Dear Jane,

Call me crazy, but I'm starting a project that I'll slowly work on for the next year or two. Perhaps I'll make a table runner in the end or maybe I'll be ambitious enough to finish the whole quilt. It's my version of the Dear Jane Quilt. The original quilt (pictured) was completed during the Civil War in 1863 by Jane A. Stickle of Vermont. The quilt has 169 4.5" blocks, plus 56 additional border triangles. A real masterpiece.

The Dear Baby Jane blog group has just begun this project, and I'll learn and practice my quilting techniques as I follow along. I will complete at least two blocks per week, so it shouldn't be overwhelming and I can still work on other projects as time permits. Many quilters choose beautiful historical reproduction fabrics, and being a student of history, I certainly considered this option. However, I ultimately decided mine will be slightly more contemporary in monotone shades of Kona cotton purples (one of my favorite colors) and white background. I don't think I'll tire of the fabric as easily using solids. I was mostly inspired by this black and white version and this blue and yellow version on flickr.

Below are my three first blocks - B13/C9/D13. Two simple machine-pieced blocks, and one tear drop block done in reverse-applique (as described here, although I used a paper template and my hera maker to draw the applique line - next time I'll try the freezer paper method). I'm not thrilled with my hand stitches on the tear drops, but I think I'll have to learn to live with a little imperfection. That's life, right? I've also made very handy use of my new Clover finger press tool instead of ironing seams. My pattern book should arrive soon, and I'm anxious to study it.