Monday 31 October 2016

Dear Jane Quilt - Block C4 Tic Tac Toe

Dear Jane Quilt - Block C4 Tic Tac Toe
Dear Jane Quilt - Block C4 Tic Tac Toe
This Dear Jane block, C4 Tic Tac Toe, had a difficult birth.  Those little pieces in the middle are not ideal for English Paper Piecing, but I got there in the end.  I have just stitched this block into the actual quilt and there were a few extra stitches needed to fix the points.

Techniques: English Paper Piecing and Applique
Pieces: 37 pieces

Sunday 30 October 2016

Dear Jane update - October 2016

Suzi the cat helps with the Dear Jane Quilt
Suzi the cat helps with the Dear Jane Quilt
I have been promising an update on the overall progress of my Dear Jane.  I indulged myself in an afternoon of stitching Dear Jane blocks together yesterday.  So far I have 2.5 lines together and Suzi the cat is monitoring progress closely. 
Completed Dear Jane blocks
Completed Dear Jane blocks
All the blocks are completed and all but one border block is complete.  Also there are several plain triangles and loads and loads of sashing pieces to be done.  And did I mention the scalloped border?
Electric Quilt - Dear Jane progress, October 2016
Here is a glimpse of how that all looks in the Electric Quilt software.  I am still using Electric Quilt 5. 

Saturday 29 October 2016

Dear Jane Quilt - Block B3 Mirror Image

Dear Jane Quilt - Block B3 Mirror Image
Dear Jane Quilt - Block B3 Mirror Image
Here is Dear Jane block B3 Mirror Image.  I have surprised myself with this quilt by actually enjoying appliquing circles.  I have seen several people this year do the 365 circle project which are building up into great quilts.  Maybe if it had launched about now I might have joined in.


Techniques: English Paper Piecing and Applique
Pieces: 8 pieces

Thursday 27 October 2016

Dear Jane Quilt - Block J3 Rick's Volleyball Net and the launch of En Provence, Bonnie Hunter's 2016 Mystery Quilt!

Dear Jane Quilt - Block J3 Rick's Volleyball Net
Dear Jane Quilt - Block J3 Rick's Volleyball Net
I was just about to start writing this post when I noticed on my sidebar that Bonnie Hunter has just released details of En Provence, the 2016 Bonnie Hunter Mystery Quilt.  I really WANT to do it, but I ought to check out some other priorities in my life before I commit completely.  The colours look lovely this year.

Anyway, back to Dear Jane block, J3 Rick's Volleyball Net.  Piecing and applique, fussy cutting and green - a nice combo!

Thanks for the comments on the last post.  Helen S is just about to start on her Dear Jane journey, I'm not sure if she will be posting the progress anywhere, but let us all with her well on her way.

Techniques: English Paper Piecing and Applique
Pieces: 17  pieces

Monday 24 October 2016

Dear Jane Quilt - Draw 50 - B3, C4, J3, L13

Dear Jane Quilt - Draw 49 - Border Blocks LR3, RR3, LR11, RR11
Dear Jane Quilt - Draw 49 - Border Blocks LR3, RR3, LR11, RR11
Yes, we are on Draw 50 which means I have shown you 193 of the blocks I have done so far. 

As you will have guessed I am quite persistent in nature and once I have committed to do something I am pretty confident in finishing it.  As you know, I take time to share my progress on my blog, which gives me some discipline on this project.  Some of you are kind enough to leave comments as I go along which I really appreciate. 

Today I am giving a shout out to Sally and the 'crew' at The Objects of Design for sharing the journey.  Sally has joined in and is also making the Dear Jane quilt in a completely different colour scheme. She also takes time to share the work of her team on her blog.  I know she only has a few more to do - but has she done these yet?

Draw 50
B3 - Mirror Image
C4 - Tic Tac Toe
J3 - Rick's Volleyball Net
L13 - Harvest Moon

This Draw will be in GREEN

Saturday 22 October 2016

Dear Jane Quilt - Border Block LR11 Kathy's Cake

Dear Jane Quilt - Border Block LR11 Kathy's Cake
Dear Jane Quilt - Border Block LR11 Kathy's Cake
Poor Dear Jane Border block LR11 Kathy's Cake has been 'missing in action' here at Fabadashery HQ.  It has a doppelganger in the shape of TR3 Checkerboard which is also purple.  The key difference is that this one has a candle shape at the tip and it was this finally cleared up the confusion.

Techniques: English Paper Piecing and Applique
Pieces: 24  pieces

Thursday 20 October 2016

Dear Jane Quilt - Border Block RR3 Epicentre

Dear Jane Quilt - Border Block RR3 Epicentre
Dear Jane Quilt - Border Block RR3 Epicentre
Dear Jane border block RR3 Epicentre is one of the more interesting blocks of this quilt and a chance to do something fancy with the fabrics.  Quite a bit of applique to keep the piecing simpler.
Dear Jane Quilt - Border Block RR3 Epicentre
Dear Jane Quilt - Border Block RR3 Epicentre
I hope you appreciate this 'work in progress' shot which shows how I did the centre circle.  I contemplated several approaches to this and as ever, there is more than one way to skin a cat. (PS: Don't tell Suzi I said that).

Techniques: English Paper Piecing and Applique
Pieces: 20  pieces

Tuesday 18 October 2016

Dear Jane Quilt - Border Block RR11 Hills of Jerusalem

Dear Jane Quilt - Border Block RR11 Hills of Jerusalem
Dear Jane Quilt - Border Block RR11 Hills of Jerusalem
At the weekend I stitched my last block but one for my Dear Jane quilt which I have been making using the English Paper Piecing method.  Still quite a few for you to see yet ....., BUT the news that www.paperpieces.com have just released a full set of pre-cut Dear Jane English Paper pieces is interesting to say the least.  It is nice to know they are there, but in all honesty I know I am too stingy to pay out the money for pre-cut pieces.  All I know is that I have $350 worth of paper due to be removed from my quilt.

Anyway, back to the block of the moment.  I like this Dear Jane border block, RR11 Hills of Jerusalem.  At the top there seems to be a bit of a wobble, but taking the paper out and some coercive quilting should sort that out.
Techniques: English Paper Piecing and Applique
Pieces: 31  pieces

Monday 17 October 2016

Dear Jane Quilt - Border Block LR3 Connie's Brownies

Dear Jane Quilt - Border Block LR3 Connie's Brownies
Dear Jane Quilt - Border Block LR3 Connie's Brownies
Dear Jane border block LR3 Connie's Brownies is a good reason NOT to be scared of the Dear Jane border blocks.  It only has 16 pieces which is far less than many of the square blocks.  Nice sized applique. Easily done.

I promised you an update of the overall Dear Jane progress, but technical issues my end have prevented it.  It will come.

Techniques: English Paper Piecing and Applique
Pieces: 16  pieces

Saturday 15 October 2016

Dear Jane Quilt - Draw 49 - Border Blocks LR3, RR3, LR11, RR11


Dear Jane Quilt - Draw 48 - H1, H4, I9, I12
Dear Jane Quilt - Draw 48 - H1, H4, I9, I12
Here are the green Dear Jane blocks from the latest draw.  Some were easy, some  more difficult with lots of pieces. Moving onto the next blocks

Draw 49
LR3 - Connie's Brownies
RR3 - Epicentre
LR11 - Kathy's Cake
RR11 - Hills of Jerusalem

This Draw will be in PURPLE

Wednesday 12 October 2016

Dear Jane Quilt - Block I12 Fred's Fair Square

Dear Jane Quilt - Block I12 Fred's Fair Square
Dear Jane Quilt - Block I12 Fred's Fair Square

Dear Jane block I12 Fred's Fair Square features some of my favourite Kim Diehl fabrics in green.  Lots of little pieces for a classic looking block - does it have another name?

Techniques: English Paper Piecing
Pieces: 41  pieces

Tuesday 11 October 2016

Dear Jane Quilt - Block H1 Peek A Boo

Dear Jane Quilt - Block H1 Peek A Boo
Dear Jane Quilt - Block H1 Peek A Boo
I have had a busy few days away in Devon on a longarm quilting course with Deloa Jones from the USA which is why it has been a bit quiet here on the blog.    Poor Dear Jane did not get a look in.
This is Dear Jane block H1 Peek A Boo, simple enough to do, but just look at the fussy cutting in the corners.  I surprise myself sometimes.

Techniques: English Paper Piecing
Pieces: 17  pieces

Thursday 6 October 2016

Dear Jane Quilt - Block I9 Chase A Myth

Dear Jane Quilt - Block I9 Chase A Myth
Dear Jane Quilt - Block I9 Chase A Myth
It really is time that I start to get some figures together about how many pieces are in this Dear Jane quilt.  Dear Jane block I9 Chase a Myth is one of those with quite a few pieces for a 4.5" block.  It would be interesting to know the maximum and minimum pieces ever recorded for a Dear Jane quilt.

Techniques: English Paper Piecing and Applique
Pieces: 41  pieces

Wednesday 5 October 2016

Dear Jane Quilt - Block H4 Abbey's Eyes

Dear Jane Quilt - Block H4 Abbey's Eyes
Dear Jane Quilt - Block H4 Abbey's Eyes
I was in a dilemma  with this Dear Jane block, H4 Abbey's Eyes, as to which way to place the neutral background - it could have gone either way.  I think the way I have chosen is more like an 'eye'.
Last night I had a dream about my Dear Jane quilt and surprisingly the dream had a different quilt layout, which has got me thinking of how I should finish the quilt.  I haven't sewn any blocks together yet, let alone removed the papers, so maybe time for a re-think.

Techniques: English Paper Piecing
Pieces: 9 pieces

Tuesday 4 October 2016

Dear Jane Quilt - Draw 48 - H1, H4, I9, I12

Dear Jane Quilt - Draw 47 - B1, C9, C11, D2
Dear Jane Quilt - Draw 47 - B1, C9, C11, D2

Draw 48 marks the start of the last 40 blocks.  I am drip feeding them to you, as much as to keep a record on my blog for myself and to give each block its 'time in the sun'.

Draw 48
H1 - Peek A Boo
H4 - Abbey's Eyes
I9 - Chase a Myth
I12 - Fred's Fair Square

This Draw will be in Green

Monday 3 October 2016

Dear Jane Quilt - Block D2 Mouse in the Mirror

Dear Jane Quilt - Block D2 Mouse in the Mirror
Dear Jane Quilt - Block D2 Mouse in the Mirror
There was no applique in this little Dear Jane block,  D2 Mouse in the Mirror, but a few little tiny triangles to cope with.

The colours of this block are quite autumnal and as we entered October this weekend, it made me think that if Bonnie Hunter is running her Mystery quilt this year, in three months time we would have had the BIG REVEAL.  Still deciding if I will join in this year and keeping a eye out for any news.

Techniques: English Paper Piecing
Pieces:  29 pieces