Crazy Quilting for Beginners Handy Pocket Guide: All the Basics to Get You Started

By Sharon Boggon

Step by step crazy quilting basics to get you started on your own original quilt design.

Rooted in the Victorian era, crazy quilting has a powerful allure for today's quilters, who use it to let loose and tell a unique story with fabric. These quilts are as beautiful as they are intimidating to beginner quilters — how do you know which fabric to choose and what in the world is a herringbone stitch? This beginner's guide covers all the basics—but just the basics!—to get you started on crazy quilting.


Trained in fine arts, Sharon Boggon guides you through choosing fabric and introduces piecing methods for crazy-quilt blocks and solutions to common piecing problems. You'll then navigate Boggon's generous overview of foundation stitches, linear stitches, and motif stitches. Move forward in your crazy quilting journey with confidence, and use this handy pocket guide as a robust resource to lead the way!


*Easily make embellishing decisions, including lace, ribbon, braids, and doilies


*Learn how to correctly start and finish stitches


*Start your project knowing how to mark the fabric and decorate seams, and combine stitches with a gallery of images by your side

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Nov 25, 2022
• ISBN: 9781644033593

Book preview

INTRODUCTION

Crazy quilts originally appeared in the 1880s in England, the United States, and Australia as part of Victorian soft furnishing decor.

Contemporary crazy quilting is enjoying a revival. Since there is no right or wrong way to make a crazy quilt, embracing this form of quilting can be very liberating. Crazy quilting is a wonderful way to tell a story by incorporating lace or fabric from special garments, such as a graduation or wedding dress, or adding a special hankie, antique button, or doily created by a favorite family member. You can even use silk from men’s ties. You can use your computer to print photos on fabric to include with special mementos. The technique is infinitely adaptable.

The process of creating any crazy quilt project can be confusing for some. However, with this style of quilting there is no right or wrong method. It is very forgiving; you don’t even have to match seams! So relax and enjoy the process.

THE PROCESS OF MAKING A CRAZY QUILT PROJECT

The process of creating items and blocks for a quilt can be broken down into a series of steps. Nothing is hard-and-fast in crazy quilting, as each person will have their own preferences, but these are the steps I use.

1. The first task is to piece the item or block. If it is something like a bag, I piece all sections and include lace and braids in the piecing.

2. Next I hand embroider the seams.

3. The next phase is to add embellishments such as beads, buttons, and any other doodads I want to include.

4. The last phase of the project is to assemble it.

This book follows this process. The first section covers the basics and block assembly, followed by how to embroider the seams. The last part covers other forms of embellishment such as beads, buttons, and charms.

CHOOSING A SUITABLE CRAZY QUILT PROJECT

For your first project, look for a simple pattern and adapt it to crazy quilting. Keep things simple until you know the process. Start on something small so you can learn the technique before launching into a larger project. When selecting a project, choose items that are easy to assemble, with flat areas that can be embellished. For instance, most bags are ideal but some can be problematic. Gussets or complex assembly can lead to beads, braids or stitching being caught in seams or tucks. Some ideal projects for beginners are cushions, bags, totes, and book covers.

However, if you choose to start on a crazy quilt block, think in terms of something between an 8˝ (20.3 cm) and 18˝ (45.7 cm) square. Large wholecloth quilts take quite a bit of experience to handle the many techniques.

CRAZY QUILTING AND THE ENCRUSTED STYLE

THE FOUNDATION FABRIC

Contemporary crazy quilters often make reference to an encrusted crazy quilting style that takes inspiration from traditional crazy quilts but employs a combination of embroidery, beads, buttons, lace, and ribbons to produce a complex, layered visual texture. This