Sister's Choice Quilts

My interests are quilting, reading, cooking, family, decorating, and matters of style. I post regular quilting tutorials and book reviews of current fiction.

72 Bow Ties

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So this is what 72 3 inch Bow Tie blocks look like. I feel like I have been making them forever already, but they are pretty cute.  I am going to keep at it and see how far I can get with this quilt before I cry "Uncle".

You may recall that in previous posts I have mentioned my husband and his habit of putting a gigantic fan in the window of my upstairs sewing room?  Well, he is still at it.  You can imagine with 72 teeny tiny Bow Tie blocks all arranged perfectly on the design wall, that the addition of a gigantic fan in the room may not be a great mix.  I don't see any possibility of dissuading my husband from this penchant, so I had to get creative.

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 I know I am going to stick with this particular layout, and figured if I combined nine Bow Tie units into a larger block they would be more manageable.  So that is what I did.  So much easier to deal with than a gazillion little 3 inch blocks.  All the blocks will be the same, just oriented as needed for the design.  And an additional bonus is, if I want to take this project down from the design wall, it is no big deal, whereas repositioning hundreds of the individual units would be.

Bring on the fan dear, I am ready for you.

PS:  Thanks for all your suggestions about the border fabric for the Simple Granny quilt top.  I agree, blue was the best choice since all the colors were represented in the blue print.  But I don't really do blue.  So, I  ordered the orange.  It is bright and will compliment the blocks and not be too light or too dark.  It is a winner all around.  

 

48 responses to “72 Bow Ties”

  1. Try not to call “uncle” Nicole :o) Three inch blocks are tedious, especially when you need lots of them but keep going! You’re going to have a beautiful quilt when you’re done!

  2. Try not to call “uncle” Nicole :o) Three inch blocks are tedious, especially when you need lots of them but keep going! You’re going to have a beautiful quilt when you’re done!

  3. Try not to call “uncle” Nicole :o) Three inch blocks are tedious, especially when you need lots of them but keep going! You’re going to have a beautiful quilt when you’re done!

  4. I agree, try hard to persevere and not cry “Uncle” on this … I can only imagine the breathtaking beauty of a full sized quilt made up of those adorable little 3″ bow tie blocks, especially in that setting. It’s going to be spectacular! And kudos on finding a way to work around the fan. 😉

  5. I agree, try hard to persevere and not cry “Uncle” on this … I can only imagine the breathtaking beauty of a full sized quilt made up of those adorable little 3″ bow tie blocks, especially in that setting. It’s going to be spectacular! And kudos on finding a way to work around the fan. 😉

  6. I agree, try hard to persevere and not cry “Uncle” on this … I can only imagine the breathtaking beauty of a full sized quilt made up of those adorable little 3″ bow tie blocks, especially in that setting. It’s going to be spectacular! And kudos on finding a way to work around the fan. 😉

  7. Sewing the bow-tie blocks in units is a good idea. I hope you won’t abandon this project because it is adorable. Can you make it a leader and ender project so it isn’t so tedious?

  8. Sewing the bow-tie blocks in units is a good idea. I hope you won’t abandon this project because it is adorable. Can you make it a leader and ender project so it isn’t so tedious?

  9. Sewing the bow-tie blocks in units is a good idea. I hope you won’t abandon this project because it is adorable. Can you make it a leader and ender project so it isn’t so tedious?

  10. Which orange? Is it the orange large scale print or one of the others? Any of the oranges will look great!
    Hope when it’s time to say “Uncle” about these wee bow-tie blocks, you have the needed number for your quilt and perhaps enough for a doll quilt, If you’re really on a roll, you could also make enough for a curtain border, a bedskirt or to reupholster the couch – all in addition to enough to finish your quilt! Love the anti-fan breeze tactic you’ve found for your small bow-tie blocks, too.
    Stay cool!
    Hugs!

  11. Which orange? Is it the orange large scale print or one of the others? Any of the oranges will look great!
    Hope when it’s time to say “Uncle” about these wee bow-tie blocks, you have the needed number for your quilt and perhaps enough for a doll quilt, If you’re really on a roll, you could also make enough for a curtain border, a bedskirt or to reupholster the couch – all in addition to enough to finish your quilt! Love the anti-fan breeze tactic you’ve found for your small bow-tie blocks, too.
    Stay cool!
    Hugs!

  12. Which orange? Is it the orange large scale print or one of the others? Any of the oranges will look great!
    Hope when it’s time to say “Uncle” about these wee bow-tie blocks, you have the needed number for your quilt and perhaps enough for a doll quilt, If you’re really on a roll, you could also make enough for a curtain border, a bedskirt or to reupholster the couch – all in addition to enough to finish your quilt! Love the anti-fan breeze tactic you’ve found for your small bow-tie blocks, too.
    Stay cool!
    Hugs!

  13. I cannot wait to see your bow tie quilt done. It is going to be fabulous.

  14. I cannot wait to see your bow tie quilt done. It is going to be fabulous.

  15. I cannot wait to see your bow tie quilt done. It is going to be fabulous.

  16. I am convinced the husband OCD behavior grows with age. Good grief Nicole you are going great on the bow ties. I love them! just adorable.
    Mary

  17. I am convinced the husband OCD behavior grows with age. Good grief Nicole you are going great on the bow ties. I love them! just adorable.
    Mary

  18. I am convinced the husband OCD behavior grows with age. Good grief Nicole you are going great on the bow ties. I love them! just adorable.
    Mary

  19. I have 525 3-inch bow tie blocks so far. I think I want 900 of them. I have thought about putting the nine patches together but haven’t started yet. I have been doing mine as leaders/enders.
    Yours look great.

  20. I have 525 3-inch bow tie blocks so far. I think I want 900 of them. I have thought about putting the nine patches together but haven’t started yet. I have been doing mine as leaders/enders.
    Yours look great.

  21. I have 525 3-inch bow tie blocks so far. I think I want 900 of them. I have thought about putting the nine patches together but haven’t started yet. I have been doing mine as leaders/enders.
    Yours look great.

  22. Love your bow ties and the anti-fan solution sounds great! I’m not an orange fan (expect for Halloween) but I’m sure you’re quilt will look great:-)

  23. Love your bow ties and the anti-fan solution sounds great! I’m not an orange fan (expect for Halloween) but I’m sure you’re quilt will look great:-)

  24. Love your bow ties and the anti-fan solution sounds great! I’m not an orange fan (expect for Halloween) but I’m sure you’re quilt will look great:-)

  25. I love the way you put the blocks in 9 patch! Such a great way to handle the little blocks better! Thanks for the idea!

  26. I love the way you put the blocks in 9 patch! Such a great way to handle the little blocks better! Thanks for the idea!

  27. I love the way you put the blocks in 9 patch! Such a great way to handle the little blocks better! Thanks for the idea!

  34. Had to pop back as I just remembered wonderful Mary Ellen Hopkins’ method of putting a quilt top together. Pair up your blocks according to your planned layout. Sew the pairs together. Take two next-door-neighbor pairs and sew those into groups of four blocks (two over two). Do that will the remaining pairs, being sure to keep organized! Next you sew the neighbor 4 patches into another neighbor 4 patches, making neighborhoods. Then sew the 8 patches to each other and keep going. You’ll have one seam that either goes side to side or top to bottom on your quilt.
    This is much easier than making rows of blocks and sewing row to row, across the width (or length) of your quilt many times and handling an increasing bulk, too.
    This works wonderfully on square settings but I’ve never tried it for “on-point” settings.
    Cheers!

  35. Had to pop back as I just remembered wonderful Mary Ellen Hopkins’ method of putting a quilt top together. Pair up your blocks according to your planned layout. Sew the pairs together. Take two next-door-neighbor pairs and sew those into groups of four blocks (two over two). Do that will the remaining pairs, being sure to keep organized! Next you sew the neighbor 4 patches into another neighbor 4 patches, making neighborhoods. Then sew the 8 patches to each other and keep going. You’ll have one seam that either goes side to side or top to bottom on your quilt.
    This is much easier than making rows of blocks and sewing row to row, across the width (or length) of your quilt many times and handling an increasing bulk, too.
    This works wonderfully on square settings but I’ve never tried it for “on-point” settings.
    Cheers!

  36. Had to pop back as I just remembered wonderful Mary Ellen Hopkins’ method of putting a quilt top together. Pair up your blocks according to your planned layout. Sew the pairs together. Take two next-door-neighbor pairs and sew those into groups of four blocks (two over two). Do that will the remaining pairs, being sure to keep organized! Next you sew the neighbor 4 patches into another neighbor 4 patches, making neighborhoods. Then sew the 8 patches to each other and keep going. You’ll have one seam that either goes side to side or top to bottom on your quilt.
    This is much easier than making rows of blocks and sewing row to row, across the width (or length) of your quilt many times and handling an increasing bulk, too.
    This works wonderfully on square settings but I’ve never tried it for “on-point” settings.
    Cheers!

  37. Nice blocks. The fan could be a great tool if you are not quite sure how to lay out blocks. Turn on the fan and let them land where they may:)

  38. Nice blocks. The fan could be a great tool if you are not quite sure how to lay out blocks. Turn on the fan and let them land where they may:)

  39. Nice blocks. The fan could be a great tool if you are not quite sure how to lay out blocks. Turn on the fan and let them land where they may:)

  40. Like the bow tie layout idea, so much easier and doable than retraining hubby :). They are adorable 🙂

  41. Like the bow tie layout idea, so much easier and doable than retraining hubby :). They are adorable 🙂

  42. Like the bow tie layout idea, so much easier and doable than retraining hubby :). They are adorable 🙂