What fabrics does a Crazy Quilt use?
All of the earliest examples, so far, at least, were made from cottons. Period. (Only one is embroidered or embellished: the Shelburne quilt.) It wasn’t until after the Civil War, when Log Cabin-style silk quilts began appearing, that the Crazy Quilt style seemed to become associated with the fabrics we now call “fancies:” silks, satins, velvets and such. For one thing, these elaborate fabrics began to be more reasonably priced. By the 1880s, even a rural housewife could afford silk for her best dress. Packets of silk scraps were readily available from textile companies, who saw the Crazy Quilt trend as a great way to make a profit on what was previously considered a throwaway item. Other companies, including magazines, joined the rush by offering patterns, patterns, fabrics, threads, and laces. There were even r eady-made embroideries that could be stitched on a Crazy top, much like the jacket patches available today. And women responded in a rush. An 1884 book, Crazy Patchwork, asser
