August Block of the Month - Tricky Bow Ties

The written pattern can be purchased as part of the Classic Sew Easy Block of the Month Pattern and is available in the Shop.

Hello my lovely quilters!!  Here we are in August.

It seems that the summer has flown by and soon all my kiddos will be back in school! So as a way to salute Back to School prep, I thought we would do a fancy bow tie! My kids don’t actually wear uniforms and bow ties to school… But that’s ok!

 

This is the Tricky Bow Tie block.  It’s tricky because it has a 3D element to it! The center of the bow tie is actually sewn into the seams and is actually lifted up from the rest of the block!

Longarmers don’t love these kind of blocks for computerized quilting… they can be a pain if you aren’t watching out for them. 

But I just plan to work around them because they are so fun to make!

Cutting Instructions:
Background Fabric:
      (8) 3 1/2″ squares
Main Fabric:
      (6) 3 1/2″ squares
Coordinating Fabric:
      (6) 3 1/2″ squares

This block comes together surprisingly easy once you get over the confusion of adding an extra piece into the seam.

Once you have the fabric all cut out, take one main fabric square and fold it in half, wrong sides together. 

Pin along the top edge to keep the fabric in a rectangle shape.  This piece will become the center “knot” of the bow tie.

Place the folded rectangle on top of another main fabric square.

Place a background square on top, right sides together.

Then sew a 1/4″ seam along the right side of the fabric squares. Notice the orientation of the folded rectangle. It should be sewn into the seam completely.

Next fold the fabric away from the folded rectangle. The rectangle should still be pinned at the top to keep it in shape.

It is important to keep the fabric squares away from the folded rectangle while you sew this next seam.

 

We will now repeat the same steps as before.

Place the folded rectangle on top of a main fabric square. Align the pinned edge of the folded rectangle with the top of the square. 

Then place a background fabric square on top, right sides together.  Sew a 1/4″ seam.

Sew the 1/4″ seam as shown.

When you move the fabric squares away, you can see the folded rectangle in the middle.  Both short ends of the rectangle should be caught in the seams of the two fabric squares.

Next lay the blocks with right sides up to check the orientation of the fabric.  You want to have two background fabrics diagonal from each other. 

And now you can begin to see the bow tie coming together!

Next we get to sew the final seam on the bow tie!

Bring the seams together.  You will notice a little pouch or pocket made from the folded rectangle.

It is important to push the excess fabric of the pouch out of the way of the seam.  We want to catch the raw edges of the rectangle in the seam. But if you have any folds or pleats, the bow tie “knot” wont lay flat and will be a bit wonky.

 

Now press the seams!

Remember, I am a longarm quilter first. Which means I press my seams in the way that will make my machine quilting the easiest possible.  So most of the time I press my seams open.

 

To help press these seams open, I actually snipped the bit of folded fabric in the seam from the “knot”.

However, press how you like! You don’t have to snip the fabric or press the seams open.  Just do what you prefer!

 

And here is your finished bow tie!

Now just make the three remaining bow ties! Follow the same steps with the remaining fabric so you get two bow ties in the main fabric and two bow ties in the coordinating fabric.

Then lay it out like so!

 

When you make up this block, share it on social media!! Use the hashtag #seweasybom to share your blocks and see what others have sewn!

Can’t wait to see what you make. Happy quilting!!