For Christmas, my Dad gave me a wonderful basket of fabric, quilt kits, notions & a quilting book. He is “super dad,” but he didn’t pick all of these lovely quilter Christmas gifts out himself. He simply asked the local quilt shop for some gift shopping assistance. Boyfriends, sisters, Dads, moms, Aunts, fiancés, husbands – take note – this was a wonderful gift! May I suggest a gift idea? Remember this for the quilter in your life!

One of the fabrics included in my Christmas fabric basket was the Potluck line by American Jane fabrics. I’ve been having a great, messy time with these new fabrics. I didn’t find any written confirmation, but I’m 99% sure these blocks were inspired by the Sally, Dick & Jane books. Once we started inspecting the fabric, my sister Schyler ran into her room and came out with this book. We are pretty sure it was my Mom’s book from childhood. I haven’t looked at one of these charming books in years. I love how these three kid are constantly surrounded by animals. What a wonderful way to grow up! While I was sewing, I had my new sewing room buddy to look out for. She sleeps most of the day, but I did have to keep the fabric out of her way when she was awake. She is only a 9-week-old puppy now, which means she-wants-to-chew-everything! Now that I have Roxie to hang out with, I could relate to Sally, Dick & Jane with all their fun pets.

I made a small, simple quilt highlighting the green gingham surrounding each of the blocks. Each of the blocks features a different set of pets or farm animals. (Originally, I wanted to use colorful sashing squares in each of the corners – but I couldn’t get my math to come out right. If you have any tips on that topic, please let me know!)

I still have tons of blocks left, probably enough for two more small quilts. In the next quilts, I’m planning to incorporate more color. I picked up a yard of each of these prints. They are also from the Potluck line. I love the little chick print! And, I love the daisies because they remind me of summer pastures. The polka dots remind me of the 50s & simplicity – okay, fine, I just love them all! I also have quite a bit of a jelly roll left to use up. 

I’m looking forward to playing with these blocks a bit more. Its amazing how quickly a quilt comes together when you’re not piecing the individual blocks. It almost feels like cheating, you know what I mean? Almost. It’s actually super rewarding to work on something that comes together in a pretty low-stress manner.

PS: Thanks for the fabric Dad! You’re a great girl-gift shopper.