Apparently, Sunday (16th August) was Bennington Battle Day, a holiday observed in the state of Vermont in the USA. This is also the week when I have decided to launch my DEAR JANE JOURNEY. The coincidence will not be lost on the Janiacs out there - Bennington Museum is the home of the Stickle Quilt (1863), yes, the DEAR JANE quilt, made famous by Brenda Papadakis - the Mother Quilt.
This quilt has been in my mind since I saw the Dear Jane quilt exhibition in Nantes, France in April 2013. It was the BEST display of quilts I have ever seen. As my followers will know, I have been slavishly completing my Nearly Insane quilt before I would allow myself to get started on my Dear Jane quilt. The Nearly Insane quilt top is complete, but those papers are still being extracted. I promise a photo soon. Meanwhile, I need a portable hand sewing project and with a bit of time available at the end of the August holidays I felt it was a good time to get myself organised.
I have been collecting the fabric together quietly over the past 12 months and with the help of my main suppliers, the Fat Quarter Shop and Doughty's, I have accumulated enough fabrics to get this project going. I will be using Kim Diehl fabrics for the Dear Jane quilt in a wide range of colours.
For the background I will be using the same fabric throughout, Holly Wishes by Kansas Trouble Quilters (#9444). The amount of fabric quoted for the background in the book and on various online resources varies between 5yds and 15yds, depending on how you construct the quilt. I have opted for the larger amount as I don't want to be caught out at the end. I would like to think I would be able to report back on how much I actually use at the end, but suspect that might be a statistic too far for me.
I will also be using my Electric Quilt software again. I used this for the Nearly Insane project and it was brilliant. I received the Dear Jane software for my birthday a few years ago and over the past few months it has been put to good use as I have been working out how I want my quilt to look. I have scanned all the fabrics into the Electric Quilt software and have been re-jigging the placement of some of the blocks. Yes, I know, I am already messing with the original, but like the quilts in that exhibition, everyone brought something new to the party. You can follow my progress with the Dear Jane outline on the sidebar.
At the Festival of Quilts in Birmingham last year (2014) I purchased a few reels of Kimono silk for the hand applique blocks.
At the Festival of Quilts this year (2015) I bought some tools to help me along the way, an Apliquick tool and some Sewline fabric glue.
I think that is everything. Is there anything I have forgotten?
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| 'Dear Jane' Exhibition , April 2013, Nantes, France |
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| Kim Diehl fabrics for Dear Jane Quilt |
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| Holly Wishes by Kansas Trouble Quilters (#9444) |
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| Scanning fabrics into Electric Quilt software |
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| Kimono Silk thread |
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| Sewline Fabric Glue and Apliquick Tool |
At the Festival of Quilts this year (2015) I bought some tools to help me along the way, an Apliquick tool and some Sewline fabric glue.
I think that is everything. Is there anything I have forgotten?
pair of tweezers is useful.
ReplyDeleteI am looking forward to watching your journey.
ReplyDeleteHow exciting! I look forward to seeing your blocks. I'm extremely envious of your trip to see the Dear Jane exhibit a couple of years back. I went to the Quiltmania show this year, it was fantastic. How do you find the EQ7? Does it take a lot of time to get to grips with?
ReplyDeleteGood luck! I'm sure you will have no trouble sticking with your plan and making a beautiful DJ of your own.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on finishing Nearly Insane. I have really enjoyed watching your progress with this, it is truly beautiful. Dear Jane is also a beautiful project and one that I have admired. I'm interested in your choice of appliqué thread. I enjoy using silk thread, but was told by the Sue Daley who sells the Sewline glue and little reels of polyester thread that silk will perish quickly.im not sure if it's a way of selling more of her products or not, but a much prefer silk. I've started a large appliqué project with silk and stopped immediately when I heard this and haven't sewn another stitch until I do a bit of research. Have you used silk thread over a long period? Maybe she used a poor quality thread? Or maybe she is just trying to push her own product? I would be interested in what you think.
ReplyDeleteStarting a new project is always so exciting. I'll watch with great interest. My mum is making Nearly Insane after being inspired by your quilt. I'll be very interested to see your Nearly Insane all joined up.
ReplyDeleteLove that you're using the saturated Kim Diehl fabrics. Looking forward to seeing your amazing work on the Dear Jane!
ReplyDeleteI've had my eye on the Dear Jane quilt for years, but I haven't made the plunge to start my own yet. Your fabrics will be lovely in this quilt. I'm looking forward to watching your progress!
ReplyDeleteI'm doing the opposite of you. I finished piecing my Jane in June and plan to start hand quilting her in September. I'm starting Nearly Insane this fall, well, actually I've already pieced 1 block. I bought a whole bolt of background fabric so I knew I would have enough fabric. Enjoy your journey! GretchensCorner.wordpress.com
ReplyDeleteYour Dear Jane is going to be gorgeous! I love Kim Diehl's fabrics and they will be perfect.
ReplyDelete