Now, even tho I am somewhat of a fan of Pride and Predjudice, and Sense and Sensibility I must admit I was introduced to those stories not so long ago by great productions of those stories along with Emma as MOVIES... I have not ever actually read any of the Jane Austen books except for Northanger Abbey, which I think must be her least known novel.
Really, the idea of the blocks that Barbara Brackman plans to tie into Jane's life seemed to me a great way of learning some details of Jane's life and to work on a favourite pastime, all at the same time...
I am not planning to make a quilt of these blocks, nor do I plan to use retro or vintage fabrics or fabrics that will co ordinate all the blocks into one large quilt. Barbara does speak of the kind of fabrics that would be appropriate for the TIME of this quilt in the first post she did to announce this project.
I am thinking of creating a BOOK of Blocks. I do have in mind a method to create each page of the book, using the blocks. I have not as yet confirmed exactly how I plan to do this BOOK, but as I progress with the blocks, I plan to do a tutorial of how I put the pages together -- each page I am hoping will be a small finished quilt with top, batting, backing and binding...
In the meantime I dug into my "milk" carton where I keep scrap and leftover fabrics from previous projects...
The first block, posted on Barbara's site is called BRIGHT STAR and she explains how this block references Jane Austen -- Barbara says that this block was published in the Chicago Tribune in 1934. When you read about Jane Austen for yourself, the Bright Star block seems quite appropriate to start this project.
A few tips if you make this block:
Barbara does not supply sewing details other than the pieces and size and shape of pieces to cut and sew...
If you want to make this block, because it is entirely made up of 1/2 square triangles, careful and accurate piecing is imperative!
I use a method of sewing triangles together that you can easily learn from this tutorial at Connecting Threads . The tutorial shows two methods of sewing 1/2 square triangles and the writer says that the second method is their favorite. Mine Too!
Another 'trick' to remember when sewing the sections of this block is that the squared side of the larger triangle should line up with the squared edge of the strip of pieced triangles -- you will find that once sewn, the long edge will then line up nicely even tho it looks like it is too big...
When you get the square pieced, it is a good idea to "square up" before sewing the 4 sections together. Ideally use a 6.5 inch square ruler if you have one, as this section should measure 6.5 inches on every side. Place the diagonal line of the ruler exactly along the longest diagonal seam, hold it still and with your rotary cutter trim the bits that fall outside the edge of the ruler... Perfection!
Voila! Bright Star!
And, Well, Spring has arrived here on the West Coast!
My first year on the West Coast was 1986 and the blooms on the ornamental cherry trees was something that my eyes have adored every single spring since then!
Linking up today with The Needle and Thread Network
