How To Assemble A CrazyQuilt - Step 2

I've completed Step 2 of the assembly process on my Marie Antoinette Crazy Quilt.  If there's one coping skill that I've learned with having ADD/ADHD, it's how to break things down into manageable portions!

Assembling any type of quilt can be overwhelming however, when we take the time to look at each step of the process, and focus on only one step at a time, it instantly becomes more "doable".

Step 2

The 2nd step in assembling a crazy quilt is to sew the blocks together.  My crazyquilts are quite heavy due to all the embellishments that I add to them.  To give the quilt stability and to support the weight of the quilt, I sew my quilts down onto yet another foundation.  For this, I use a heavy weight muslin.  This helps to distribute the weight evenly and keeps it from sagging when the quilt is finally hanging on the wall.

So the first part of Step 2 is to sew the blocks vertically into strips:

Again, I leave a 1/2 seam allowance and I also use the Zipper Foot for my sewing machine.  Using the Zipper Foot allows me to get right up to where my beading ends without the pressure foot having to deal with going over the beads along the edge.

So in the case of my Marie quilt, I now have 3 vertical strips consisting of 3 blocks each.  Now we will start sewing it down onto the foundation fabric.

Center the middle strip, right side up, onto your foundation fabric.  Next, line up one of the side strips face down on top of the middle section. 

Pin, pin, pin along the sewing line.  Pin all the layers down onto the foundation fabric.

You will want to pin the opposite side down as well to keep your blocks straight and in place while you sew the first seam.

Now it's time to sew:

When you have everything secured and well pinned, sew that first seam directly down onto the foundation fabric.

When you're done, remove all the pins and flip over your strip:

Repeat the process for each vertical seam making sure to line up your seams and pinning, pinning, pinning!

Once you have your quilt all sewn down to your foundation fabric, make sure everything good and flat.  Pin all the way around the outside of your quilt and then top stitch with your machine along the outside edge.  I use a 1/4 inch seam for this.

This will the hold the entire quilt in place onto your foundation:

So that's it for step 2.  It's really quite easy once you understand how to sew your quilt onto the foundation fabric rather than just sewing the blocks together.

I'll have Step 3 ready soon!  Be sure to see Step 1 of How To Assemble A Crazy Quilt.

How To Assemble A CrazyQuilt - Step 1

Since I'm putting my Marie Antoinette CrazyQuilt together, I thought I would share step by step, the process that I use to assemble my crazyquilts.  I know other crazyquilters have shared their process but I'm sure we all do things a little differently.

How To Assemble A Crazyquilt

Step 1

The first step is to trim and square up the blocks.  I use a self-healing mat and a rotary cutter:

You may be wondering why I have so much extra fabric.  I like to stitch in hoop.  Many crazyquilter's don't but for me, without a hoop, my hand gets tired  Using a hoop also keeps my stitching from distorting the blocks.  The excess foundation fabric is so the block fits in my 12 inch quilters hoop.

I always allow a 1/2 inch seam allowance.  Again, many crazyquilters leave the traditional seam allowance of 1/4 inch. I prefer to leave a 1/2 inch seam for crazyquilts.  The reason for this is due to the variety of fabrics and thicknesses.  A 1/2 seam will lay flat no matter what fabrics are used.

The blocks for my Marie Antoinette quilt are 9 inch blocks.  With a 1/2 inch seam allowance, my blocks are trimmed to 10 inches.

 Now that my blocks are all trimmed up, I will start sewing it together.  Due to the weight of my crazyquilts, I sew my quilts down onto yet another foundation.  I'll show you how in Step 2.