Monday, July 25, 2011

The Finished Bow Tie Quilt

The weekend weather in Melbourne was cool and overcast, if not damp and rainy, and did lend itself to spending time basting a quilt.  I made the quilt backing and basted the quilt on Saturday:


Followed by quite some time behind the sewing machine (I am guessing up to 5 hours) quilting away one stitch at a time ...


And so today,  having finished stitching the binding only this morning,  I can show you the finished quilt; what a great way to start the week.  I love the effect of this Bow Tie block layout (by no means a "new" or original design!), and have enjoyed working with these fabrics.


Fabrics: 
The trickiest part in this quilt's construction was working out the correct way to press the seams of each bow tie block, thereby ensuring that the seams could be matched or "locked" together throughout the orientation of each block when piecing the quilt top.  I am not a fan of sewing blocks together where the seams cannot be butted together.  It makes matching seams so much more difficult.


For the back up of the quilt I have used some of my yardage (and favorite prints) from the Picnics and Fairgrounds collection and therefore it ties in well with the style and colors of the quilt.  I have kept the quilting to a minimum, stitching a single set of straight lines from edge to edge, on both sides of every second horizontal and vertical seam line.  Tedious (yes ~ the quilting gets boring after the first three rows) but always worth the effort.


For binding fabric I have chosen to use a wide blue and white stripe which also ties in well with the colors of the quilt and adds a pretty frame to the quilt (which rather unusually so does not otherwise include any striped fabrics).

I have updated my Etsy Store:


You can find the listing for the Bow Tie Quilt here


Thank you for stopping by,
Rita

21 comments:

  1. Ok, this has nothing to do with quilts, but when I saw the words 'cool and overcast', I wept a little. It's so revoltingly hot here. I am jealous.

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  2. Beautiful quilt!! Thanks for sharing it!
    Linda
    homesweetquiltinghome.blogspot.com

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  3. Looks great Rita! I had the same seam pressing problem with my Katie Jump Rope Bow Tie quilt. I gave up on figuring it out the 'right way' for nesting seams. You are so good to go that extra mile. I'm sure whoever buys this quilt will love it.

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  4. Cool and overcast sounds great to me right now! We're well over 100 with the heat index. I guess you always want what you can't have! He he. Love the bowties!

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  5. Yes, the bowtie may not be new or original, but in the Red Pepper tradition, your version is certainly FRESH and FUN. Love that delicious canary in there, Rita! It's a colour I would not have chosen off the Kona colour card and now I'll have to give it a second look. Thanks for the inspiration.

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  6. I love this one Rita, esp the centers in yellow and white. Fabulous xo

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  7. so pretty, I love the added canary.

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  8. I may try this pattern someday!! I love the way yours turned out:)

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  9. Love your bow tie quilt. I recently made one, more in the style of prairie women. So different, but both so nice!

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  10. Your header looks lovely with sll those beautiful quilts! This one is no exception...

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  11. What a fun quilt! There's a subtle 50's feeling to it. Jxo

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  12. I just love the way you combine the colors and patterns of your fabric!

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  13. Love everything about this quilt, the fabric, the colors, the pattern, and the quilting. Well done, great job.

    Have a super great sewing and stitching day.

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  14. I love the yellow and white centers. Selina

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  15. Those yellow and white centers got rave reviews on another post and now here again! It's just so cute and happy and fun. You should be proud!

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  16. Once again, simply beautiful!

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  17. Looking terrifically bright and energetic, definitely makes one smile!

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  18. So fabulous. As always. Your quilts always inspire me. The Canary is awesome here.

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  19. LOVE IT. Honestly so clever with the yellow and white. Super.

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  20. I'm about to launch into a Bowtie quilt that has been on the to do list for a few months. Would appreciate some tips on pressing the seams?

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