Cracker Jacks & Crazy Quilts

I was happy to see a box of Cracker Jacks with the original packaging style.  Getting a prize in the bottom of the box was so exciting!  I wish more products would release retro-type labels and presentations.  They'd look great in a bright, retro kitchen, wouldn't they?  Or just line them up on a shelf in a nautical themed room.

I've been hatching up another Halloween idea.  I have so many scraps of holiday fabric I can't bring myself to part with, so I thought a crazy quilt might be a good use of them.
Quilts can be wonderful, but they can also border on The Granny and be too fussy.
I like the fun, free-form look of crazy quilts.

This isn't trimmed up yet, but it's my first attempt.  It's kind of a mess, actually, but I've never made one before and I'm in the process of playing.  It's a nice, brainless activity to do at the end of a long day of art or sewing.  It lets you just fiddle and let your mind wander.  There are no rules or patterns-you just cut and sew and turn it around and sew some more until you fill up a square.

Here is a really cool quilt that went up on Bunte Auctions recently.  Isn't it intricate?  The color choices seem so unusual to me.

Ooooh....this pretty bird quilt was featured in Vintage Vogue.

The above and below closeups are by Roxanne Langan.  Aren't the old velvets and the creative stitchery scrum-diddly-umptious?

This little frog was from a Victorian quilt.

Some of the embroidery on the Victorian quilts was amazing.

Mine won't be that ambitious.  Also, I'm going to machine quilt it, and not add all the hand embroidery.  It's just going to be a quick (well, hardly) project made of scraps to give crazy quilting a test run.  If I enjoy it, I'll make a more detailed one the next go round.  I frequently like to do a simplified version of a project first.  That way, I can see if I enjoy it, iron out any major kinks, and get a general feel for the subsequent project.

Comments

[Sally]

I like to do that too, a test run on a project. It's how I discover important steps that I need to remember. And also gives me some great, useful insights on the smaller, more finicky aspects as well.

I think that quilt will be a lot of fun.

[Charlotte]

I love crazy quilts, the Victorian style, and would have one if they weren't so expensive and rare. And I won't have one that is falling apart, as many of them are. I like how you are recreating this idea with a Halloween theme. Show us the end result, s'il vous plait.

[brandi]

i WANT the crazy quilt! The first one, with the dogs and horses, oh my god Laura its GORGEOUS!! Name your price!!! I am sure you DON"T want to part with it, though. YOur work is so beautiful and your unique style shows through no matter what the medium. This reminds me of your block paintings, which I would also sell a piece of my soul for!!!
Your work goes straight through me!!!

[Rhonda Roo]

Hello Gorgeous! Wow, that vintage crazy quilt is too colorfully velvety perfectly put together for words. Cant wait to see your finished quilt, I know you will create a masterpiece ☺... I thought your idea for the placemats a couple posts back was brilliant!
And, you can pack a picnic basket for me anytime-cobb salad YUMMERS! You know how to picnic!
Oh! Congrats on the H20 hookup in the studio,
...and your Baby is incredibly adorable (no really)! She doesn't have to wear a headband, she sparkles all on her own ♥
Did i leave anything out? Oh-its good to have a clean shaven handyman around-I can attest to that. I have a clean shaven handy man (also known as Cowboy) and I wouldn't have it any other way!
XOXOXO Rhonda Roo
PS- I added you to my Twinklestars list!

[Laura Irrgang]

Thanks, Rhonda Roo-
 
I wanted that old quilt so much I could cry, but it went for thousands.  That was out of my price range by thousands.  So I'll try my own!  I'll post the results....we'll see how it goes.
 
Thanks for adding me to your Twinklestars.  I had dog names picked out of 'Sparklestar and Twinkletoes', by the way.
 
I have ANOTHER placemat project brewing.  I hope I can get to it before Halloween gets here.
 
I'm heading over to your blog as we speak!
Bye bye-
Laura

[Chanel Handbags]

IT IS hard to look at the Capitol in Washington, DC, without a frisson of excitement