Garden of Eden Quilt – ca. 1940s and 1990s

This quilt is a multi-generational effort. The traditional Garden of Eden blocks were left behind by my grandmother Stella Neill Bower and feature mainly 1930s dress fabrics.

Garden of Eden Block

My father Frank Bower designed a quilt using his mother’s blocks; it was sewn and hand quilted by my mother Joy Tague Bower in the 1990s.

Garden of Eden Full-Sized Quilt

My mother had never been a quilter but took on the task to please her husband.

Garden of Eden Corner Detail

The quilt now belongs to my nephew J. Bower.

Ohio Star Comfort Quilt – 2013

 

Detail – Ohio Star Comfort Quilt

Here is a charity quilt from 2013 in the ever popular Ohio Star pattern. It was contributed to the Love and Comfort Quilts project of the Genesee Valley Quilt Club.

Ohio Star Comfort Quilt

This is lap/crib sized with 12″ blocks – so about 40″ x 53″. All the fabrics were out of my stash, giving it a scrappy but coordinated look. The backing was originally from my mother’s linen closet.

Back – Ohio Star Comfort Quilt

Charity Blocks – 2014

Charity Block -Crazy Scrappy Flower

As a member of the Rochester Modern Quilt Guild, I have contributed 12-1/2″ blocks to several group quilts we have constructed for local charities. Here are a few of them.

For the block above, everyone made a flower in their choice of color and surrounded it with any green.

Charity Blocks – String Piecing on Foundation

I made two of the string pieced blocks. Everyone started with a white diagonal stripe; they were joined to form diamonds across the quilt.

Charity Block – Modern Spool

Our current project will join everyone’s modern spool blocks. The “thread” is foundation pieced to add a fresh twist on a traditional design.

Thousand Pyramids – ca. 1900

This vintage double-sized quilt is from my husband’s family. Unfortunately, we have no information about the date or maker. Love the random distribution of colors and patterns.

Thousand Pyramids

One triangle has been replaced, but the quilt is in fairly good condition.

Thousand Pyramids Detail

Hand pieced, hand quilted.

Thousand Pyramids Back

Honey Bee Variation Quilt – 1948

This double-sized quilt was made in 1948 by my great-grandmother Rose Brown Tague, using solid cottons.

Honey Bee Variation Quilt

There are two alternating blocks: the pink and purple block with solid pieced center and appliqued bee wings and bodies; and the pieced snowball block with green corners. Daisy-like flowers are quilted in the snowballs.

 

Honey Bee Variation Detail

Grandma Rose added a serpentine border, turning the bee shapes into leaves.

Honey Bee Variation Border Corner Detail

Now owned by B J Bower.

Princess’s Crown Baby Quilt – 2014

Using miscellany from my stash, I’m pulling together a quick – I hope – baby quilt. This old block pattern is called King’s Crown, but it’s for a little girl, so I’ve renamed it. The purple-looking centers are really a blue and pink check. I have all the pieces cut and arranged, with 5 blocks sewn. I was going to make all blocks like the one in upper left, but it seemed too somber. Scrappy is more fun anyway.

Early work on Princess’ Crown baby quilt

Princess Crown Day 2 progress

Chevrons, Part II – 1976 and 2014

Pin basted – one each for 525 squares:

Had to buy more pins!

To keep as close as possible to what I would have done in 1976, I just stitched in the ditch. Bound with Black Watch plaid.

Complete revised Chevrons.

Trip Around the Islands – 2010

Doll quilt, using fabric scraps from the Island Palm quilt. Quilt is on left in photo.

View from 2013 Genesee Valley Quilt Club show.

Close-up from quilt show.