New Orleans House Project

Friday, April 18, 2014

Austen Family Album: Getting to Know Jane

The first two blocks in the Austen Family Album BOW series are complete.  
I'm enjoying both the block construction and the weekly background stories about Jane Austen and her family.  BOW author Barbara Brackman has provided all kinds of lovely links to Austen-related sites.  Better than all that (really, what could be better?) - I'm totally enthralled with the Austen books I have been reading. Well, actually listening to Jane Austen's books thanks to Audible, but I think listening is the best way to enjoy the story!  I had read Pride & Prejudice in the past, but I this time around I especially enjoyed the humor and satire.
Block 1 - Bright Star for Jane Austen
I'm using a collection from Moda called "Curio" (designed by Basic Grey) for my Austen blocks.  I wanted to start out with yellow, since it's a color that's a little out of my comfort zone.  Honestly, the collection is coordinated so well it wasn't difficult to choose the fabrics for this block.  I do think I will need to continue finding light colored neutrals to work with this collection - there isn't a lot of contrast in the original fabrics.
Block 2 - Sister's Choice for Cassandra E. Austen
I used some fussy cutting for this block: the lacy greens in the center were part of a fabric collage stripe.  I only had enough of the lacy stripe for 4 blocks, so I kept playing with the other fabrics until I found a layout I liked.  I may need to go hunting online for more of this fabric collection, as the 12" blocks use up fabric pretty quickly.
That's my Austen Family Album update.  Now I'm off for more sewing and listening to Northanger Abbey.