Jane in Rainbow effect ..

Jane in Rainbow effect .., a photo by Jovita's Patchwork Atelier on Flickr.

Sorry about the tease ... to appease, here's a peak at all my finished blocks .. another six are at various stages of incompletion. Pin It Now!

Jump on our Jane Train!

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!

Quilt Show – Gent, Belgium

Today I visited a Quilt Show in Gent presented by the Vlaamse Quilters Guilde.  It was just what I needed for some contact with “quiltsters” (feminine form of quilter) here in Belgium.  From the moment I walked into the show I felt welcomed and at home among women who also share my passion.

I began in Nederlands, she answered in English, asked where I was from and took €2,50 (just $4) for the entrance fee.  Everywhere I went, women were smiling, nodding and enjoying themselves.  The show included the largest number of Dear Jane quilts I had seen in one location.  This is probably my favorite Dear Jane so far.    

Both simple patterns, but very red – these two quilts really caught my eye!  Hmmmm, maybe ideas for quick but eye-catching quilts to use up some of my stash . . . ?  

           

Next I wandered outside to the circus style tent and found my absolute favorite . . . that I liked this very yellow quilt was quilt a surprise . . . not sure why, I’m still exploring that.  But I fell in love with it more and more and more.  

Of course, the best quilts are also best viewed from the back.  The subtle daylight showing through from the front really softened the entire effect – and of course really highlighted the exceptional hand quilting.

There were more – 141 – in all and I could go on and on.  But the highlight of my day was truly visiting with the ladies.  I enjoyed a cappuccino and piece of home-made cake with Loes and Dora.  Then I joined the Open Quilting Bee in the courtyard – the weather has turned warm, but there was cloud cover and a gentle breeze.  This guild breaks for the summer holidays and resumes in September, so many ladies were milling around and catching up with each other, their projects and families. They were all very welcoming and I exchanged small chat in a mix of English and Nederlands. 

But oi vey – I also heard a lot of French – I may need to learn it sooner than I thought.

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