Grandma's Butterfly Hankie Quilt

Grandma was a hankie lady. She had hankies for everyday and every special occasion. Boxes of Kleenex weren't around when she was young and as she got older, the mere thought of wiping your nose on something and throwing it away was considered too wasteful. I received many of her hankies after she passed away and decided to make a hankie quilt in tribute to her.

Things to make the quilt:

42 hankies
118 inch wide bleached quilting muslin, 5 yards
1 yard black cotton fabric
Quilt batting
1/4 inch wide bias binding
Lightweight cardboard
Pencil
Ruler, measuring tape
Scissors
Straight pins
Iron
Sewing machine
Hand sewing needle and thread
Hand held quilting loom
Quilting needle and thread

1. Measure and cut (42) 14 inch squares from the bleached muslin. Fold one hankie in half at an angle to form a triangle and iron. Center the triangle at an angle on the 14 inch square. You may need to fold the outer points of the triangle again to keep the hankie inside the square edges by at least a 1/2 inch. Fold an angle how ever much you need to, but keep the butterfly wing shape. Pin the hankie to the square. Hand appliqué the edges of the butterfly shape to the bleached muslin square. Blind stitch the folds of the hankie. Repeat for the remaining 41 hankies and squares.

2. Measure and cut a piece of lightweight cardboard 2 inches wide by 6 inches long. Curve each end into a point. The shape should resemble a long skinny football. This is the pattern for your butterfly body. Cut the shape out. Place your black cotton fabric on your work surface with two layers together. Using the pattern and a pencil, draw 42 butterfly bodies on the fabric. Pin the bodies together and cut out. Sew each body together using a 1/4 inch seam allowance. Cut a small slit in the center of one side and turn the body right side out and iron the body. Center the body on the butterfly wings with the slit side down and pin. Cut two pieces of the bias binding 5 inches long. Place one end of each bias binding piece under the head side of the butterfly body and pin. Form the bias binding for the butterfly antennas and pin. Appliqué the edges of the butterfly body and the antennas. Repeat for the remaining 41 hankies and squares.

3. Place all your butterfly blocks on a flat surface and arrange in a pleasing pattern of six across and seven down. Play with the placement to get the best look for all the hankie colors used. Place the blocks on the first row with the right sides together and sew a 1/2 inch seam allowance. Iron the seams open. Continue to sew the remaining rows. Place the rows with the right sides together and sew a 1/2 inch seam allowance. Iron the seams open. This is your completed quilt top. Measure and trim the edges so that the width and length are even.

4. Place the remaining bleached muslin on your work surface. Center the batting on top of the bleached muslin and place the completed quilt top right side up on the batting. Baste the three layers together. Place the quilt in the quilting loom and hand quilt around each butterfly through all three layers, moving the loom as needed. Trim the batting even with the quilt top and cut the backing 1 inch larger than the quilt on all sides. Fold over the edges of the backing fabric a 1/2 inch and press. Fold the remaining 1/2 inch over the front edge of the quilt top and pin. Miter fold and pin the corners. Blind stitch the pinned edge.