The History Of Crazy Quilting

I know many of my readers are cross stitchers and I suspect that not everyone knows the history of Crazy Quilting. Except for maybe associating it with the Victorian era. And of course, the Victorian era was the time that Queen Victoria reigned, 1837 - 1901.

I'm rather facinated with CQ history myself although I must say, I find it a bit far fetched that CQing was possibly ignited by the "Japanese crazed ceramics" seen at the Centennial Exposition of 1876. To be honest, I wouldn't begin to presume where the idea came from. I mean, who knows what women were thinking back then? We don't even always know what we're thinking now!

But what I can see is how this artform became so popular so quickly! Victorian women were lucky in that economy was quite good and they therefore were able to afford housemaids, cooks and nannies for their children leaving them with plenty of leisure time. And what was the proper activity for a victorian lady to do in her leisure time? Fancywork!

Now I could sit here for a couple of hours, getting into all the historical details of Crazy Quilting but instead, I'll send you over to the site of The Caron Collection where there is an absolutely incredible article by Betty Pillsbury. Be sure to read both Part 1 and Part 2.

One last note on Queen Victoria. She is quoted as saying, "I take a bath once a month whether I need it or not!" Well, I'm certainly glad that Crazy Quilting came back into popularity but as for bathing, I think we should stick with a shower a day!