Dear Jane,

Image from Bennington Museum

Could you have possibly had any idea that your Quilt would cause such a fuss?  That those 169 Five Inch Blocks surrounded by a deep scalloped pieced border that you meticulously hand stitched would take the interest and imagination of thousands of quilters across the globe?
And, 150 years after you tied off the French knot that you used as a full stop in the bottom corner block that declares "War Time 1863-Pieces 5602".
Could you have ever imagined that across the Ocean there would gather 60 Dear Jane Quilts in one exhibition in a celebration of the Quilt that now tests us all?

Stepping into the cool of the Box Hill Town Hall with it's historic Art Deco architecture I felt that I'd stepped back in time.

My eyes gazed across the room where stand upon stand identical quilts stood proudly.....

.... Well,  some were identical

... and some were Bright

... and some were Blue

... and some were subtly elegant in Burgundy with plain borders

and Others had the Quilt Angels working overtime with their incredible pieced backings.

And each and every one of them left me in awe of the women who had shared their Dear Janes and Baby Janes and Janes who had travelled to Africa and Japan and yes there was even an 'Abandoned Jane' amongst the display of finished and unfinished work.

After spending a pleasant hour and an half studying the quilts, I went looking for somewhere to have a quiet Cup of Tea.

But it was here, the ladies of the Australian Quilters Association had yet one more surprise, for each table was set with a pretty floral centrepiece set in a Cup with Saucer on a 9 patch Dear Jane place mat!


Just Perfect.





Dear Jane Exhibition
Box Hill Town Hall
1022 Whitehorse Road
Box Hill Vic 3128
8-10 February 2013
10:00am - 4:00pm