Hi again, and welcome to another Primitive Gatherings Friday evening Sewcialites session! This week our block comes to us from Jane Davidson of Quilt Jane Quilt Shop based out of Australia. Jane has been in the quilting game for many years and considers herself to be a modern quilter today. She often leans towards a contemporary or modern style of design, but will occasionally stir the pot by using a traditional pattern paired with reproduction fabrics. Jane also describes herself as having no fear of using color. Sticking her her motto, “if is it not challenging then it is not worth doing,” she will jump at the opportunity to add vibrance and challenge to her quilts using a mixture of prints, solids, and textures.
Though her block designs can be known for being on the challenging side, Jane also loves a simple yet versatile block. Block #21 – “Dapper“ is what she describes as a humble 9-patch snowball. Rated as a beginner quilt on the Fat Quarter Shop QAL Block Skill Level Scale, the potential for “Dapper” to become more complicated is definitely there – all depending on which fabrics you choose and where you decide to put them. Its simplicity makes this quilt a good choice for a variety of fabric options, including solids, prints, stripes, dots, and especially fabrics that lend to fussy cutting. The level of complexity all depends on what the results you want and how much time you have to put in.
As you can see “Dapper” is made up of four basic squares and four half-square triangles on the outside, and another basic square in the center. In other words, challenge level wise, this block could be as about as simple as it gets if you decide to make it that way. If you like the idea of simple, as always I suggest using my custom designed PG Triangle Paper where you can in this block – and otherwise – to make things easier for yourself. Remember, if your triangle paper stash is running low you can always stock up on the PG website by clicking the button below. 
As you most likely already know, for my blocks I’m using my Garden Gatherings fabric line, leaving out the five tans. For this block I chose to go with a dark pink floral print on a mid-tone pink background, paired with a larger red floral print on orange, and a navy ditsy print on mustard. For the background I used a selection from the Garden Gathering Shirtings Collection, #49176 15 – a cream fabric with an adorable tiny mustard/orange floral print. Take a look!
I had fun doing this block because it was super easy and fast to do since I already had my fabrics picked out. I have several pieces of Garden Gatherings left over from other projects in all shapes and sizes just waiting to be used, so it didn’t take me long to find some that worked. A few minutes of basic sewing later and voilà – done! I appreciate quick projects like this because nothing feels better than accomplishing a goal, ticking the box, and being able to say, “ok – what’s next?” Finishing one project goal inspires me to finish another, even if it’s just a block out of a larger project. Small accomplishments are still accomplishments!
Late to the game for Sewcialites 2? Don’t worry. Even though we’re near the end it’s not too late to start this Quilt-Along. Many of the blocks are fairly simple to make and can be done in an afternoon, so catching up is a snap once you find the time. You can always grab patterns for previously posted blocks on the Sewcialites 2 Landing Page by clicking the button below. You can also visit the Sewcialites 2 Block Archive on my blog which is listed in the main menu of links at the top of the page.
Newly released blocks are posted on Kim’s blog The Jolly Jabber, along with a video tutorial on her YouTube Livestream the same day. Each designer will also post their own block to either their blog or their website on that day as well. I will also be posting each block release here on MY blog every Friday for your convenience. Fabric requirements and all block patterns are on the Sewcialites 2 Landing Page, which you can access by clicking the link below. If you’d like to get automatic updates on Sewcialites 2 you can subscribe to the blog by signing up in the Email subscription box by visiting the Landing Page, or by subscribing to the YouTube channel by clicking HERE.
Ahh Friday. I love this time of evening at the end of each week to kind of sit and reflect. My drive home will be nice since it’s finally still light out after 5:00 p.m. I bet the sunset will be beautiful. Before I head home I do want to say thank you to everyone who dropped a comment regarding the wool and quilt subscription boxes last week. I read every single one of your comments and testimonials and they were wonderful! I am humbled by your kind words. As I said before, there are no better reviews that by word of mouth and you definitely proved me right. In fact, it was really hard to narrow down prize winners for the week to be honest. I wanted to give out a prize to every single one of you! If the shipping cost of doing that didn’t kill me the girls in the shipping department definitely would so… unfortunately, I can’t do that!
I did managed to narrow it down to just a few so please help me in saying congratulations to Sharlene A., Sharon S., and Pat W. – thank you for your comments! Please remember to check your email for a message from Heidi (Note: I do not post last names or email addresses for your privacy, so if you think you’re one of the lucky winners this week please be sure to check your email. You can also contact Heidi at heidin@primitivegatherings.us if you have not already received a prize confirmation letter from her. If you think you are a winner but have not received a prize confirmation email, be sure to check your spam folder – it’s not often but our emails will sometimes end up there)!
I wish you all a safe and happy weekend! For anyone in the area please drive safe over night and tomorrow as we get another 4″ of sloppy snow and then hit 50º by Sunday afternoon. Hopefully we’ll see some sun? It doesn’t look promising. 🙁 Oh well, you know what that means… Looks like I’ll be staying inside to stitch! I mean… What else can I do? See you all on Monday! ~Lisa
