Bowties and Home Life

Awhile back Marie at Quilt Bee shared the beginning of a bowtie quilt she is making after being inspired by Maryse at Maryse Makes Things; and I've had a hankering to make a new old-fashioned bowtie quilt ever since.  So a couple weeks ago at our quilt ministry group I started sorting and cutting through bins of scraps, and began piecing a small top for what will be my 7th 'opportunity quilt' for the year. Well, it's starting out small, but may end up growing like Topsy, one never knows with these things!  Here are the first few blocks completed so far thrown up on the design wall.

Many, many more to go, but these are such fun, and I love this particular setting for  the bowties. This quilt won't have quite the extensive variety of fabrics as Maryse and Marie's inspiration quilts as there are not a lot of green scraps in our stash, but I think it will still be lots of fun to put together.

Several years ago at an outdoor estate sale I found one of those plastic zippered bags, the type sheet sets are packed in, on the ground under one of the sale tables.The attached label said something like "partially completed quilt - FREE - Enjoy!" All I could see without unpacking it was a muslin backing, hand quilting, and of course the "free"  label sealed the deal!  When I got it home and opened it up, inside was a hand-pieced bowtie quilt, of vintage fabrics, and the traditional style bowtie piecing with center square rather than the two little corner triangles added to the light squares. It was about 1/3 quilted when I made off with acquired it.

I attempted to replicate the size/style of hand quilting stitches and eventually finished it off, and we have enjoyed this throw-size treasure ever since.

 

So many interesting vintage prints!

If I remain infatuated with bowtie blocks for any length of time I'd like to make several smallish quilts trying out various settings for the blocks.  Another way to use up a lot of smaller scraps.

On the home front, we've been busy harvesting blueberries and green beans, and some banana peppers which I pickled for the first time ever.   I put up sixteen jars of rhubarb-blueberry jam so far, and will probably do one more batch if the rhubarb stalks don't wilt away before I can get to them.

R&B Jam

Living in a rural area we see our share of wildlife, and this big mama apparently has decided that our hay field, lawns and gardens are the perfect place to raise her brood of eight wildlings.  She has ventured closer and closer to the house and barns, and the other day shortly after we removed the blueberry netting they were all feasting on blueberries on the ground and what they could glean by jumping up to attack the lower branches. Great fun watching them! We will probably post our land this fall so they have a safe haven during hunting season, provided they are still hanging around by then. Here they are right next to the driveway, probably not more than 20 feet from the window where I took this photo.

And last but certainly not least, I made a big bowl of bowtie pasta salad this week using fresh basil and the first of the Sungold cherry tomatoes.  One of our favorite summer salads, but we devoured 98% of it before I even thought to take a photo.

We live in troubled times when everything good seems turned upside down and inside out.  This week, lets smile a little more often at those we meet in the store or on the street, bless someone in need with a small gift, a home cooked meal, or even just a listening ear and a friendly hug.  Let your light shine brightly!  The forces of evil cannot prevail where love abides.