Dear Jane Journey

     My intent is for this page to document a journey I have only just begun.  I haven't been the world's best at following through with blogging although I really do enjoy it.  Mostly, I'm wanting to keep a record of my newest undertaking.

     Rewind to February 2013, I'm reading through one of the quilting magazines I had picked up at Barnes and Noble.  It was either "The Quilt Life" or "Quilters Newsletter".  I come across an article on a quilt that was made and gifted by several people as a thank you for a woman's part in a red and white quilt show.  The quilt was a red and white version of Jane A. Stickle's "Dear Jane" quilt.

     The contrast of the red and white immediately caught my eye.  The more I looked and scanned the blocks of the quilt, I realized I was seeing something very extraordinary.  It drew me in!

    Enter the wonder of modern technology, my dear friend Google!  I googled "Dear Jane" and embarked on a search that has led me to an obsession, a passion, a project that is calling to my innermost being!  I would never have guessed that a quilt made by a woman in Vermont, 150 years ago, would speak to my heart in such a way.

     Brenda Manges Papadakis fell in love with Jane's quilt way before I did.  She spent years researching the quilt and the life of the woman who created it.  All of her love and research culminated in her book, "Dear Jane: The Two Hundred Twenty-Five Patterns from the 1863 Jane A. Stickle Quilt".

     Mission 1: Obtain this book.  We ordered a used copy on Amazon.com on April 6.  It arrived yesterday, April 13.  Woo hoo!

     For the past week I've been visiting Anina at That Quilt Blog.  I've also been scouring Brenda Papadakis's website: Dear Jane.  Without even seeing the blocks up close I knew there would be piecing, paper piecing, applique', and Anina uses a good bit of reverse applique'.  Joy of all joys.  Not.

     So, I started practicing different forms of applique' and reverse applique'.  It was as awful as I thought.  But I am tenacious if nothing else.  So I persevered!  I'll do my best to report on what has worked for me and what hasn't.  We'll see if this ends up being helpful or interesting or just something for my grandkids to read someday!

     Blessings to all,

     Lesa

Dear Jane Journey Posts:

April 14, 2013 - Dear Jane Journey Post 1
April 15, 2013 - Dear Jane Journey Post 2
April 17, 2013 - Dear Jane Journey Post 3
April 18, 2013 - Dear Jane Journey Post 4
April 19, 2013 - Dear Jane Journey Post 5
April 20, 2013 - Dear Jane Journey Post 6
April 24, 2013 - Dear Jane Journey Post 7