Wednesday, January 11, 2017

Dear Jane from a Galloping Horse

The quilter's motto: If it looks okay as you're riding by on a galloping horse, then it's good enough.


I am trying to make my Dear Jane quilt a priority this year. Wish me luck. It's slow going. Also doesn't look like much but I finished three blocks last week and two this week so I'm happy -





That one with the 16 peels (set in a 4 1/2" block) took me sooo long. I'd sew a couple of peels, get frustrated, then stop, pick it up the next day, repeat. I wanted those peels to line up perfectly. When applique is this small it's frustrating.


The perfect view of my block from a galloping horse, no? Or a plane. Can't see any mistakes if I squint just a little either.

 Sure looks good enough to me although I know I'm going to get into trouble when I sew those 1/4" seams since I didn't leave enough room. Oh well. It is what it is and I will just have to fudge it.


Looks like Jane had some trouble with this one too. This is what keeps me going - some of Jane's blocks from the original quilt (dated 1863) are far from perfect but the entire quilt itself is still so incredibly beautiful. Perhaps mine will be beautiful too?


19 comments:

quiltgrannie said...

Kathy, I know your quilt is going to be fabulous!!

Ann at Prairie Primrose said...

Yours will be beautiful upclose and flying by! I've been wanting to start one so I am looking forward to being inspired by your progress this year!

Tina W. In Oregon said...

It's kind of like longarm quilting - you know when you make a mistake but it's hard to find when you're done with the whole thing! Your blocks look great to me and you're doing it! Keep up the good work!
Tina in Oregon

Ann in PA said...

Kathy, All of your blocks look sooooo good; your Dear Jane will be a beautiful quilt. You are inspiring the rest of us to keep on track. I love that "the galloping horse"....need to get one of those horse weathervanes as a reminder not to stress too much.

Judy Balek said...

You inspire me to get back to mine.

Anonymous said...

Your blocks are looking great, and your finished quilt will be amazing!! So if there is a little slight mis-stitch somewhere....don't worry about it!!
Sandra B
Scb304@juno.com

Cathryn in Corvallis said...

Thanks so much for your saying "If it looks OK from a galloping horse, it's good enough!" (exclamation point mine) I nearly lost a night's sleep after quilting a border that wasn't quite perfect, trying to decide if I should take it out and redo it - your saying came just in time! I'm going to put it up on my quilt stash shelf where I can see it every day! I love perfect, but it's not worth sleep:-)

JoAnne said...

My mom always used the galloping horse test and I do too. Trying to stay motivated to finish a Dear Jane also - just keep making those little blocks and you'll get there!

Melody A. said...

your opening sentence made me laugh!! most of us are perfectionists about our projects, so what a good mind set that would be. and I love the horse silhouette in your photo, he really is at a full gallop !!! I think your Dear Jane Quilt will be magnificent, I haven't seen a single one that isn't so just keep going.

Carla said...

Your blocks look wonderful. I think as quilters we are our own enemy, even when we show our work we want to point out the mismatched points or the fudge seems.Looking forward to seeing your blocks together.Have you started adding sashing? A suggestion from the Jane list over the years, is if you are using the original layout add the 1" x 4 1/2" strip to the same side of all the blocks but the last one in each row. When you have a row done add the sashing to the bottom and assemble the rows. It is a long time consuming job if you wait and do them all at one time.

Anonymous said...

Yours will be absolutely gorgeous. Cannot tell you how much I enjoy your blog. Thank you.

Paige said...

I like your attitude, finished is better than perfect! The only thing is...your blocks look fantastic!

Charlotte said...


We tend to be so critical of our work but as you mentioned even Jane had some difficulty with that block. When I saw her quilt this fall, I noticed that it was not "perfect" but it was beautiful. Yours will be too. You go girl - you're making good progress.

Charlotte

Ada Plouvier-Kopitopoulou said...

I started the Farmer's Wife quilt. 6"x6". The blocks look big compared to yours!!

liz said...

That was one of my Mom's saying. I always use it. My points are never quite right. Your blocks look great to me

NancyS said...

That was one of my grandma's sayings, too. Your block looks amazing. Keep going!

Anonymous said...
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Ruth said...

I used machine applique on this block and many more. I don't think you can tell from a galloping horse!

Tammy@T's Daily Treasures said...

I like that motto. I don't quilt, but crochet and cross-stitch and believe that anything handmade does not have to be perfect. Your squares are lovely.