Crazy Quilting For Newbies - Resources

Today, I thought I would talk about where to find supplies. 

Fabrics:  Walmart, Hobby Lobby, JoAnn Fabric Stores, Hancock Fabrics - all have a nice selection of fabrics to choose from.  Keep in mind, with crazy quilting, you don't need to buy yardage!  1/8 yard pieces will go a long way!

Satins, Silk, Brocade, Velvet & Velveteen are traditional fabrics for CQ.  I also use cotton prints and anything else I like. Look for things with texture and things that are reflective or shiny or sparkly.  Variety is the spice of life when it comes to Crazy Quilting.

I find all sorts of fun things at Flea Markets and Antique Shops.  Vintage damask napkins are nice to cut up for CQ work.  Vintage handkerchiefs, vintage embroidered linens and old lace are all easy to find at Flea Markets and usually quite affordable.  And there's always Ebay if you don't have access to antique shops and flea markets.

An excellent and affordable source for fabrics is through my friend Karen South.  Karen lives in Louisville, Kentucky and she has the most wonderful fabric store available to her.  I've been there!  Karen offers Fabric Packs that are perfect for crazy quilting.  Here is the link:  Karen's Fabric Packs.  She hasn't updated her site in awhile but you can email her for more information.

Lace & Trims:  I for one, cannot walk away from a pile of old lace at a Flea Market.  I love it all and have way more than I will ever use but I don't care.  Old lace is wonderful on crazy quilts.  Of course, there are plenty of beautiful new laces available too and I have some of those too.

You can of course find old lace at Antique shops and Flea Markets and there's always Ebay and Etsy.  Another source that offers tons of beautiful laces and trims is Flights Of Fancy.  Here, you can find all sorts of beautiful treasures for your CQ work.

Carolyn at Evening Star Designs offers fabrics, lace & trims, threads and other embellishments and CQ kits.

Maureen at Maureen's Vintage Acquisitions offers a huge and wonderful selection of Crazy Quilt supplies including antique Cigarette Silks.

And here's another link for beautiful fabrics, trims and embellishments.  Crazy Quilt Silks, Fibers & Embellishments.

Beads - You can find beads at all the usual places like craft stores and Etsy but one of my favorite sources is Fire Mountain Gems.  When you go to their site, be prepared to drool!  LOL!!!

Sequins - I have purchased the majority of my sequins from Cartwrights Sequins & Beads.  They offer a huge variety of sequins, they ship incredibly fast and they are very affordable!

Silk Ribbon - I hand dye and hand paint my own silk ribbon but many stitchers would rather not mess with dyes.  A source for beautiful hand dyed silk ribbon is my dear friend Pat Winter.  Be sure to visit her blog and then you can email her for information on her hand dyed ribbons.  Pat also has an Etsy shop that you will enjoy visiting.  She offers little embellishment kits that would be perfect for a newbie crazy quilter.

Buttons - What can I say about buttons?  You can find them everywhere!  All the usual places like craft stores, antique shops, Ebay & Etsy.  You don't need a ton of fancy buttons to get started but if you would like a few beautiful and unusual handpainted buttons, you will enjoy visiting Gerry's Etsy shop. 

So, that's a good list of places for you to start with.  It's not a complete list of resources but it definitely gives you a lot of good options for supplies.

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to leave a comment here or you can send me an email.