Crazy Quilting may have taken a back seat, but to traditionalists, it still has merit. It uses all kinds of fabrics and was originally done by hand. Today, we use our sewing machines to piece fabric together. One can use leftover scrap cotton fabrics from making quilts. Crazy quilting involves using a five-sided centerpiece and placing fabrics around it before sewing decorative stitching to make a statement.
The original decorative stitching was sewn on by hand using embroidery stitches.
Today, we use our decorative stitches on our sewing machine to sew crazy quilts. The key is to use a thread color that is the opposite of the fabric color you are using. As you can see, I did not fully achieve this in the picture above. This was my first attempt at crazy quilting. I have found three methods of piecing together fabric when crazy quilting. The first is the most traditional way of crazy quilting. Start with a 5-sided piece in the center and rotate the piece clockwise. Take a look at the picture below. The center is number one, and cut pieces to match the center and follow the numbering around. This square can be 8 to 9 inches. This depends on the size cut for the first square and so on.
The second method is using quilting templates. Look at the picture below. This template has five pieces and is worked in the order shown: ABCDE. I found working the ABC together first, then DE second, and then sewing the two pieces together diagonally. Noticed that the template below uses 1/4-inch seams.
The third method is the sew and flip. The best way to describe this method is using strips of 2.5-inch fabric placed diagonally on the square muslin backing. One starts with sewing a piece of fabric at the corner of the square. Then the second piece is placed on the top of the first piece with right sides together before they are sewn together. Once sewn together, flip the fabric over before laying down the next piece to sew together. Seams are 1/4 inch. I used a 1/4 inch foot that has an edge plate.
With all methods of crazy quilting, one has to use a backing to sew on. I used cotton muslin. One can also use flat old bed sheets for the backing to sew on. If you do not use the sew and flip method, you would iron the side you are sewing 1/4 inch under before placing that piece on the edge of the piece you are sewing on. All pieces should have 1/4 inch seam allowance. The sky is the limit when it comes to embellishment of crazy quilting. Make a memory piece into art.
Using lace, beads, and rick rack can add interest and make a wonderful piece to hang on a wall, or piece it as a centerpiece for a quilt. This is like scrapbooking. Give it a try. Check out the book by Sharon Boggon titled, “The Visual guide to Crazy Quilting Design.”
