I have never been very good at "crumb quilting". It has been suggested that I should just do it and see how freeing that process can be. I disagree. In my mind, you have to consider size, scale of print, color, style and proportion to create something that is pleasing to the eye. I have also been told that I am bossy and a control freak.
Creative, Designer/Bossy, Control Freak. It is a mess inside my brain. I am a living breathing oxymoron. I design the Scrap Crazy Template Sets for Creative Grids, but I like my scrap quilts organized and easy on the eye. There is nothing wrong with piecing quilts with every fabric under the sun. I am amazed at the wild and crazy work of others, but I can't duplicate that kind of freedom in my own sewing.
That brings us to this piece of work. Those are the trimmed bits from the scrappy version of my Partial Credit pattern. Those scrap units were within reach as I was piecing a totally different project. I used them as "thread bunnies" or small scraps to stitch on so that something was always under my needle. When I completed a section of the quilt, I stitched two random pieces together and left them under my needle while I pressed the pieces for the main quilt. One thing led to another, and I started trimming the units and piecing the pieces. I have no idea what this will eventually become, but I do know I will love it when it is finished. I realized that I could crumb quilt with pleasing results if I organize my crumbs the way I organize the fabrics for my quilts. They were right, the process is extremely fun.
Then I happened to come across a Facebook post by Pat Sloan. Pat saved all the scraps and trimmed pieces from every project she made in 2021. She wanted to see if she could use those scraps and how much fabric was actually left from projects. I am sure that Pat sews as much, if not more, than I do. The scraps that are generated from a year of sewing are equal to several large quilts! The control freak side of my brain would never allow me to create the wonky blocks that Pat generated, but I will say I was inspired! I found that red/white block in the photo above very intriguing. I gave myself the afternoon off to experiment.
We have talked about this bin before. It contains all of what I call my Kim Diel style fabrics. Both of the quilts shown were made with the fabric from that bin. Several table runners and a few placemats came from there too. The bin is still full, but many of the pieces were slivers, chunks and leftover 2.5" squares that needed to go either into the trash or into a treasure. I decided to try for treasure.
I sorted and pressed and made a general plan. Instead of a scrappy center, I knew that I would want a focal point. I drew a quick "scribble" flower and a few leaves on a sheet of paper. Whatever I end up making should probably be a rectangle, so starting with a rectangle center made sense. I did some quick machine applique and made a promise to myself that I would hand stitch the stem using 12wt. Spaghetti Thread sometime in the future.
Part of the "plan" was to make the pieced part of the project mindless. To do that I knew I would need to set-up some "rules". The darker pieced strips would be cut 2.5" wide. The lighter pieces strips would be cut 1.5" wide. The longest scrap I would allow in the light area would be 6.5" long. The dark pieces would be much smaller. These rules were determined by the 2.5" by 6.5" ruler I decided to use for this project. It works as both a ruler and a template. Put the scrap down and trim. No reconsidering, no decision making, simply cut everything to a standard width.
I have work to do on other projects that have deadlines looming. These bits and pieces will serve as my thread bunnies as I assemble those quilts. Creating small sections of strips allows me to insert new colors into the assortment as I come across new scraps that work in this style/color. With everything trimmed to the same width, random piecing really is mindless. Some of those bits were former 4 Patch blocks, others were leftover Dresden Plate wedges. The piece in the bottom row was a larger quarter square triangle. The one on the end has yet to be trimmed.
Once I had plenty of pieced sections I began adding them as borders to the center panel. You can add, top & bottom then left & right or work your way around like a log cabin block. Trim the pieces to the size needed as you go.
The random piecing makes my creative brain happy. The standard size of the wonky piecing makes the control freak in me accept the wonky-ness.
I'm not sure where this project is headed or how large it will become. I do know that I have truly enjoyed the process of making it to this point. I also have enough scraps to make it much larger! For the time being I have put the bits, pieces and other supplies in one of my famous "bins". I have added that bin to the table of scrappy projects that holds my "just for fun-no deadlines" projects. When I have a few minutes or need some thread bunnies, those bins are in easy reach.
I hope you are inspired to do a little crumb quilting of your own. Fabric is expensive. You pay for every bit of fabric that goes into your quilt. You pay the same amount for all of the fabric that is leftover. Make those leftovers into a treasure! Have some fun!
