Fee's "Dear Jane" Quilt Blog

Latest Blocks and the first blocks of the second Jane

2008-12-30T10:44:00.003+11:00

Ok, so it took me almost a month to get these scanned and added to the blog, but believe me, I've been busy! I did one extra block for mum's quilt (the first in two years!) and 3 new blocks for my second Jane "Shadow Play". Bear with me while I remember which block was the new one for mum's quilt... (I'm looking through the pile... they're in number order now so I'll have to go back through the archives and find out what's missing from the blog. There may be more than just the new one missing!)

Ok so there were two missing. The one mum did and the one I did recently. Now I have to remember how I scanned these blocks and got them added to the blog...

Ok so they added in backwards order, but oh well!

Firstly, I'll have to introduce my second Jane (because I loved these little blocks too much to only make them once!) When my boyfriend helped me pick out all of the fabrics, he'd managed to pick out all of the fabrics from the same range 'Shadow Play' by Maywood Studios. Even though I bought the entire bolt of backing fabric, I was still short by about 8 meters, so I changed my design to have an alternate sashing fabric, but I was still short by 5 meters. So I did a bit of research and found that there was a supplier of Maywood studios fabric in Melbourne (a 45 minute drive away!) that was totally worth it as they had my backing fabric in stock! Not only that, they'll order more in if I need it. So my second Jane is made from 5 colours as contrasts (pink, purple, blue, green and yellow) with a very nice burgundy as sashing. Below are the purple, pink and yellow fabrics- green and blue are still to come. I included a purple and blue purposefully as they are the colours I'm using in mum's quilt. By the way, I've hit 31 blocks for mum's quilt now! When the two quilts equal each other, I'll have 40 blocks for each of them done.

This was the third block made for my second Jane "Shadow Play". I had intentionally wanted to foundation piece this block, but for some reason it didn't work. I think my seams were too big. In the end, I resorted to piecing. A while ago mum and I bought a foundation piecing lesson DVD that I'm going to do today so that I can master this because I think that I'm fluking foundation piecing. At least Dan's been great in helping me by cutting the paper pieces out and pulling the paper off the blocks. Though he yelled at me yesterday for starting too many quilts and not finishing any... I'm going to finish one today, I swear! This block was finished on Boxing Day, at night, while I sewed at the machine and Dan ironed them flat for me.

This block was fun. The second 'Shadow Play' block, I was determined to foundation piece, and I managed to. I'm so happy because the last time I attempted this block (pieced, for mum's quilt) the points in the center didn't match up. I did learn a few things- cut your threads after sewing, not after the whole block is done, or your block looks like thread spaghetti, and lining up correctly is key to completion! I think this block is slightly smaller than it should be, but that's ok because at least it's done. :)

My first DJ block for my second DJ quilt- Shadow Play. I picked this block as the first because it was a very easy foundation pieced block, but my gosh I still screwed it up! I didn't line up my triangles correctly so I buggered it up a bit there. But it's ok because it's still the right size and it's still wonderful.

This was my first quilt block for mum's quilt made in two years. Yes, two whole years. I put the quilt down while I dealt with other things (like graduating uni, etc) and one day a month or so ago I pulled out all the little blocks and spread them all out in front of me and got inspired all over again. My boyfriend came over while I was sitting there with all the blocks around me and I said, half to him and half to the blocks, "I miss working on these blocks..." and he said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world, "Why don't you keep making them, then?" And so I did. Patriot's lantern was a difficult little one, only because of all the tiny pieces (I can tell that will be a common complaint of mine with this quilt) but it still came out complete and at a good size, so I'm leaving it as is.

This is the one that I cannot claim I did myself. That's right, mum did this block. When she found out about the quilt she demanded that I let her help. I had already cut out Jane's Tears and she likes applique so I gave her this to do. I think she did a wonderful job and I'm glad that she was able to contribute to the quilt.

Piece and progress counts:

Mum's Jane: 31/0/0/588
Shadow Play: 3/0/0/25

And we're back!

2008-12-06T09:40:00.002+11:00

And I'm reviving my old Jane Blog.

I've recently rejoined the DJ mailing list after being away for over a year, now that I've picked up mum's Jane again. I still have two years left until she's 50 so I can still make it!! I've missed all the wonderful women on that list, and as always, they are a constant source of encouragement and help. I say this because I've bought a special fabric stash reserved for my own Jane, that I will be starting this weekend.

Mum found out about her quilt while we were moving my room around to make way for a new bed, and seeing what I was doing brought tears to her eyes. Then after she got over that, she demanded that I let her make a block, so I gave her J-4, Jane's Tears. Two weeks ago I managed to do another block as well, but I'll post that soon.

My own Jane will be foundation pieced, and the wonderful list helped me find very good instructions online, even telling me that the DJ software has tons of foundation piecing patterns! I've found a website that sells it in Melbourne that I'm putting mum on to for my Christmas presents.

Last weekend, my boyfriend and I went to a wonderful candy fabric store named GJ's and bought enough fabric to start my yummy quilt. When they didn't have enough of the tone-on-tone cream that I liked, I looked at Dan and pouted and he sighed, walking off and returning with a much fuller bolt of even better creamy fabric. I love him, he has wonderful taste!

Anyway, stay tuned because I will not drop off the face of the earth this time... LOL

F-4 Old Windmill

2006-12-01T10:24:00.001+11:00

F-4 Old Windmill

I loved this block! It looks so pretty (maybe because I'm still falling in love with that purple?) and it sits so damn flat! (Trust me, it's been a rare thing for some of my seam-heavy blocks to sit flat) And my points matched up good enough for me.

The reason why I chose to do F-3 and F-4 was because I went looking through my bingo board and noticed that I had a lack of blocks in the middle and North-East part of the quilt. Also, I haven't yet done any blocks from the F or E rows (but I have an E block partially cut out). By the end of this year, I'd at least like one block from every row (A-M and 1-13). I figure this is a more reasonable goal to set myself rather than saying "I want 50 blocks done by December 31st!" As it's the first of December today, I can tell that I have a bit of work ahead, but I'm sure I can achieve it.

The thing with goals, as I've found from many things in my time already, is that you have to be flexible. When I started my Baby Jane on July 1st, I wanted to make 2 blocks each week, with a triangle at every 5 blocks. Then, one day after hitting out 6 blocks, I realised I wasn't into the triangles just yet, none of them were telling me that I was ready enough to attempt them and do them any justice. From my first plan, I should have 44 blocks done by now, with 8 triangles, approaching the 9th (and I said I was going to do it by hand. Ha!) At the moment I have 29 blocks and no triangles, and all done by machine (except the two applique blocks.) But I'm having more fun this way and I'm not disappointing myself. My Baby Jane, despite having a "due date" like any assignment, seems to be working better with an ad-hoc work ethic rather than a strict structure. (Can you tell I do management at uni? LOL) But most of all, I'm enjoying doing it this way, and it gives me freedom to do other things. Though I haven't been tempted to do anything new, as with Jane's quilt every block is "new" or different. There's my ramblings for the day!

I have three more blocks partially cut out, so they should be done soon. Cutting is the part that I'm not too fond of, despite being mum's "cutter" whenever she makes a quilt (rotary-cutter fear, I think.) The blocks go together quickly enough when I'm sewing them, as I use my darling sewing machine to assist me with that!

Mum's Jane: 29/0/0/546

F-3 Snowball

2006-12-01T10:15:00.000+11:00

F-3 Snowball

Ok, I don't really know what to say about this one. I've never made snowballs before and I think I got lucky with how I pieced it together. I used the corner triangles (which turned out to be the triangles used in the border!) and trimmed the corners for the triangles in the snowball. I don't think this was what I meant to do, but I was particularly lucky because it somehow worked out. The border triangles are a bit screwed up, but the overall design of the block doesn't need to line up those points perfectly. It only really matters when you can see different colours together (eg. two triangles with touching tips) instead of a seam of the same colour (eg. when from a distance, the same is two pieces of the same colour- you can't see the seam.)

It was a cute, quick block though so I'm guessing I shouldn't complain!

Mum's Jane: 28/0/0/533

How I store my blocks

2006-11-22T15:02:00.000+11:00

Block Storage

This little plastic case was holding several pairs of panties that I bought a while ago. I figured that seeing as the width was perfect, I'd store my blocks here. It's getting rather full at only 27 blocks, so I might have to go shopping for a new storage place soon!

I decided to post a picture of this as I've been asked a few times how I store my blocks. If and when the block storage changes, I'll update again.

The First 25 Blocks - Silver

2006-11-22T14:53:00.000+11:00

The first 25.

This is just a photo I took to immortalise the 25 blocks I finished first. It's a bit of a wonky photo as it was taken by me standing on my bed. They were in order, but the photo was flipped so they're on the side. See how cute my babies all look together?

B-1 Bachelor's Buttons

2006-11-22T14:34:00.000+11:00

B-1 Bachelor's Buttons

My second needleturn applique piece turned out better than the first, which was good. I kinda cheated as it wasn't solely needleturn- I wrapped the fabric around a circle template (the same way baubles are made) and laid it flat and stiched around it, leaving enough of a gap to pull the paper through. I'm not unhappy with this block at all. I eyeballed the placement of the circles and they turned out really good. I'm actually proud of this one.

Mum's Jane: 27/0/0/516

A-3 Hunter's Moon

2006-11-19T19:37:00.001+11:00

A-3 Hunter's Moon

Now this... I can't even think of words to describe this. The stitches (done in the wrong colour, mind you! They were meant to match the top applique piece, not the background!) are tiny and uneven, the shapes are all odd and the only good thing about this block is that it sort of resembles the original pattern.

It only took me about a month to complete this block (well, it only took a few days. It's been exactly a month since the last completed block.) Over a few nights I kept seeing this in my dreams, but this was my first ever needleturn applique piece, and it was my first ever attempt at applique. So for a first effort, this is something I can live with. Oh, and the pen I used to mark the fabric washed off in water instantly, which was a good thing as I had forgotten to test it. I was getting better as I went with the points, and I realised from the start that I will never get this block perfect. I showed mum this and she agreed that it looked fairly crappy, but then she said "Well, applique is hard..." and I finished her off by saying "I'm never doing applique again!" Little does she know, there's more applique that I will do, just she won't see it for a few more years!

Mum's Jane: 26/0/0/511

A-2 One - Two Buckle My Shoe Revised

2006-10-22T14:26:00.000+10:00

A-2 One - Two Buckle My Shoe Revised

I'm not sure if I see a massive improvement between the first attempt at this block (see an earlier post) and the second attempt. I know this time that my block lined up better, but it's still slightly off. Maybe this block is cursed? I even pinned this one and it still didn't turn out perfectly. At least only one point is massively off and the others all look better. Does it really look that bad and obvious? Can anyone tell where I goofed? Maybe I just don't like it because there's not enough purple and it was hard. =P

I'm not counting this in the count, as I just pulled apart and re-did the earlier one.

Mum's Jane: 25/0/0/506

J-2 Picture Perfect

2006-10-22T14:24:00.000+10:00

J-2 Picture Perfect

I made Silver! That means I've hit my first milestone, 25 blocks! Now when I hit 50 I become Gold...

It wasn't until I looked at my bingo board that I realised I have two on point diamonds on top of each other. This one was kind of funny too, but I'm not changing it. I like it how it is. I had to make my seams smaller for it to work, but luckily (somehow) everything lined up without pinning. This was kind of an oddball block, but it was easy, so I'm leaving it.

Mum's Jane: 25/0/0/506

K-13 Brandon's Star

2006-10-22T14:23:00.000+10:00

K-13 Brandon's Star

This is one of my favourite blocks, just because it looks so nice. And it has a 9-patch too. It went together quickly and easily, which I love.

It wasn't until after the block was done that I realised there were geese units. I really don't mind it either. My pieces count went up! I'm also more fond of the purple fabric so I'm glad that in this block it's the more dominant fabric. Hooray for stars, as they are such pretty blocks!

Mum's Jane: 24/0/0/491

H-13 Farm Fields

2006-10-15T13:23:00.000+10:00

H-13 Farm Fields

This block was my first H block. It was fairly easy to sew and press. But I did have to pin this one because the lines didn't match up at first. It was easy and fast to unpick though and I got it right the next time.

Last time I didn't have much time to sew, but I had plenty of time to cut. I've cut out my next two blocks, so the next time I update this I should have 25 blocks complete! A small milestone, but still a milestone nonetheless. After I reach that, I only (LOL) have 200 patterns to go before the quilt is complete. Hooray for progress!

Mum's Jane: 23/0/0/462

M-5 Mother's Point

2006-10-15T13:22:00.000+10:00

M-5 Mother's Point

I feel cheeky updating this now... Mum's just in the other room and I'm talking to her as I'm typing this while she's playing a video game. She's so cute.

This block was another 'yummy' block, where the pattern contrasts the fabric nicely. It went together really quickly and pressed nice and flat. The only picky bit I have with it, is that the line connecting the 4 quarters is a little off. But oh well! I like the name of this block too. Kinda fits the purpose of the quilt.

Mum's Jane: 22/0/0/455

K-3 Seven Sisters

2006-10-15T13:21:00.000+10:00

K-3 Seven Sisters

This was another 9-patch. See it in the middle? I thought, "Oh, straight lines, this can't be hard" but I totally forgot about how damn small the pieces are! This, as a result, was 'seam heavy' and didn't want to be pressed. I 'beat it into submission' and made the damn thing sit straight. And eventually, it worked. Yay. =)

I didn't mind this block too much, once I figured out how best to do it.

Mum's Jane: 21/0/0/441

I-2 Kaye's Courtyard

2006-10-15T13:20:00.000+10:00

I-2 Kaye's Courtyard

See how nice 9-patches are? I found another one, which luckily was quite large. And I think it looks really good with how it's set out on-point with the triangles. This block actually pressed very well too, when I thought it wouldn't. So yay for the block behaving itself!

When I first thought about starting Jane and was asking questions to the 'goddesses' that had finished the quilt, several told me to pick fabrics that I could stare at for more than 5 years. I love the contrast between the purple and cream, and it reminds me of blueberry muffins. It doesn't help that whenever I finish a block I get hungry for muffins, but it is a yummy combination. And I'm lucky with the fact that I can pick any block to do and not need to identify which 'colour' it's meant to be, like Jane's original quilt. My quilt only has three colours, so yay for me. =)

Mum's Jane: 20/0/0/412

I-3 Family Album

2006-10-15T13:19:00.000+10:00

I-3 Family Album

All I can say about this block is LOL. And I don't care. This looks like a family album made by kindy kids. The lines aren't straight, the block never pressed flat because my seams weren't perfect 1/4", but you know what? They never will be. Maybe it's old fashioned to display 'humility', but this quilt is teaching me not to be a perfectionist!

On the other hand, I have started ripping up my A-2 (see the post in the archives). As I have all my blocks lying in a pile in the order that they go in the quilt, A-2 was constantly staring at me. And I couldn't handle things being that far off. I believe I can do a much better job with that block, even though you can't be perfect with this quilt. Jane wasn't perfect, so why should I be? The answer, of course, is now that I've insulted a civil war quilting genius, I'm probably going to be haunted, and the reason why I should be perfect is because this isn't my quilt, it's mum's quilt. I'm making it for her. But I've come to reason with 'perfect'. No one should try to be 'perfect', but we should all try to be 'better'. Aww, Jane's taught me a new philosophy.

Mum's Jane: 19/0/0/399

I-1 Ralph & Nelda's Wedding

2006-10-15T13:18:00.000+10:00

I-1 Ralph & Nelda's Wedding

After looking through the book for more 'easy' blocks, I discovered there were more 9-patches than I'd originally noticed. These were easy to cut out and sew, so these were my next steps of confidence. In the last two weeks I've done 6 blocks, and I haven't really been updating like I should. That's why today I'm spending time doing all the web updates!

Like I mentioned before, 9-patches aren't hard. I don't pin as much as I should, but I've been lucky with these minatures that my points usually match up. Pinning is a last resort. This block came together quickly and nicely, which makes me like it even more! =)

Mum's Jane: 18/0/0/382

J-7 Chicken Tracks

2006-10-01T11:56:00.001+10:00

J-7 Chicken Tracks

Now this one I chose because the cutting plan was easy. No fussy 5/8ths or anything like that. Only pure inch squares. As I should have learnt from J-6, small pieces means bulky seams. But I must have been lucky yesterday as this one actually wanted to sit flat too. Things were lining up more than not and it came together very fast. I had no problems with it. I think this is the first pair that I've got next to each other.

Unfortunately for me, my family gets back tonight, so I barely got to catch up on my DJ like I'd originally planned. But, on the bright side, 4 is better than none. In a few weeks time, uni has finished for the year, so hopefully more blocks will be pushed out over my very long break.

Mum's Jane: 17/0/0/362

J-6 Granny Weaver

2006-10-01T11:54:00.000+10:00

J-6 Granny Weaver

This one I chose because it looked quick and easy, straight seams, with no triangles. Well, it was easy to sew. What wasn't easy was the pressing. It looked like it wasn't going to sit flat. But somehow, by some strange miracle, it actually did. I have it sitting in a pile with my other completed blocks so that should straighten it out even more. The 1-inch block 9-patch in the center was a bit bulky, but everything lined up and matched so I'm not complaining!

Mum's Jane: 16/0/0/321

M-2 Duff's Bluff

2006-09-29T13:46:00.000+10:00

M-2 Duff's Bluff

This one was slightly hard, but only because I haven't yet figured out an easy way to do the x shaped middle part, which sucks because there's quite a few of those in the DJ blocks. And there was a bit of 'lining up' which resulted in me unpicking just one little bit. I'm happy with this block though, out of all the things that could go wrong, nothing did and it lined up kinda nicely. =)

Mum's Jane: 15/0/0/296

M-12 Hopscotch

2006-09-29T13:39:00.001+10:00

M-12 Hopscotch

I'm so far behind in my DJ! Last month I only completed one, this month I've just completed two blocks. So much for my 2-per-week goals. =/ I've been home alone all week too, so I really should have gotten more completed. But these two only took a little while to sew, so I'm lucky about that. Hopefully I should pump out more this weekend. =D

Mum's Jane: 14/0/0/275

G-2 Mohawk's Trail

2006-08-06T13:29:00.000+10:00

G-2 Mohawk's Trail

This was the first time I tried pinning my triangles before sewing them. Needless to say I loved the results because the block actually came out the right size! I'm relatively happy with how my points joined up too, some are off but you can't really tell. I'm slowly starting to get over this perfectionism and realising that finished is better than perfect! I have two more blocks cut out and ready to piece, I just couldn't get them done because mum went to an engagement party and I was unsure when she was going to get home. I'll probably get them done on Monday when mum goes to play tennis in the morning.

I showed dad and he said "Haven't you made a quilt like that already?" He got confused because I've shown him so many blocks. LOL

Mum's Jane: 13/0/0/256

A-2 One - Two Buckle My Shoe

2006-07-18T00:36:00.000+10:00

A-2 One - Two Buckle My Shoe

Now this... was a piece of work. LOL It frustrated me from the start. I got better at my Geese, but I think I rushed it a bit and wasn't careful with my seams, hence why they didn't match up. I tested it against my brother, standing at a distance I asked "Can you see anything wrong with this?" And he looked blank, stared, then finally answered "No." "So it's not obvious that it doesn't join up?" He shrugged and said he didn't notice. It's position on the quilt, top left corner, means it'd be in the overhang on the bed. It may not be so obvious. But, if worst comes to worst, I can always take it apart and redo it when I'm going over all my finished blocks. For now, this is good enough for me. =)

Mum's Jane: 12/0/0/228

C-1 Trooper Green's Badge

2006-07-18T00:35:00.000+10:00

C-1 Trooper Green's Badge

This block gave me so much trouble because things weren't lining up. But then I thought "Bugger it, it's only looking obvious because it's just one little block" so I left it as it was. I thought it was actually not that hard. And it doesn't look so bad. I'm tired now though so everything looks good because I can't be bothered fixing it. When I wake up tomorrow I will most likely change my mind. =P

Mum's Jane: 11/0/0/188

A-5 Cathie's Campfire

2006-07-18T00:34:00.000+10:00

A-5 Cathie's Campfire

This was my first ever attempt at Geese- I had never made them before. Hence, I kinda screwed them up. But I wasn't in a perfectionist kind of mood tonight- I just wanted to get things done. I think I like that attitude better. "Finished is better than perfect!" Jane's weren't perfect, so why should mine be? =P

Mum's Jane: 10/0/0/175

A-8 Florence Nightingale

2006-07-18T00:22:00.000+10:00

A-8 Florence Nightingale

I got 6 blocks done in a day! That's double what I had previously. The first block I had sewn completely in my second round of free time was this one. Mum and dad went out for dinner so I had a few hours after uni to sew. Maybe it was the extra motivation from uni that got me to sew more? It was fast and it lined up well. It didn't have heaps of seams either, so I quite liked this block.

Mum's Jane: 9/0/0/146

C-12 Family Reunion

2006-07-17T12:38:00.000+10:00

C-12 Family Reunion

Bah, I didn't like this one. The tiny 9-patches were so thick from the seams when they were finished. The whole block still isn't pressing perfectly flat, but I figure it has to sit under my bed, sandwiched between my other blocks, for a long time and this should press it a little more flat. At least my points are matching up- it'll look good from a distance, just not up close. =) PS. Yes, my scanning and cropping skills leave much to be desired.

I've got a few more blocks cut out and waiting their turn patiently- hopefully next weekend I'll knock out more than just 3- mum and dad are going to a dinner dance on Saturday night, I have plenty of time!

Mum's Jane: 8/0/0/135 (I've hit the 100 pieces mark!)

B-13 Four Corner Press

2006-07-17T12:36:00.000+10:00

B-13 Four Corner Press

This block was so simple but I still managed to screw it up. I made the center purple square an inch bigger than required and as a result the whole block was big. I didn't even realise until I compared it with my other finished blocks. It would have been finished Saturday, but I unpicked it, trimmed it, and had it sewn on Monday. Once I knew where I went wrong it was smooth sailing. PS. Mind the dodgy scanning- I was in a rush.

Mum's Jane: 7/0/0/86

C-3 Rayelle's Fence

2006-07-17T12:27:00.000+10:00

C-3 Rayelle's Fence

I managed to complete three blocks this week. It would have been 4 if mum went out with dad on Saturday night, but she didn't so I had an hour only to sew while she took my brother to his basketball game. She was out on Thursday night though for a few hours and I managed to do a lot of cutting. In total I cut out 8 blocks. I was piecing B-13 Four Corner Press, and after finishing that and Rayelle's Fence, I realised that I massively screwed up B-13, it was a whole inch bigger than it was meant to be. So I unpicked it, trimmed it, then stitched it right today. Rayelle's Fence was one of the blocks I cut on Thursday, but it was sewn on Saturday night. I finished sewing C-12 Family Reunion and B-13 today. I nearly finished C-1, Trooper Green's Badge, but that one had seams that were way off, so that will need to be unpicked too, so I can finish that next time. I still managed to get three done this week, so I'm still on the right track. And yes, I didn't do any triangles, I'll do my first triangle when I hit 50 blocks.

Mum's Jane: 6/0/0/77

Cutting Night & Change of Plans

2006-07-13T22:43:00.000+10:00

Tonight I didn't get any sewing done, because I didn't have enough time. It would have been too risky because I wasn't sure how long mum would be out. But, I did cut out another three blocks which I shall sew on Saturday night when mum and dad go out again. I need to draft more pieced blocks and cut them out, as I find that this is the step that is taking the longest.

My plan may slightly need to be changed. There are no 'easy' triangles. There are enough challenging blocks without having to deal with the triangles yet, too many curves and uneven triangles. So instead of tackling a triangle at each 5 blocks, I will just stick to the blocks. =) Hence why I just cut out 3 more blocks. I keep looking for 'easy' ones to boost my confidence, and have found heaps. Enough to keep me happy for a while longer.

I have started making a booklet to go with the quilt. It's in pearl cream and pearl purple paper, that will be a journal while I make the quilt, showing small pictures of each block. I'll get it all laminated and bound. I figure that it's fine if mum knows about the quilt, which I'm sure she suspects, but she won't know about the journal. Hopefully my thoughts while making the quilt will be more valuable to her. It'll be a nice companion to the quilt as well, and will give my descendants knowledge about why I made the quilt. This is something I believe all quilters wished Jane did. I would have loved to know what she though of each block as she made it.

I go back to university this Monday. I'm hoping that I can juggle the DJ and stay focused. I shouldn't find it too hard, it's just a matter of good time management. =)

L-5 Chattanooga Charlie

2006-07-09T11:31:00.002+10:00

L-5 Chattanooga Charlie

I liked this block because sewing smaller triangles is something I haven't really done yet. I'm gradually dipping my feet into the water. This was what I considered my 'challenging block', although it came together pretty easily. Cutting wasn't a problem and I've now remembered by heart the half-square triangle rule: add 7/8ths. Works like a charm. Sewing was a bit distorted because the triangles kept wanting to run away from each other, but at least it's finished! Finished is better than perfect. I can see why this is the DJ mantra. =P

After finishing this block, my 5th block, the plan is to do my first blue triangle. For every 5 blocks, a triangle will be done. Now I just need to find an easy triangle! Oh, and I exceeded my weekly quota, I was aiming to get only 2 done per week, but this week I conquered 3. Go me.

Mum's Jane: 5/0/0/52

J-4 Adelaine's Apron Strings

2006-07-09T11:31:00.000+10:00

J-4 Adelaine's Apron Strings

Now this block was a bit complicated, only because I was unsure how to cut the purple strips in the middle. In the end, I ended up cutting it long and then trimming it. Much easier. It sewed together no problem, despite the triangles. Pressed well too.

Note: This block was completed before L-5 Chattanooga Charlie.

Mum's Jane: 4/0/0/30

A-6 Uncle Homer

2006-07-09T11:29:00.000+10:00

A-6 Uncle Homer

Dad took mum out last night, so I managed to get three blocks done (next up is my first triangle!) It helped having a cutting plan to go by first, which I can do in my room while mum's at home, and then when she's out I can go ahead and cut, sew and press. Much easier. I'm learning already. =)

Uncle Homer was on my list of easy pieced blocks, it's a simple 9 patch. It was quick and easy, and I did it with no trouble.

Mum's Jane: 3/0/0/23

Oh noes... Mum saw!

2006-07-08T11:56:00.001+10:00

Last Thursday, mum saw the first two blocks! What happened was, I was scanning them on the computer, and I can't use Photoshop to save my life, but my brother can. I was screaming for him to come help me, but mum assumed that I wanted him to see something, and she wanted to see what I was showing him. To put it short, I couldn't close the browser in time and she saw the scans. =/

She thought it was very pretty, so I decided to show her the blocks, stating clearly that it was a colour experiment (seeing how well cream and purple goes together) and I only made simple blocks for this purpose, and that I wasn't going to make anymore. Just in case she got suspicious, I also told her 'coincidentally' that the two blocks are old patterns because I found them in the Jane quilt. I don't think she put two and two together, because she asked if 'card trick', our first block we ever made, was also in the Jane quilt. When I told her it wasn't, she said it must not be that old. I doubt Jane would have tried to get every block pattern into her sampler quilt that was around at that time, but I was glad for the diversion and left it as is. She did sneak in a comment that the purple and cream would look very nice in her room, and that it was a pity I didn't have more of the purple fabric (she overheard me complaining to dad that I couldn't find it anymore) so that we could have made her a big bed quilt. I think I've confused her enough to throw her off. =)

I think I'm safe, as long as she doesn't see anymore blocks. So from now on, even the scanning will be done when she's not home.

I've spent the last few hours writing down a cutting chart for the next 5 blocks I'm going to sew. Hopefully I should have a triangle completed by then too. =)

D-13 Field of Dreams

2006-07-01T22:44:00.001+10:00

Block D-13, Field of Dreams

As mum and dad went out tonight, I managed to finish two blocks in one night. Field of Dreams was what I saw as the second easiest block. So far, everything has been machine pieced. I've had no trouble with anything yet. When mum teaches me how to applique properly next month, I'm going to make a start on the easier applique pieces. Until then I'm trying to knock out as many blocks as I can that can be pieced while mum and dad are out.

For every 5 blocks I get done, I'm going to attempt one triangle. Or at least try to stick to that plan!

Mum's Jane: 2/0/0/14

M-10 Simple Simon

2006-07-01T22:41:00.000+10:00

Block M-10, Simple Simon

Of course, this was the easiest block to start with! A simple 9-patch. I love how elegant the fabrics look against each other. And I like how you can see the swirls on the cream fabric, which was exactly why I chose it. Very proud of my first block!

Mum's Jane: 1/0/0/9

And Blue makes Three...

2006-07-01T22:37:00.001+10:00

The fabrics I'm using

This pretty blue was also $6/meter, and I though it might make a nice offset when I'm making the triangles. Tomorrow I'm going to work out approximate yardage and see if I'm at least over the minimum amount we calculate.

What I'm thinking of doing, is using the blue and cream for the triangles, with the solid triangles (the non-pieced ones) in the blue fabric. The cream and purple will be in all of the square blocks, with purple representing the dark colours and cream the light.

I really think this can work if I stick at it! =)

Fabrics

2006-06-29T19:54:00.000+10:00

The Two Fabrics

Today I trundled off to the store to buy some fabrics so that I can get started. To match mum and dad's room, I picked these colours (the bluey one looks more purple in real life- it's just bad light!) and the cream will match the walls. If I don't have enough of these colours to go around and finish the whole quilt, then I can easily substitute more because they have plenty that can blend with them (like a pretty pale blue, for example). Oh and I was lucky! On the bolt of the cream fabric it said it cost $13.95/meter, but it scanned up as $6! So I'm going back tomorrow morning to buy more. =)

I'm off to cut out my first block... I'll post a picture when it's done. =)

The First Post

2006-06-27T12:37:00.000+10:00

Hello there!

Welcome to my second quilting blog! This blog runs parallel with my other quilting blog, QuiltsByFee (http://quiltsbyfee.blogspot.com), but I figure that because this will be a big project, it's special enough for it's own blog. =)

I've commited myself to making the "Dear Jane" quilt. I'm going to make it for my mum's 50th birthday, which is in 5 years time. I should finish it with plenty of time to quilt it, if I stay focused. I'm going to hand quilt and piece it, because that will allow me to have some portability to take it with me to university and some secrecy so mum won't find out. Hopefully, I want to suprise her.

For those who don't know: Jane A. Stickle, during the Civil War in 1863, made a sampler quilt with 225 different patterns. Brenda Papadakis wrote a book about the quilt, and a cult following ensued. Thousands of "Baby Janes", copies of 'The Quilt' (which is located in the Bennington Museum, Vermont), have been made since the book's release in 1996. For more information and to see Jane's Quilt, visit http://www.dearjane.com

This blog will document my progress and keep me on track. For those of you who see this, and know mum, please don't tell her! To all others, I hope you enjoy watching me take this journey.