Bonkers

My Controlled Crazy Quilt, which I'm naming Bonkers, was so much fun to make. I really loved  making those scrappy blocks for the front especially, though making the back was great too. I estimate I used 4.25 yards worth of multi-colored scraps in the making of the front and the back.

For quilting, I opted for fancy straight-line, which consists of vertical straight-line quilting topped with organic zig-zags. I thought that went well with the mix of straight lines and angles in the quilt top. For thread, I used Aurifil 50wt 4668 [Strawberry Parfait], a red, pink, and white variegated thread. I originally planned to quilt with plain red, but was afraid it might be overwhelming, so the Strawberry Parfait felt like a good option, plus I'd never used it before. I'm happy enough with the result.

For the binding, there were a couple of ways I wanted to mimic the wide ribbon binding and hand-embroidery stitches on traditional crazy quilts. To prepare my quilt for that once the quilting was complete, I made sure to trim the batting and backing about 1.5" wider than my quilt top all around. This can be a little tricky, but with a block-based quilt, I was able to get it pretty square.

• Then, I used a solid Kona Rich Red, and cut binding strips 8.5" wide, piecing them with straight seams, only because at that width, it would have meant a lot of fabric loss if pieced on the diagonal. Also not my norm, but I sewed it on the back first, then folded it over to the front, mitering the corners, clipping them temporarily with binder clips. [Apologies for not getting a photo of the back before the binding went on. I marked a line 1.5" from all edges, and then lined up the raw edges of the binding along it as I sewed it on. If you need help doing a chunky binding, check out Audrey Esarey's free Wide Binding Tutorial.]

• Another detail to simulate traditional crazy quilts was to sew the binding on with a decorative stitch showing on the quilt front. I just didn't feel like this particular quilt was up for a bunch of hand-embroidery stitches, so at least the thought is there. On my Janome MC 6700P, I used stitch #106 at its widest and longest (9.0/5.0). I chose it since it kind of reminded me of the first embroidery stitch I learned, the cross-stitch, plus it mimics the zig-zag in the overall quilting.

I think it makes for a nice finish!

My priority, of course, was holding down the binding edge on the front, so placement is not always on the binding on the back, as shown below - top and third corners are front corners; second and fourth corners are back corners. But overall, I'm good with it, and I love that it's something different for me and that I tried out a decorative stitch on my machine.

The quilt front originally measured 45.5" x 54.5", but with its chunky binding, the finished quilt now measures 48" x 58".

I remember years and years ago, I thought I might want to make a crazy quilt, and even took a workshop on it. After making a small sampler, complete with hand embroidery, I decided I wasn't interested. I'm glad I waited until now, because Bonkers is much more my style. I'm thinking I might want to make another one. Don't forget! Except for the binding, scraps from my scrap basket made up every inch of this quilt. 

Linking up with Yvonne of Quilting JETgirl's Favorite Quilt Finish {June 2026}.

Controlled Crazy Quilt

I often pick up my copy of Bold Expressions: African American Quilts from the Collection of Corrine Riley: May 15-November 6, 2011 when I need inspiration for a new scrap quilt. So far, it's inspired Octo, Housetops, and Timer. Just as I finished the backing for my most recent scrap quilt, looking through the book inspired me to begin a new controlled crazy quilt. Unfortunately, the sample in the book had no maker listed.

A Google search came up with key characteristics of controlled crazy quilts, and it was surprising how well they 'fit' with the example I'd seen in Bold Expressions. First off - uniform block sizes, which is exactly how I'd started off. Rather than randomly sized blocks like I often do for scrap quilts, I made 9.5" blocks for my new scrap project.

Another characteristic is apparently a restricted color palette, rather than using any fabric available. Though I was pretty randomly using scraps pulled from my scrap basket, I was making sure that each block included black, and hot pink/red/coral. I was also trying to include any random pieced bits or blocks I happened to pull out.

Fabric consistency is another frequent feature of controlled crazy quilt - often sticking to one type of fabric (like all cottons or all silks) rather than mixing velvets, denims, and linens together. My solid scrap basket consists primarily of 100% quilting cotton, though I'm finding the occasional Essex blend and cross weave that I'm including in my blocks as well.

A final characteristic is decorative embroidery stitches stitched over seams to add texture. I'm still debating if my quilt will include any of those embellishments, but it's still nice to remember that those are very common with traditional crazy quilts.

So 30 blocks in, I'm calling it a day, and have pieced the blocks together into a top. Considering the blocks were 9.5" each, the top measures 45.5" x 54.5". I rearranged a few blocks from where they had been on my design wall during block construction, but not many. Now off to see how far I get on a pieced backing from the scraps left hanging out on my cutting table. I'm not necessarily expecting to get the entire back, but we'll see!