I really want to make a crazy quilt. I have tried one block so far - but can't figure it out. how do you get all the sides sewn down?

Usually crazy quilting is sewn on a backing of muslin, paper, or scraps. When you join two blocks, any edges on the outside will be stabilized by the seam.

I have some crazy quilt paper piecing blocks if you would like, I can send them to you. To me, the paper piecing crazy quilt block is a lot easier than a regular crazy quilt. Just PM me if you would like copies.

I have made only two crazy blocks so far so am no expert! Are you wanting to piece by hand or machine? I did mine by hand using the 'antique' method; i just cut my pieces at least half an inch too big all round and pin them onto a square of muslin - when happy with the arrangement, I needle turned under the seams like hand appliqué; any fabric too thick to turn (I used some velvet for eg) I left a raw edge then covered with the adjacent fabric or a strip of ribbon; the advantage of crazy is any gaps or mistakes can be covered with embellishments! Have fun!

K x

i'm probably not one at this stage to give much advice on "how's", but I never thought I would be drawn to something like crazy quilting. I like everything so 'straight' and structureds.
The draw for me was 1- using up beautiful scraps...and 2 - making them more beautiful by doing the awesome embroidery or lace etc. embellishing. One look at Paula Vaughn's crazy quilts would really make a lot of converts. Her stuff is incredible...out of this world, beautiful! :D YUMM-Y!

Just found this online tute, merryj, hope it helps!

http://www.caron-net.com/classes/cla.../clasmay1.html

K x

Hi,

I have made about three crazy quilts. THe method I was shown is to start with a square of muslin that you want to be your basic block size. Somewhere near the middle of it place a "5" sided piece of fabric. Then flip and sew your next piece of fabric to one side press it down and then continue adding pieces on each flat side until the muslin is completely covered. At that point you might want to sew a basting stitch around the raw edges just to keep everything in place while you embellish the block. This is the fun part. You can couch lace or any kind of decorative trim over the seams or just sew over them with a decorative stitch either by hand or with your machine. My Bernina has lots of unusual stitches. I had a blast using different threads and stitches. Once you have completed as many blocks as you want you can sew them together either next to one another or add sashing. A crazy quilt usually doesn't have batting and the backing can be just plain cloth. The that I didn't use sashing in I tied every foot or so. The second one with sashing I machine quilted down the center of the sashing to hold the thing together. THey were a lot of fun. Remember that a crazy quilt is usually just for show and a way to use all of those unpractical fabrics that we sometimes can not resist buying.

Have fun.

Have you got any pics? I'd love to see your work, mpspeedy.

K x

Me too!

wow ! really nice tutorial ! Thanks !

Ell