Finished My February DJ Block :)

This is my A-7 block finished and posted to the Janiac's Unite Blog.  It's nice to get a little hand work done in the hustle and bustle of the rest of the day :)

Enjoy the day!
~ Dawn

A Little Down Time = A Finished DJ Block!

I was able to capture a few minutes for myself this weekend for little hand stitching, and I finished a Dear Jane block!  This is my version of B-3.  This can be pieced, but you know me...I appliqued mine.  (I just made two Four-patch blocks, and used one of them to applique a circle on top of the other.)

That makes block number 13 for me on my Dear Jane Quilt.  I'm not moving at lightning speed, just fitting it in when I have the down time, and keeping it stress free.  I have two doctor appointments this week, so who knows ~ with all that waiting room time, I just may get another one done :)

Enjoy the day!
~ Dawn

Are You a Janiac?

This is my A-1 block in my budding little Dear Jane collection.  I had started my Baby Jane several years ago, but tend to put it aside for long periods of time.  I have twelve blocks completed that I've done in my "spare time" ~ that means it's kind of slow going, because spare time is pretty scarce around here lately!

I'm excited because I found this cool blog group that will help to motivate me to keep preparing blocks that I can work on in my little stolen "spare" moments.  I shared a few of my finished Dear Jane Blocks on the Janiac's Blog in This Post.  Keep following for some great Dear Jane inspirations from all of the members of the Janiac's Unite blog group!

Enjoy the day!
~ Dawn

The Art and Simplicity of One Block at a Time

So lately it's been all about making blocks. Slowly but surely they will become quilts one day.

This first one is an addition to my Dear Jane collection of blocks. It's J-13, and again I used the tutorial that can be found on the That Quilt Blog. It came together like a charm :)

This is my first block of the Thimbleberries Club quilt for this year. I'm working on the shop sample now, and the fabrics should all be in for us to start the club in March. In Month One we will be making two of these little trees.

Sometimes just focusing on one block at a time, and not the whole quilt makes for a more relaxing and enjoyable quilting experience.

Enjoy the Process & Enjoy the day!
~ Dawn

Another Little Dear Jane Block Completed

I worked all weekend, but I don't have much in the way of finished projects to show for it. Yesterday was Civil War Sunday though, and I prepared a little Dear Jane block to work on. So we started with some goodies to sustain us.

Then my friend Tiffany brought the second course. Don't they just look like a yummy little four patch block?

And with the help of some hot tea, I finished L-13 last night to add to my small, but growing Dear Jane block collection. I used the tutorial from That Quilt Blog and it worked great!

Enjoy the day!
~ Dawn

Dear Janes & Civil War Sundays

On the first Sunday of each month we have a group that meets at the shop for "Civil War Sunday" where we work on anything Civil War or Reproduction themed. I've been working some on my Civil War Sampler that I started at the class that Karen Witt of Reproduction Quilts taught last summer ~ I'm piecing it all by hand, so it'll be a while before it's actually a quilt! Some of us are also doing Dear Jane blocks. Here are the blocks I have done so far:

These are patterned after an 1863 quilt by a lady named Jane A. Stickle and can be found in the book Dear Jane by Brenda Papadakis. They finish 4 1/2". The original quilt has 169 of these little guys in the body of it, 52 triangle blocks that make up the pieced borders, and 4 pieced corner blocks (that's 225 pieced blocks) ~ It's quite stunning! We'll see how many I make, it's a modest start, but right now I'm just enjoying the process. They are fun to do, and you can finish one in a short period of time (at least most of them).

To help with the process in making these blocks, I found this great blog called That Quilt, all about Baby Janes and has great step by step directions of block construction. I'll keep the button here on my blog for future linkage. Check it out!

RoseMary Swartwood who attends our Jo Morton group shared with us her Dear Jane quilt so far. It is beautiful! As you can see, she is doing it in all blue and white fabrics, and each block is a different blue/white print, not one repeats. She is quilting each little block as she makes them, so she is able to put rows together and they are complete! I've been watching it grow and it's just amazing!

Come to And Sew It Goes if you can for Civil War Sunday group, it's informal, drop in and free! Just a time to stitch and share with like minded quilters. Definately bring show & tell! First Sunday of each month from 1:00 - 3:00. If you can't come, send me pictures of your Dear Jane blocks or other Civil War projects!

Enjoy the day!

~ Dawn