caravan, awful to tow, a larger one, then we lived in one with 2 daughters when our house was being built, over 8 months. Toured the south island towing one, for 12 months, in summer and winter, not snow like you will get, but enough to make it a little exciting. I didn’t quilt then, but had knitting and tapestry. Thanks for the info on this new exciting WIP!!!
Good morning. I think it is so cool that your building your Expedition truck. I like to go camping but I really doubt if I will ever go camping again sadly. Mainly because I cant drive anymore.
You have a big list of WIP. Thats okay so do I. But not as many as you have or at least I dont think I do. Or at least I dont want to think I do.
I would love to see your progress on your Expedition Truck
Love your vehicle rebuild project, what a great adventure to share with hubby! I have a small coil notebook that I keep track of my current projects in, using a page per project and jotting down all the social media info, fabric cost, any machine settings that might change, dates for the next pattern release/blog link up etc. Between that folders on my computer and buttons on my blog I manage to keep up to date on all/most of them.
That’s quite a list Yvonne! Is that a dishwasher in that kitchen? Now, that’s my idea of camping!
That was fun reading about your truck! What a cool project! You have a fun set of WIPs. 🙂
In enjoyed reading about your adventures with vehicles and look forward to seeing the resulting photos from your future trips. Regarding works in progress I ran into someone I know on the weekend who had been challenged by her mom to count her works in progress and she discovered she has 32. Mind you she is a PHD student and mother of a 1 year old so she’s very busy.
Wow, that RV you guys are building is beautiful! I need to start trying to figure out a way to keep myself on track with my wip as well! I am so glad I will get to join you special ladies and make 2 special quilts this year! I wouldn’t have if someone hadn’t told me about the quilters planner back in January!
How interesting building your own RV. It looks like you have a lot going on right now and I think that affects our motivation.
Wow!! Lots of great things going on for you. You are so busy!! Good luck with the truck.
I am loving following your truck progress!
Wow! I’m impressed with your Expedition vehicle project. It looks like it will be an adventure! Your list of quilting projects is pretty impressive, too, so it’s a good thing you’re so organized.
That expedition truck is going to be amazing. Even more so, knowing that you’re doing all the work yourselves. I consider myself lucky that I know how to change a tire but that’s about the extent of my mechanic skills. Your list of WIPS is also impressive — scratch that — intimidating! You have so many to keep track of! Like the colors that you gave a sneak peak of for the fall quilt market secret project.
You have one hell of a list!!! I know you will whittle it down quickly while adding more to it! I am in love with the teeny tiny feather block. SO cute! And that truck! You and your husband have big plans! I will live vicariously through you on this one!
I love your truck project. It is very cool.
Learning to keep track of my projects is next on my to-do list! I need to gather up old WIPs and try to get some moved along.
Love the vehicle! My husband’s idea of camping is on the ground with or without a tarp over/under. That would be luxury!!! Your list is comparable to mine–intimidating! And, with my granddaughter here for weeks at a time, more projects are added with her. She is now painting VW vans on fabric with flowers stamped around them. It is all very 70s looking. Her mom’s birthday is this week, so these are presents for the one who loves all things VW. I’m practicing my free-motion quilting on these mini quilts. Did I mention my granddaughter is 13 and has been piecing quilts for 2 or 3 years now? We evolved into fabric inking and painting over her spring break and it’s continued this summer. I know she will outgrow her grandma before long (I’m definitely not complaining that she wants to come stay at the farm), so I’m trying to instill a love of all things quilting and art while she is still around. We went to the local quilt shop, and her mouth dropped… “Look at ALL THAT COLOR!!!” She’s a chip off the old granny block for sure!
I am joining the truck blog. It looks like it will be a blast to complete and will provide an awesome transport for long trips. I would love to try something like that.
Amazing in all that that you also have a great list of works in progress.
You sure keep busy! That truck is an impressive undertaking, and I’ve been enjoying the Fuchsia Fox blog to see your progress! Your list of quilty makes is impressive too! I totally need to figure out materials for you swap quilt! I’m open to color suggestions, if there are any you’d like to have in a mini quilt!
Wow! Love this idea of a truck you are assembling yourself. Will enjoy following along on your adventure! I’ve got a long list of projects in the works too. Maybe I should write them all down in a nice list too!
What an adventure ahead!
I dig your truck! My husband would love something like that, especially since I’d be more likely to go with him! My WIP is massive because in my head it always goes faster. 🙂 since I don’t just quilt, there’s no telling what you might find on there.
OOOO~What retreat in Oregon? 🙂 And with regards to not sewing…the struggle is real! I look at my fabric and think of all I SHOULD/COULD be doing~sigh…
Your truck adventure sounds like fun. How exciting! Good luck. If you make it Canada, come east.
Okay, the truck cracks me up – in a good way. It’s a fun, unusual project and I hope it all turns out the way you want it to. As for WIP’s – I’m so with you. I have so many happening right now, it’s really quite unusual of me to have so many unfinished pieces. I get the “not in the mood,” thing – you’re right, even with us rather creatively obsessed types, sometimes ya just gotta take a break and just “Be.” Can’t wait to see that snowflake shimmer quilt…
I love your quilting projects, of course, but I’m definitely also going to be following your truck project. That sounds really interesting! 🙂
Your truck project is so awesome! Can’t wait to see photos from your future adventures.
As a mostly one-at-a-time type quilter, I’d imagine you must have some serious organizational skills to pull of such an impressive WIP list – more power to ya! Btw, the Paintbrush Studio blog hop looks super fun!!
You are going to need some hand stitching projects for all the weeks in the truck, I think. Will the truck accommodate Puppy?
Your truck sounds amazing and the idea of your extended trips is so cool – makes me wish I could do something like that. Like you I used to be one project at a time, but things have a way of creeping up on you, don’t they?
Just getting the truck all fitted out and ready to go is an adventure Yvonne. There are so many amazing places you’ll be able to go in that. I spent a few summers camping in Alaska and Canada and those were trips you never forget.
I really admire the two of you and your skills…we’d have no idea where to even start with that truck! It will be a fantastic adventure vehicle when it’s finally ready. How long do you think it will take to finish?