Tuesday 3 February 2015

Crazy Quilting, One of My Loves

I wanted to show you a few extraordinary examples of crazy quilts I've found on my internet journeys.

This teapot has been embellished with hand stitching, buttons and ribbons.  It appears on flickr and is the handiwork of Annie Whitsed.  It was featured on her blog, Annie's Crazy World in 2006 and I tried to track her down to say how lovely I thought this tea pot is, but could not find a recent address. But here is the link to her older blog
http://loopylace.com/anniescrazyworld/



Teapot with day 5 to 11 details

I love the idea for this- to take an ordinary shape and let your imagination go.  Of course one of the beauties of this quilt method is that it also uses up some of those fabrics we all have in reserve.

Mary A. Stinson, silk Crazy Quilt. Stinson is thought to have been a dressmaker for Mary Todd Lincoln. In "Workt by Hand" quilt exhibit at D.C.'s National Museum of Women in the Arts.


A 'controlled' crazy quilt, circa 1880... the handiwork of Mary A.Stinson, it is silk and bordered by hundreds of morning glories, a flower I try to grow each summer. Mary was said to be a dress maker for Mary Todd Lincoln.  I would love to see this quilt; the sign where this was displayed said,
 "Keep Calm and Don't Touch". Someone knows what us quilters are like!
Here is a link to the National Museum of Women in the Arts  "Worktd By Hand" exhibit.


http://nmwa.org/exhibitions/%E2%80%9Cworkt-hand%E2%80%9D

Many  lovely examples of crazy quilts.


Crazy-quilt pin cushion - MCHS Collections, #1953.31.8

This method works very well for cushion covers and though this looks like a pillow it is actually much smaller; it is a sweet little pin cushion.  It was donated by the Tanner family to the Morrison County Historical Society in Minnesota, U.S.  I love the small design in the right lower corner featuring  Grandmother's Fan pattern.  One of my personal favourites.
This little piece highlights how effective decorative embroidery can be.
But really, you don't need to be an expert to tackle your own crazy quilting.  A few basic embroidery stitches such as herringbone, blanket, chain and daisy would be enough to give your own piece a crazy quilted look.



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