I'm sure there are several of us who would try to give you ideas once we know what fabric you have and what your vision is. Please post some photos if you can. From you screen name, it looks as if you might be a fellow Minnesotan.

You are a dear to ask. Isn't that part of what we're here for? I'd be happy to kick around some ideas w/ you & the Forum, happy to!

Ever since I posted and you responded, I've been looking for photos of fabric strips I had taken. No luck. Time to brave my sewing room containers and find the real things and take more pics. Also the couple of inspirations pics I've seen (again if I find!) Yes, loisflan, I'm from Duluth. Where are you?

Hi, Gin. I live on Lake Minnetonka in Orono, a western suburb of Minneapolis. I've spent a fair amount of time in Duluth. It's a lovely city.

• Thank you to all who offered or may offer later. Made it down to find my fabrics. Not all laid out nearly with labels but maybe you can get general idea when I saw I was envisioning making a wallhanging that represents a sunrise (or sunset) on Lake Superior rocky shore. Didn't find a photo of type of design I had in mind. When I saw it posted by the very creative wife of a former colleague & friend, thought I'd DL'd a copy. Couldn't find but I Messaged her on FB to ask about it. I've tried more traditional landscape quilt with bits and pieces of fabric shaped like object or area in a photo but since Secret Angel was designing in strips, that's what I want to try. I often wonder what happened to her. (lost address to that quilting forum when old computer crashed.) Will pull fabrics out with my lettering selections added in a bit. Going for Thai food soon with friends. MMMM--spring rolls and more!
  

Would you be interested in one a bit abstract?

sunset

Ginn, I Googled "SQA mystery quilt" and it brought up a link on Pinterest to a quilt made from strips, designed by a lady named Helen at SQA. Maybe it's the one you're looking for.

Sorry, I don't know how to copy and paste a link with my iPad. :(

Donna

I think this is what Donna found. https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/97/9e/9d/979e9df61d3f894853ae3097a844e154.jpg

That's it, Vasu! Thank you!

Oh, thank you all for suggestions, sites, etc. I messaged my friend on FB about her wallhanging and she said she'd see if she could find a photo for me. Iknow it wasn't scene I wanted to rep but justloved how she did it. I've done a landscape quilt using pieces of specifically-shaped fabric to represent clouds, leaves, stems, sky, etc. Like but wanted to do strip kind. Am looking through photos of lakes we canoed and will find one that hits my idea I'm sure. However, I'm open to other designs, ideas. Beverly, you asked if I'd consider one a bit more abstract. Answer is Yes! Only thing right now is fabrics I have (sorry I didn't get to laying out and photoing to show you more.) Of course, I bought a few extras from what Lula, my SQA, instructed. Willing to change from idea (just start of it anyway).

Today is the 8-week anniversary of my knee replacement surgery. I have physical therapy in about an hour from now then after that am meeting a friend vacationing up north from the Twin Cities and maybe another woman who retired from the EPA lab where we all worked at one time. We'll meet at the Duluth rose garden (photo attached) then go to nearby Italian restuarant for lunch. Likely a long one.

Here are a few strip landscape quilts I found by Googling. Like ones that enhance strips (I'm thinking loons, flying gulls, fishies in the water).https://www.google.com/search?q=strips+landscape+quilts&tbm=isch&imgil=h7G6K-gmOd3tYM%253A%253BREEZzvUILjGHtM%253Bhttps%25253A%25252F%25252Fwww.pinterest.com%25252Fexplore%25252Fbatik-quilts%25252F&source=iu&pf=m&fir=h7G6K-gmOd3tYM%253A%252CREEZzvUILjGHtM%252C_&usg=__8nbt5snlg2gXZTXxXCmEBN0SU2I%3D&biw=1345&bih=599&ved=0ahUKEwjwoP6au7PVAhVM4YMKHVTSCOgQyjcIUA&ei=lRp_WbCCDszCjwTUpKPADg#imgrc=h7G6K-gmOd3tYM:&spf=1501502110491

Wow, Ginn those are impressive landscape quilts on Pinterest. The problem with Pinterest is that it's just photos usually, not patterns. If you are a beginner quilter (like me), you will need more than a idea, you're going to need a pattern. The other option would be a design board where you cut everything into strips and then arrange and rearrange it until it's what you want it to look like.

From the colors of your fabric, it looks like you have the right colors
for a waterscape (blues) with a sunset (oranges) and rocks (the grays and
blacks and maybe the dark blue).

I have no idea of your location or the differences in the great lakes (I'm in Texas). I just did a search for "Lake superior, sunset and shore" and then clicked on images and some beautiful ones came up. I might try the same search with "great lakes, sunset shore". You get some different photos with "sunrise".

Another idea is to look at some of the photography sites. (123rf.com is the one I use because it's cheap, but it wouldn't matter if you're just looking.) There are a couple of free ones. Most are pay sites, though. You pay by the download and you usually have to buy more than one photo. They are open for browsing, however and most of the time you can download a sample that is watermarked so you can't use it for the web or printing. It would work for planning a quilt/wall hanging, however.

I'm not sure how much it costs, but if you found the right photo, you can have it enlarged to poster size at the office supply. You can also enlarge it on your printer. It would end up being in 8 1/2 by 11 pieces that you would have to tape together, but you might be able to make a pattern from it.

These are some quilt searches I did that were productive:

CathyGeier.blogspot.com (she writes books and has a blog)

beachscape strip quilts

waterscape strip quilts

Be sure and let us know what you decide to do.

bkay

bkay, good suggestions. I plan to design my own so don't worry about a pattern. Was thinking about coloring using photo as guide and taking liberties to alter to my idea. I have my own photos of both L. Superior (live in Duluth, MN) and inland lakes. Guess I don't mind it not being the big lake as long as it has components of sky, sunset/rise, rocks on shore. Have some good ones from years of paddling in Quetico Provincial Parks.