Monday, July 07, 2008

A long~term UFO project

Let me start with saying I am about to make what might be considered a plug for someone. It is not intended to be anything other than an entry about someone I very much admire in the quilt world who I do feel at times is a little underrated in this particular project. Perhaps it will be the first time you are seeing this book and I can highly recommend it. So yes, I suppose I am making a plug but I want to share my latest UFO and also hopefully share a book you may not have known about...

I am a fan of Judie Rothermel. She used to own
The Schoolhouse Quilt Shoppe in Canton, Ohio which is my hometown. I have unfortunately not met her but her husband Bob helped me with choosing the fabrics for my parents bed quilt I made many moons ago. It was one of my early quilts. Since then, Judie has gone on to designing reproduction quilt fabric lines and writing some wonderful books. Here you can see two of her books, The Centennial Sampler and Reproduction Quilt from the Civil War Period 1850-1865 (shown is back cover). The back cover shows the quilt that she made back in the 1980s and here is an excerpt from her book to explain this beautiful quilt:

"My husband Bob, encouraged me to show my best piece of work on the back cover of this book. There is no pattern for the quilt. It is called A Miniature Treasure. It was a nine year labor of love. I start the Quilt in 1981 and completed it in 1990. Many people refer to it as the Dear Jane Quilt. It is not a Dear Jane Quilt. It was started and finished well before this craze. All the patterns I used were from my own drawings. I had never seen the Jane Stickle quilt until I was almost finished with my quilt in the late eighties. If you are interested in the patterns only, not the layout, you will find them in another book I have written entitled Judie's Centennial Sampler."

I love that Judie gives you the chance to reproduce an old quilt and yet make it your own. She has given a choice of 150 patterns to use for this 56 block quilt sampler. It allows you the chance to give the quilt a more unique look as you can change the block choices here and there. This may end up being the biggest challenge as I really love too many of the pattern included. How do you decide?

If you want to see some of Judie's fabrics, just click
here.


I have been working on stitching WIPs and quilt UFOs this year. I am trying not to start new projects but finish old ones. This project finds itself a bit between those two states of old and new. I had bought The Centennial Sampler a number of years ago. I just did not make the time to start and last year I did start a block. This quilt is hand pieced which I am not a huge fan of. I just enjoy doing my piecing by machine. It goes together so perfectly for me and I have more time to concentrate on the hand quilting which I love. I wanted this quilt to look historically correct so I am hand piecing these little five inch blocks. I am also trying not to 'over match' all the fabrics. Our ancestors used what they had and made do.

I had started a single block and enjoyed it but knew I needed to come back to it later as I was too busy with designing the theme projects for my quilt group. That really does take up much of my time. This weekend, I packed up a couple of pieces of my reproduction fabrics and everything I needed to make a couple of blocks from the book as well as put the last seam in the block I had made previously. It had been sitting in two halves. Here are the results of a weekends work. I am going to start taking this with me to Cranberry Cottage on the weekends. It is nice to hand piece there as it is easier not to have to carry my sewing machine along. And it feels 'right' to do this project at my little country retreat in the woods.


I will be starting on two more blocks this coming weekend. I will be making this quilt entirely from my fabric stash. I hope to be able to share new blocks with you each Monday throughout the rest of this year.

If you happen to be working on this quilt, I would love to see yours so far. This is what I mean about this being underrated as I have, as of yet, never heard anyone I know say they are working on it or have even seen the book.

17 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Heidi, I know this book because it is on my wish list but I haven't bought it yet. Your blocks look wonderful. Perhaps after finishing my Civil War Diary Quilt and Dear Jane quilt I can find the time to start on The Centennial Sampler!

Heidi said...

Hi Heidi! I love Judie's fabrics as well, and have quite a few in my stash. This is going to be a wonderful project and a great thing to take on holiday. I was just thinking of what to take with me as we are leaving the end of this week.

Nancy said...

What a wonderful project to do at your cottage Heidi! I will look forward each Monday to see what you have done over the weekend. I LOVE her fabrics!

hazel c UK said...

Judie's designs are lovely and I look forward each week to viewing what you have stitched at your dear little cottage, I can see you now stitching away with the rose arch and garden in the background.
Thank you for sharing.
Hugs,
Hazel

Nancy said...

I like the bottom block the best. Very nice, all of them. Great project again. How big are you planning to make it? I am sitting here missing you on Skype today. I know you said you had a party to go to though, so I know why you are not here. Oh well, Guess Anne Boleyn will have to wait to be read. LOL.
Love you, Mom

Saskia said...

Hi,
Love the book, and love the blocks.
Would love to make such a quilt.
But by hand??! euh don't think so..
I'll will be 85 when its finished LOL
What was the online quiltshop you orderd from long long long times ago? (because youre on a fabricdiet..)
hugs
Saskia

Joni said...

I love this quilt and I'm going to have a look at that book. Now tell me what is the difference between hand piecing and machine piecing? Do you actually sew the whole thing by hand? If so, you are certifiably nuts! (But I love you anyway!)

Carolien said...

Lovely blocks and fabrics, Heidi!
Good luck with it and have a nice weekend at CC, doing this!

Hugs, Carolien

Elizabethd said...

I hadnt seen the book before, Heidi, but think it looks so interesting.
I like your blocks too!

Annemarie said...

Thank you for sharing this, Heidi. I'm getting more and more interested in quilting, but I'm still too much afraid of ruining all those lovely fabrics to actually start.Looking at these pictures and reading this blog post makes me want to run to the quilt shop tomorrow and... Well. You know :o)

Anonymous said...

I can't believe it. Heidi and hand-piecing and also in blue. Wonders will never cease! Can I have a look in the book on the quiltevening? Hugs and groetjes, Elly

And Joni: Thanks for your lovely comment about our quilts lately and your comment for Heidi : that she is nuts, sets me on laughing. Bye

Karen said...

OH BOY Heidi that looks like an amazing challenge that I know your up to. What a great take along project to your little retreat in the woods. Before you know it you will have a stash of blocks. Very pretty the ones that you shared. You go girl :)

Hugs - Karen

Clare said...

Heidi those books look very appealing, and the blocks wonderful, good luck with your project.

mainely stitching said...

Gorgeous blocks, Heidi!! Whew, tatting, quilting, stitching ... sounds like you can do it all! :D

Kim said...

Always "plug" a friends work. We love to see what's out there in the world of quilting as well as what you are stitching on. :)

Solstitches said...

I love Judie's fabric lines but had no idea she had a book.
I'll check it out on Amazon and put it on my wishlist.
Even though I'd probably never make the quilt I just know I'd love looking at the book.
The blocks you've done are so nice. I love that you're piecing them by hand. Now I have a close up of your hand sewing I have the feeling these blocks will be a masterpiece!

Anonymous said...

Hallo Heidi,wat leuk om je blog te lezen,ik heb dat boek van Judy Rothermel ook nog nooit gezien maar binnenkort ga ik naar Amerika,dus wie weet zie ik het daar wel...de quilt ziet er in ieder geval prachtig uit..;-)))