Don't Be Intimidated by Scrap Quilts

Reminder - get going on your Civil War Stars quilt if you haven't already. The quilt for this month is a very scrappy one.

I recently met some quilters who said that  making scrap quilts intimidates them. Many antique quilts were made from scraps and those of you who know my quilt style know that this is my favorite type of quilt. Not all scrap quilts are created alike, however, and you can always control just how scrappy your quilt turns out. If you are accustomed to making matchy quilts, just try going a little scrappy at first -  throw in a few different blocks amongst your matching blocks. It will grow on you. And take a look at antique quilts.

If you're afraid to go too scrappy - use the same colored sashing throughout to pull the scrap blocks together.

You can always try using different scrap blocks with the same background fabric.

When I lecture and show my quilts, I am often asked how I get that particular scrappy look in my quilts. I learned to  do this early on by studying old quilts that I was drawn to and determining what it was about them that I loved. In the quilt below, each block is made from different prints, no two color combinations are repeated. Antique quilts are often scrappy like this because they simply had to use what was available. I like to think that the women who made these quilts didn't just create them randomly, however.  In many of them you see that wonderful creative essence of play.

If I'm making a scrappy quilt, I like to make it using simple blocks. Simple blocks can be made to look more complex than they actually are by using a large variety of fabrics. And you can use the same block and  make another quilt with different fabrics for a totally unique look. Try it sometime.

Ophelia (Princess Lia)  is not usually allowed to play or sleep on my quilts but OMG how cute does she  look here? Poised and posed. If I stay perfectly still, like a statue, maybe Mom won't notice I'm on her quilt . . . .

 She thinks I'm playing when I yell at her to get off the quilt and she does this every time I try to set up my quilts for the camera.

What I love about this blue stars quilt (which was modeled after an antique quilt made with scrappy LeMoyne Star blocks on a light background), is that while the backgrounds of the blocks are blue, each is made with a different blue print.  Still blue, but using different prints gives it a subtle tone and keeps it from looking too matchy. A good way to go if you usually make matchy quilts and are afraid of making each block different. Just make the backgrounds of the blocks different. I think  it gives a nice old-fashioned feel to the quilt. And it's easy because the blocks are made using half-square triangles, no set-in seams. The quilt is in my book Remembering Adelia.

This one is in Adelia too . . .

I miss this particular quilt because right now it is hanging in the Grout Museum in Waterloo, Iowa for their Civil War Commemorative Quilts exhibit and will be there until Sept. If you have not seen this exhibit and are planning a trip to Iowa, please stop and take a look. It's a very nice exhibit. Scrappy quilts, antique quilts and lots and lots of small quilts too. I  blogged about it here.

But I'm getting off track. And sorry  - Blogger is messing with my fonts again and I can't change the type size or make it all the same so everything looks crappy, Arrgh! 

For many, the best way to make a scrappy quilt is to be spontaneous. I like to plan a little bit and always make extra blocks for a quilt. Use light prints with medium prints and medium prints with dark prints. Try making some extra blocks in varied colors and play around with them in the setting until you come up with a combination you like.  Set them together with the light and darker blocks contrasting for a nice flow. But don't fuss too much. It's not as hard as it seems if you just take the time to play and find what is pleasing to your eye. Throw in a lot of the colors you love and your scrap quilt will turn out just fine.