Dear Jane Quilt - Corner Block BRC Sarah Jane

Dear Jane Quilt - Corner Block BRC Sarah Jane

Let's start off simply.  Six appliqued melons and an appliqued pieced star for the first Dear Jane corner block, BRC Sarah Jane.  I think this is the block where I am meant to embroider my name and the number of pieces I have used throughout the whole quilt.  I imagine that this figure varies wildly across Dear Jane quilts depending on the techniques you choose.  I haven't added that number up yet - maybe a task for the Christmas holiday period.

Techniques: English Paper Piecing and Applique
Pieces: 11 pieces

Dear Jane Quilt - Draw 53 - Corner Blocks TLC, BRC, BLC, TRC

Dear Jane Quilt - Draw 52 - B4, E9, K2, K3

Lots of little pieces for this Draw of Dear Jane blocks, but fun working in the red fabrics.
There are only 5 Draws left for this project and to add to the excitement, the next draw includes the Dear Jane corner blocks - slightly bigger and slightly more involved.

Draw 53
TLC - Sadie Rose
BRC- Sarah Jane
BLC - Goshen
TRC - Longwood

These are the corner blocks and this Draw will be in Yellow

Part 2 - En Provence, Bonnie Hunter Mystery Quilt 2016

Part 2 - En Provence, Bonnie Hunter Mystery Quilt 2016

Part 1 of the Bonnie Hunter 2016 En Provence Mystery Quilt didn't give much away, but with Part 2 there is the fun of second guessing what she has in store for us.  It is early days, so this layout guess is pretty much all I have come up with.  With a different colour scheme I also had to decide which fabric would be my constant.  The dark fabric I have chosen is actually a rich purple / plum colour, the darkest in my fabric selection - not sure what your 'device' is showing you.  My favourite line of her instructions was  'there is an Accuquilt die for this size.'  It certainly made light work of her cutting instructions and reminded me of how far I have come with my quilt making skills since I started participating in Bonnie's Mystery quilts.

Part 2 - En Provence, Bonnie Hunter Mystery Quilt 2016

This triangle block is familiar from the Celtic Solstice Mystery quilt in 2013 which makes me think that they will be placed in sets of four and that the quilt will be made up of 25 + 24 blocks.  Again, based on the layout of Celtic Solstice, I have done 72 for my smaller quilt.

I have been joined by a few friends and family for this Mystery Quilt and we are all doing different colours, sizes and layouts.  With all our different approaches it has highlighted a little clue from Part 1.  If you are keeping to one colour you only needed to cut 45 plain squares? So what about the other 176?  At this stage I think the 45 are for the blocks of the quilt and the rest are for the border - what do you think?

Looking back at my guesses from previous years I have been hopelessly wrong - LOL! 

I will be linking up on Monday and with my 'homework' done also with Kathy at Slow Stitching Sunday! I'm off to do some more work on my Dear Jane.

Dear Jane Quilt - Block K3 Seven Sisters

Dear Jane Quilt - Block K3 Seven Sisters

In the past Bonnie Hunter has released the clues for her Mystery Quilt about 11.00am GMT on a Friday, here in the UK, which allows a good days sewing if I am about.  There seems to be a change in schedule this year which is more in line with the USA time.  So whilst I wait and I fill my time with another sewing project, here is Dear Jane block K3, Seven Sisters, the last of this Draw.

Techniques: English Paper Piecing and Applique
Pieces: 33 pieces

Dear Jane Quilt - Block B4 Chris's Soccer Field

Dear Jane Quilt - Block B4 Chris's Soccer Field

Here is Dear Jane block B4 Chris's Soccer Field.  A simple Dear Jane block.
As you know I have completed all the blocks and I am slowly putting the whole thing together.  This is the slow part about English Paper Piecing.  This is the part when it becomes less portable, so I have less opportunities to stitch.  This is the time when I start thinking I need a NEW project ...  any suggestions?

However, there are still plenty more of the blocks to show you, so keep watching!
Techniques: English Paper Piecing and Applique
Pieces: 21 pieces

Dear Jane Quilt - Block K2 - Grandpa's Chickens

Dear Jane Quilt - Block K2 - Grandpa's Chickens

Dear Jane block K2, Grandpa's Chickens. Someone, somewhere is probably making a king size bed out of squares this big.  I would certainly get a lot of pleasure making the most of scraps that small, but maybe not a King size quilt.

En Provence Mystery Quilt - Part 1

I have also finished stitching, pressing and twisting those seams for my En Provence Mystery quilt.  I have done a random number of 126 4-patches, which is more than half, in fact 57% of the total required for this stage.
 
Techniques: English Paper Piecing and Applique
Pieces: 40  pieces

Part 1 - En Provence, Bonnie Hunter Mystery Quilt 2016

Suzi the Cat enjoying the 2015 Allietare Mystery Quilt 

So we are off!  The 2016 Bonnie Hunter Mystery quilt, En Provence, has started.  Suzi the cat loves this time of year.  As you can see, this morning she is making the most of last years 'Allietare' Mystery quilt which is currently on my bed.

I was away over the weekend at the Knitting and Stitching Show in Harrogate which meant that I didn't access the full details until Sunday.  Since then I have cut all my pieces and have sewn about 50% of the four-patches.  As I mentioned in my previous post, I am not going scrappy, which was a bit of problem with Part 1 of the En Provence Mystery quilt.  However, Bonnie must have been sending me vibes as I had decided to pick up an alternative French General neutral whilst I was at the show, so this has worked out perfectly for her 'two neutral' option.

Part 1 - En Provence, Bonnie Hunter 2016 Mystery Quilt

I will admit that all the preparation required to get going on Part 1 reminded me why I do lots of English paper Piecing by hand.  Before I could get going I had to clear some space for cutting.  The area around my sewing machine had become a dumping ground, so that had to be cleared as well.  I had bought some extra bobbins for my machine at the show, so I wound several of them ready for the next few weeks.  I cleaned my machine.  I put on my single needle plate.  I put in a new needle. After having my machine nearly 8 years I decided to use the table which came with it for the first time which required setting up.  Then I decided that I needed to get my 'Leader and Ender' project set up from the start to make the most of my machine sewing.

Part 1 - En Provence, chain piecing

In the 2015 Black Friday sales I picked up an Accuquilt fabric cutter and knew this would be the perfect project to make the most of it.  It made quick work of cutting the strips and in my enthusiasm I decided to cut the strips into squares. This was perhaps a step too far as it meant that the time I had saved with my cutting, I lost stitching squares instead of strips.  But my squares were very accurately cut .... So far the chain stitching has been very efficient and as a result I haven't made much of a dent into my 'leader and ender' project.
Finally, I want to put out a BIG THANK YOU to Bonnie Hunter for her generosity and for taking the time to put this together.  When I started to read her instructions for Part 1, I remembered why I enjoy her Mystery Quilt so much.  Her instructions are excellent and so thorough that it makes it easy for a quilter at any stage to get a quilt together.  Writing a blog every day takes time, so I really appreciate the work she puts into this.

I know a lot of my Followers are Mystery Quilt fans, so I look forward to seeing your progress too.  Linking up to the Monday Link UP!

Dear Jane Quilt - Block E9 Quilt Jail

Dear Jane Quilt - Block E9 Quilt Jail

For some reason this one really did feel like what it might be like to be in Quilt Jail.  Lots of fiddly pieces that had to be squeezed into four sides. This really puts English Paper Piecing to the test.

Techniques: English Paper Piecing and Applique
Pieces: 35 pieces

Dear Jane Quilt - Draw 52 - B4, E9, K2, K3

Dear Jane Quilt - Draw 51 - E13, I7, I8, L3

I will try to fit in a few more Dear Jane blocks before the Bonnie Hunter 'En Provence' 2016  Mystery quilt takes over.  Here is an overview of the recent purple selection and ready to move on to the next Draw.  BTW there are only six more draws to go.

Draw 52
B4 - Chris's Soccer Field
E9 - Quilt Jail
K2 - Grandpa's Chickens
K3 - Seven Sisters

This Draw will be in Red

En Provence - Bonnie Hunter's 2016 Mystery Quilt - Introduction

Suzi the cat enjoying Allietare, 2015 Bonnie Hunter Mystery Quilt

It was four years ago when I started this blog, mainly to share my progress on Bonnie Hunter's 2012 Mystery Quilt, Easy Street. I completed Celtic Solstice in 2013 (but it still needs quilting), opted out of Grand Illusion in 2014 and picked up again with Allietare in 2015, which is currently on our bed, which Suzi is modelling above.

I have been dithering whether I was going to do Bonnie Hunter's 2016 Mystery Quilt 'En Provence' this year.  It is an 'extra' for my To-do list which I could probably do without.  But there is that period between Christmas and New Year where doing the Mystery Quilt has now become a tradition.

Bonnie Hunter's 2016 Mystery Quilt colours 'En Provence'

Here is a pull from my stash of the colours which Bonnie intends to use.  Lovely colours.  I love the beautiful colours she has chosen, but I know I just wouldn't use the quilt at the end. Usually at this stage of the year I have a colour scheme in mind, perhaps one I have been meaning to use for a while, but this year there wasn't any scheme which I was itching to try.   

Bonnie Hunter's 2016 Mystery Quilt - Fabadashery 'En Provence'

So instead I have gone for this colour scheme.  It is a cross between the lavender of Provence and the heathers of Scotland. This range is made up of Moda French General fabrics and I will be keeping to one fabric and not going scrappy.  I WILL NOT BE GOING SCRAPPY!   Also, I am not going for full size.  I AM NOT GOING FOR FULL SIZE!  I feel a bit of a lightweight admitting all this, but again, I do not have a shortage of very large quilts and a smaller, lighter quilt would be more versatile.  I do intend to follow the Mystery Quilt each week, so no peeping to see the outcome before I make it.  I have yet to decide which colour substitutes which or how big it will be.

Let me know if you are joining in this year. I can't wait for Friday for the first stage and I can't wait for New Years Day for the BIG REVEAL!