Sunday, June 14, 2009

Butterflies for Elizabeth


I've been working on butterflies and some plans for them. I'm putting together a small sampler-style quilt and have two blocks planned so far: one with a painted Sunbonnet Sue design embellished with the first butterfly in the pictures below, and a second with a purple version of the third butterfly shown (the large one in shades of yellow and brown) centered on a white background.

I'm figuring out the pattern for that butterfly as I go along because the history is a little bit complicated. There is a partially completed one in my grandmother's notebook. My father tried to write out the pattern for it, but I really can't make much sense of it. The one you see below was tatted by my mother, and it is the easiest to follow.

The tiniest butterfly in the pictures is one I'm just calling "Leftovers Butterfly." I think I'll include them in cards to friends and family in the days/weeks ahead.

A last note, there are several friends who have offered to make a butterfly and/or a square for the quilt. Anyone who is interested is more than welcome to join me. The background fabrics will be white, and the butterflies should be primarily purple, if possible. Finished blocks should be about 9 inches square. Feel free to e-mail me hobbit68@aol.com with ideas.



3 comments:

TAT19540 said...

Your butterflies are a lovely tribute to your niece. There are no words that can truely express how sorry I am for your loss. I'm sure your niece is smiling down from heaven as she watches her butterflies take flight!

Unknown said...

THat is very sweet. What a beautiful way to show your love for your niece. It's so hard to lose a loved one. What a wonderful way to deal with your grief. ((Hugs))

Nancy G said...

Joy, I am so excite about getting started on the butterfly square. I am looking threw my patterns now, decisions, decision! What a blessing it is for me to part of this wonderful project!