For our March meeting, the Sewphisticuts learned about crazy quilts. Maura presented a brief history and some information about crazy quilt characteristics. To summarize, crazy quilts as we know them today were first popular in Victorian times when they were a status symbol, showing that you were wealthy enough to be able to afford the luxurious fabrics. It also indicated that you had the leisure to devote time to a purely decorative item, as these quilts were rarely used for beds, serving more often as decorative lap robes or throws to drape over a sofa or piano.
We also heard about and discussed several different techniques for making these quilts, from the original way of appliqueing pieces onto a backing by hand to more modern methods of fusing and machine-stitching. Crazy quilts are distinguished by the use of elaborate embroidery along joins as well as in the middle of patches. Today's embroidery machines would make it very easy to embellish a crazy quilt quickly. Modern uses for crazy quilt pieces range from an actual bed quilt to placemats, totes, pockets, insets on clothing, Christmas ornaments, bookmarks, and other small decorative shapes.
There are numerous links online (Youtube, Pinterest, Instagram, images from any search engine) to learn how to make crazy quilts or to see a variety of designs. Here are a few links of interest:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5MYNqUc9kA
Next month we will try our hand at making some crazy quilt pieces, using whichever technique each person prefers. It will be interesting to see the results!
We also had Show and Tell: pictures follow here.
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| Pat's pillow made from pieces she got from a fabric exchange friend |
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| Shopping bags |
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| Terry's evening bags |
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| Peggy's loose-fit pants |
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| Slippers |
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| Cyndy's pull-over in a fantastic snakeskin pattern fabric |
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| Judy's top with a twist |
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