Getting Started with Jane Stickle

Introduction

It’s not hard to see why the Jane Stickle quilt has taken the world by storm. Finished during the Civil War in 1863, the quilt is now housed at the Bennington Museum in Vermont.^​1​ With 5602 pieces^​1​, this quilt is impressive in both size and scope. It’s also truly beautiful. I can see the thought and planning that went into the design. Even though the quilt was made after the invention of the sewing machine,^​2​ the original quilt was hand pieced^​3​.

Brenda Manges Papadakis was so enamored by the quilt that she drafted each block and released a book in 1996, where she called the quilt Dear Jane, which has now become the default name of the quilt.

I’ve only made a few quilts before. Three, in fact. I’ve been sewing for about a little more than a year now- starting because I needed a hobby during the pandemic. I like modern quilts that are bright, and prefer solids over anything. A sampler is definitely outside of my comfort zone.

So the big question is why make this quilt? Most people who I’ve seen make it call it their passion project, or their lifetime quilt. It takes so much time, effort, and money, that it’s often seen as unattainable. I really find that intriguing. Something like the Julie/Julia project, but hopefully a little less butter. I don’t know that I can every really understand what it’s like to be a farmer’s wife during the Civil War, I think undertaking a project like this can help us explore some of those ideas.

Choices to Make

I’ve seen so many amazing examples of what can be done. From modern fabrics creating bright rainbows to carefully chosen reproduction fabrics to make a stunning replica, and many options in between. The possibilities are nearly endless. From what I’ve seen, I have to make choices in so many categories:

Pattern

Linda Dufresne, of Hobby Stash, reports that the original quilt had 5 inch blocks, but the Dear Jane book is drafted with 4.5 inch blocks.^​4​ I believe Linda is reporting unfinished size, whereas Brenda is reporting finished size, but I will have to follow up on that. Linda has graciously posted her patterns of all of the blocks, but has only finished the top and part of the bottom border. She’s currently on hiatus, but hopefully will be able to finish this project in the future. These patterns include templates or foundation paper piecing; they’re truly a treasure. Susan Gatewood has similarly created all of the blocks utilizing many methods, but in the 4.5 inch.^​5​ The Dear Jane book, of course, also has drafted all of the blocks, but lacks instructions. It’s also very difficult to get a copy of the book at the moment, but I have heard that there is supposed to be a reprint in Fall 2021.

Method

With the many pattern options available, it seems I have as many options in method. It’s my intention to do what suits each block best. I love FPP, so will be doing some blocks that way. Many of the blocks have applique, which I would like to do by hand. There’s some blocks that have pieces so tiny that hand sewing seems best. I will be attempting to use the Inklingo freezer paper template method for those.

Color

This is going to be the hardest for me to decide. I am so drawn to bright and bold colors, so I will likely do something akin to the pattern I first saw on Sew Sweetness, but as for specific colors and patterns… I think I may see what strikes my fancy at the time that I’m making a block. As I move into each color, I plan on finding some fabrics that fit. I really want to mix solids and patterns, and hopefully mix in lots of different tones of each color. I feel like if I’m going to do a sampler quilt, I want to make it really be a sampler.

Timeline

The last major thing that I am considering, at least for now, is how long I want to take to make this. Life is busy right now, so I don’t want to commit to something overly ambitious like a block a week, but at the same time, I don’t want to drag things out. As I start sewing the blocks and really getting into the quilt, I think I’ll start to make definite goals, but for now, I want to enjoy my time.

Pathway

Some people chose to go left-to-right, top-to-bottom through the whole quilt, and others do the blocks by looking to see which one excites them at a given time. Since this is depending so much on colors, this is the last choice I make, however I feel like I’ll be in the first category, just to keep myself organized.

Quilting

It appears to be tradition to hand quilt a Jane after spending so much time piecing it, but that is a skill that I don’t posses. Tula Pink says that the amount of effort you spend piecing should equal the amount of effort you spend quilting in this YouTube Video from the Fat Quarter Shop, and I agree with that. I want custom quilting in the borders, with stitch in the ditch along the sashing. But I’m likely years away from making this choice, so things will likely change.

Conclusions

So that’s what I’ve got for now! I want to be intentional in this project, so I’m not buying a whole bunch of fabrics to see what fits. I probably wont even start it for a few weeks. I’m excited to see where this idea goes.

Resources That I’ve Found

• Brenda Manges Papadakis’ Dear Jane: The Two-Hundred Twenty-Five Patterns from the 1863 Jane A. Stickle Quilt
• Inklingo and Dear Jane: In Time of Friendship
• East Dakota Quilter: Dear Jane Resources
• That Quilt: Patterns and Tutorials
• Hobby Stash: Patterns and Tutorials
• Susan Gatewood: Patterns
• #dearjanequilt on Instagram
• The Jane Stick Quilt, Step-by-Step (Facebook Group)
• Dear Jane Quilt Foundation Paper Piecing Group (Facebook Group)
• Dear Jane Quilting Group (Facebook Group)