My Dear Jane Journey

In a previous post I wrote about the Dear Jane quilt. Well, I have finally taken pictures and posted them. You can view all of them here.

I am completely hand sewing the blocks and using Civil War reproduction fabrics. I have been working on this quilt on and off (mostly off) for nine years. It is a great little thing to work on while watching TV.

I only have 27 complete out of the 225 blocks.

If you have been working on a Dear Jane quilt, please post the web address where others can view your pictures in the Comment section.

New Direction

I have come to the decision to change the direction of this blog. It was beginning to interfere with the reason I started it in the first place - to encourage myself to quilt more.

I enjoy researching and trying new techniques, but that was all I was doing. I was not finishing any of my current projects, nor was I starting any new ones. I was only researching and creating wall hangings so I could write about the technique.

I also came to the realization that I was spending a lot of my free time promoting this blog, checking statistics, and thinking of new ways that I could update more (because more updates meant more readers).

I attempted to make this blog about the readers, but that is not the reason I started it. I know it is selfish, but I started this blog for me - because I wanted to do more with my quilting and my writing. I have decided to make this blog more personal. If this is not to your taste, I understand why you would unsubscribe, though I hope some of you choose to stick around to witness (and hopefully enjoy) my quilting journey.

Flower Pounding - Fabric Dying Technique

The art of pounding flowers to dye fabric was used by Cherokee women and has been rediscovered by Ann Frischkorn and Amy Sandrin. Their book, Flower Pounding: Quilt Projects for All Ages provides clear and succinct instructions, so I will not rehash everything they say. What I will do is to give you a few pointers that I learned and share a lot of photos of my experience with flower pounding.

Simply put, flower pounding entails placing flowers on fabric, taping them down and then pounding the flower with a hammer to dye the fabric with the flower's juices.

Tips:

• Be careful when taping close to the edge of the fabric. When you pull the tape you may cause the fabric to pull and fray.
• Start pounding in the center of the flower and work your way out. This keeps the shape of the petals and preserves the lighter centers.
• Pound the background petals and leaves first and then do the foreground. This give a nice dimension to the arrangement.
• Have a paper towel handy. Wipe the hammer head when you start to see frequent runs while pounding. Small runs will not show through, but the wetter the hammer head becomes, the more they show through.
• When you iron to set the flower dye, be prepared for a horrible smell. It is like moldy leaves. Maybe different flowers produce a different smell and I just picked the wrong ones.
• Dark fabrics and light colored flowers do not turn out very well. They just look like stains on the fabric.

The bad thing about this method is that the colors easily fade, so I did not want to put too much time into a wall hanging that is not going to last. Ann and Amy state in their book that direct sunlight and washing will cause the colors to fade. I am hanging my quilt where it will get occasional sunlight. I'll update to let you know how the colors hold up.


One thing that I did differently then what Ann and Amy recommended was how I outlined the flowers. They recommend using Perma pens and drawing outlines. I chose to use freestyle quilting with variegated thread. I think the effect worked well. It also gave me more practice using the freestyle quilting method. Not back for only a second attempt.

This was a fun technique and was great to do with my daughter. She had a great time.

If you cannot find the book for the instructions, they are also available online at http://www.hgtv.com/crafting/flower-pounding/index.html

Quilts for Causes - Beloved Quilts

This week's quilting cause is the homeless. The goal of Beloved Quilts, a project of Possibilities Factory, is to organize, make, and distribute 100 individual twin-size quilts, each reading "BELOVED," to those displaced by violence or poverty. They are currently seeking donations and volunteers to complete this work.

To help, contact Pascha Marlin Griffiths at pascha@pfactory.org.

Pascha maintains the Beloved Quilts' blog and provides great information on the current needs, efforts, and sew-in events.

Smaller Blocks, Bigger Variety - Sampler Quilts

Sampler quilts are great fun for several reasons. First there is the variety. Making the same quilt block over and over can become tedious. With a sampler quilt each block is different. Secondly, you get to use several different quilting techniques in one quilt. Some blocks are hand pieced, foundation pieced, appliqued, or sometimes machine pieced. Another benefit to sampler quilts is that the blocks tend to be smaller, so the blocks are very portable and easy to work on while waiting for ballet class to finish or school to let out.

A great book with block patterns ranging from traditional to farm animals is 501 Quilt Blocks: A Treasury of Patterns for Patchwork & Appliqué (Crafts)by Lynett Chiles and Joan Lewis. There are wonderful blocks for every holiday, season, and mood. The block patterns are for four inch blocks and are ready for your template paper (I use freezer paper).

Another sampler quilt is the State Fair Sampler. Patterns can be found at Sentimental Stitches. From this site you can download and print PDF patterns of each block. The patterns include instructions and printed patterns for six inch blocks. I am doing mine in red and white since the quilt won second place in the Ohio State Fair in the early 1900's.

Finally, one of the most famous sampler quilts is the Dear Jane Quilt. Brenda Manges Papadakis mapped each 5 inch block by hand. The original quilt was sewn by Jane A. Blakely Sickle in 1863. The Dear Jane Quilt has a large following and the friendliest list-serv I have ever encountered. I will not turn this post into a Dear Jane post, but take a few moments to look at the Dear Jane site for information on the quilt, the pattern book, and the "List-That-Knows-All." I have been working on my Baby Jane (what copies of the original Jane Quilt are called) for several years, and am still enjoying my journey.

Quilts for Causes

This week's feature quilting cause is Wrap Them in Love Foundation. They collect donated quilts and distribute them to children around the world, so they can be wrapped in love and comfort. The foundation feels that a quilt is a very special thing. It isn't just a blanket; it has been lovingly created by a real person. A quilter leaves a part of themselves in every quilt they make. The child who receives it will be able to snuggle up in all the love that comes in that quilt.

Their guidelines are simple:

• Make a quilt or quilts and send or deliver them to:
  Wrap Them in Love
  2522-A Old Hwy 99 S
  Mt. Vernon, WA  98273
  USA
• Tie or quilt them fairly close so that they can hold up to lots of loving and washing.
• Quilts of 40" X 60" size are recommended, but you can make them any size. There are older children as well as babies who need them.
• Please be sure to put a label on each quilt that includes your name, where you are from, and the date you made the quilt.

The web site includes some wonderful pictures of children that have received these quilts.

I know a lot of quilters make quilts as gifts. Why not make one as a gift for a child in need?

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How to Make Yo-Yo's - The Fast and Easy Way

There are a lot of great things about making yo-yo's and now it is easier than ever to make a lot of them. For a quick introduction on what yo-yo's are and to learn the traditional method of making yo-yo's, see the Quilting site at About.com.

The fast and easy method is to use a yo-yo maker. I use a 45mm size maker by Clover. The makers come in various sizes and shapes, including hearts and flowers. Each yo-yo took me approximately 5 minutes to complete (after making a few practice ones).

To make the yo-yo's:

1. Cut a scrap of fabric larger than your yo-yo maker. I keep the scraps at least one inch larger than the maker at the smallest point.
2. Place the fabric face-down onto the base of the maker.
3. Put the disc part of the maker on top of the fabric and then snap it into place. Make sure that you properly align the disc and the plate.
4. Trim the fabric leaving a 1/4" - 1/2" seam allowance.
5. Fold the seam allowance toward the center of the disc and insert your threaded needle into the starting point on the disc side.
6. Push the needle all the way through to the base side of the maker.
7. Bring the needle up by pushing it through the notch on the base side up and then through to the disc side.
8. Continue doing this all the way around the maker.
   TIP: Do not sew outside of the holes in the maker.
9. Push the maker apart, and gently remove the fabric from the disc.
10. Pull your needle and thread to gather the yo-yo.
    TIP: Shape the yo-yo as you pull.
    TIP: Pull gently so you do not break the thread.
11. Knot the thread and cut it.

Yo-yo's are a perfect way to use up some of your small squares of leftover fabric. You can make up the yo-yo's from leftover fabric when you complete a project. Each time you finish a project, add to your yo-yo stash. Before you know it you will have enough to make a blanket, toy animal, or wall-hanging. Check out Yo-Yo Cat & Mouse Pattern By Indygo Junction.

They are so easy to make that it is the perfect project while watching TV or sitting in a car. My 11 year-old daughter loves to make yo-yo's. I'm not sure what she does with them, but whenever she has a scrap of material she asks for the yo-yo maker.

Pick one up and give it a try. I'd love to see some of your creations!

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