Put A Label On It!

 I sewed this label on last night.  I bought a package of these labels a while back, and they really seem appropriate.  While I don't have a bun in my hair and don't fill up the chair quite as well as this lady, I do admit to the cat and the treadle.
I wish I had labeled more of my quilts.  Sometimes I just write my name and the date on the quilt in permanent ink, but often I don't even do that.  Mostly I can't remember when I made a certain quilt.  A label would really help.

Here's a huge label I made from an old sewing machine advertisement.  I even recorded which machine I used to make the quilt--a Singer model 27 dated 1892.

In my volunteer work with the Wisconsin Museum of Quilts & Fiber Arts, I always make sure to take a photograph of any labels we may be lucky enough to have on documented quilts.  We don't think we'll forget, but we do!  And the next generation will not have any idea.  So label your quilts already!

Okay, I'm down off the soapbox now.

Here's the Reproduction Chain quilt I was working on last week, all done.

The binding is stitched down, now I just have to wash it to get the chalk marks out.  Today I'm doing our regular laundry, so I might get to it tomorrow.

So on to the next project, right?  And the next one for me is my Jane Austen block of the week quilt.

Back in May, I posted about Barbara Brackman's Jane Austen Family Album quilt.  I was only 5 blocks in then.  I've got 30 done now, and I was setting them together this weekend.

Here I've got 4 of the 6 rows laid out on the floor, with sashing and cornerstones.  I had a completely different idea about how I was going to set them, but it didn't pass the audition.

These blocks are very very different.  I didn't use a controlled color palette.  In fact, I used all sorts of different scraps of fabrics I'd been saving for years.  And of course, like any sampler, the block patterns are wildly different.

You can see how different they are.  I had planned a light sashing, but it just couldn't contain the blocks.  By the way, the block in the center is Bright Star, the one Barbara intended to represent Jane Austen herself.

This is one of my favorite blocks.  It's called Friendship, and the center square is a toile with two women talking together.
There were 36 blocks in the series, but I had decided to make only 30 before it even started.  I've never liked square quilts, and 30 seems about the perfect number for 12 in. blocks.

I'm going to quilt it in 3 sections so I can move the quilt around easily while I work.  I think I'll probably want to quilt each block differently.
Making the Jane Austen sampler has been such a learning experience.  Every week Barbara shared interesting facts and visuals from Jane's time period and details about her family and friends.  It was like taking a free class.
Here's a link to my previous post, which has a link to the Jane Austen Family Album block of the week:
Sundays with Jane

I've also been watching all of the movies based on Jane Austen's work--well, most of them.  I'm not really interested in zombies.

This one is my absolute favorite:  The BBC version of Pride and Prejudice, starring Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy.



It's an old one, from 1980 or so.  I like it not because I'm a huge fan of Colin Firth (but what's not to like?), but because it is so true to the book, and the character actors are so good.
We're still deep in winter here, but there is a hope of spring, and we know May will be here eventually.  Until then, we've just got to keep warm, and keep sewing.
Happy Quilting!