BERNINA Corporate Blog -3D Bow Tie – a Quilting Idea
How best to quilt this 3-D block? I considered this recently when I needed to produce a pattern for my quilt group using a pre-cut pack. I used the 3-D Bow Tie pattern and a 10-inch layer cake pack because it was so quick to piece the top.
Each block needs 5 squares the same size. Charm Packs would work well too. The Block is basically a 4 patch with an insert of contrasting fabric, the ‘knot’ of the bow tie. Instructions for this block are widely available on the web.
If using a pre-cut pack, it’s a good idea to lay out a possible arrangement before you start sewing to get a pleasing balance of colour, value etc. with the fabric available. I folded some squares into quarters & placed on top of the squares ‘onpoint’to show how the ‘knot’ might look.
You can leave the central ‘knot’ as a square or take advantage of its bias edges to create a curved look by folding in and stitching down.
I chose to machine stitch mine down once the block was stitched, but you could do it as part of the quilting later. Another option would be slip stich the curves down, but leave the pockets free underneath.
Altogether I made 9 blocks and added further ‘knots’ as I joined them together.This needed a bit of thought because it required partial seams (or unpicking!). Additional fabric was needed for this arrangement.
A2½-inch (finished) border was added and a backing made from unused squares plus about 2m of further fabric.
So how to quilt?I chose curves to emphasise the curvesof the ‘knot’ and machined them with the walking foot for speed.
My wadding required no more than 3 ½ inch spacing so I added further petal shapes between the curves and echoed the knot. I used free-motion stitching to avoid repeated turning of the quilt.
Homemadetemplatesfrom card/freezer paper were used to draw outquilting lines.
The edge stitch plate on the walking foot was useful to guide in-the-ditch quilting around the border. I like to use non-slip shelf lining gripper to help gently pull the seam open as I sew.
The binding was made from leftovers.
My quilting plan
Any other ideas for quilting this design?
I thought my quilt looked rather good on our garden seat, but a daughter decided it would look better in her home!
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