Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Jump on our Jane Train!

Jane x 4
Clockwise starting top left:
D-13, A-5, B-4, J-6

For me the Jane train has been circling for years - do it, don't, do, don't and all the pros, cons, reasons and guilts why I should or shouldn't.  But I've finally decided to jump on and thoroughly enjoy the ride.  I have to blame Maria ... she finds things that just get my blood going, then there's a sleepless night, a stack of fabric pulled from stash plus some more and what do you know?  

So .. what's the plan?
To get you involved of course!


We *know* you want to join us.  Maria and Deb are in for sure!  I think we have Karen convinced ... Jill and Cathy are talking about it and Lesley is thinking about it too!  This could be so much fun.

Maria, Deb and I are all going modern / bright / rainbow / Kaffe-inspired / not-traditional.  Not sure about the others yet but I know they'll let us know.  
My Color Palette
If you need more inspiration ... check out my Pinterest board.  

I've made six blocks to "test" my background choice - Kona cotton solid "Bayou."  These are my four faves so far ...  Sadly, it's raining so my pictures are limited ... in fact these are scans (which explains the odd shades of the bayou - my scanner is being temperamental ... but hopefully you get the idea.  The upper left corner is most accurate for the "Bayou" and the sashing will be the same.


So here it is .. the plan is to start mid-May / June and do a minimum of four blocks per month.

To give you an idea of how easy going we're going to be here's my plan: It's important to me that I make MY quilt and not one like the many many Janes, Baby Janes, etc that are out there. So here's what I'm thinking about and where I might to go with it.
    Fabrics:  Kaffe, Jacobs, Mabry (I carry these in my shop in Belgium) plus some of my own faves from the stash.  What's great about some of these large-scale prints is you can get multiple blocks from the same fabric without them looking the same.
    Background: Yep, it's for sure - Kona cotton solid "Bayou".
    Blocks variations:  I will make all the blocks I like, probably leave out some that I don't and add a few of my favorites (ex: a churndash and maybe a little house)
    Size: it all depends if my honey and I like where it's going .. if so I'll make it bed-size but will have to *add* a lot more blocks then because our bed is so long to accommodate all 6'8" of him.  
    Border: probably not the triangles, but don't worry we'll still post about them as we go along.
    Methods: machine piecing (traditional and maybe foundation paper-piecing) hand piecing and hand applique ... a couple of reasons for this. I am going to do what works best for each block and I'm not worried about "mixing techniques."
So, go do some browsing - my pinterest board and google images are good places to start ... then get your thinking cap, choose your colors and find the fabrics that get your blood pumping. And stay tuned ... we'll tease you with more right up until we start .. and even then it will never be too late ...

and p.s. if you find out that you love Pinterest as much as I do and don't want to hassle with the wait, let me know and I'll send you an invite. Pin It Now!

6 comments:

  1. Oh, please send an invite to Pinterest! I've been waiting and wondered how long they make you wait. I love your blocks so far. I would love to do something with Kaffe and the Gang - LOL - but am not sure of background fabric. The quilt with the white background online sure is beautiful......It would be fun to do something more original, but I don't know what I would like as much as the white. This is what is holding me up right now. ~Karen

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  2. Now that I have declared Kaffe et al to be my fabric choices, now I am entertaining black on white. Wouldn't THAT be a striking contrast!

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  3. Oh wow. I l.o.v.e your fabric selection. That is going to be one awesome Baby Jane!

    Can I maybe join in with this? I've been working (very slowly) on a Baby Jane for a while now and have 20 blocks made. It would be fun to join in with other people at the same stage as me. I was following the That Quilt blog but they're all finished now and I've only just started! Plus I'm totally loving the blog button!

    Are you all going to make the same blocks each month? Or is the goal to make any four?

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  4. Dear whatktmadenext .. of course you can! We look forward to having you in the crowd. I sent you a message on Flickr because I couldn't find your email address. I suggest you become a follower of Under the Willow Tree all updates, block posts and info will be shared there!

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  5. Yay! I finally found a "Dear Jane" group that is just starting. I've been wanting to start a "Dear Jane" but have been indecisive, should I? shouldn't I? etc. Now that I found this group, I'm a definite Yes. What do I need to do? Buy the book or the software? Choose my fabric? Just jump in or what?

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  6. I too am hoping to join in with this group. Please send me an invite as well. I have registered as a folower on "Under the Willow Tree". Do I need to do anything else? I will be buying my fabrics once I get back to the US. They are also going to be brilliants. I have already bought the CD, the Book, and the templates and they are awaiting my return to the US. I can't wait to get started.

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