One day, out of the blue, I decided I wanted to make a crazy quilt jacket. Completely out of the blue, as in I have never made anything remotely resembling either a crazy quilt or a jacket. While I have made a few appliqué art quilts, the only garments I ever made were a skirt and a dress over twenty years ago and with much assistance. But, I had acquired some silk and velvet scraps during late night Etsy excursions, and I wanted to do something cool with them. So, crazy quilt jacket.
I looked at some commercial jacket patterns and not uncapriciously decided on Vogue Pattern V9212. I was aware this was not rated as an easy pattern, but I had no idea what I was getting into. Really, no idea. As it turns out, the crazy quilting is turning out to be by far the easiest part of this project.
First, I constructed the back, which, I have come to learn, has something called princess seams (which, as it turns out, are a really bad idea for what I’m trying to do). My seams were not completely without fault, but they’re also being covered up. Anyway, here’s the back in muslin, which is the base for the crazy patches. At this point, my ignorance is enabling.
The top back patches went fairly quickly. The bottom took a little longer because of the drape of the fabric, which I managed not to lose entirely. I think the entire back took two or three days to crazy quilt.
The front presented a more extreme version of the same problem: princess seams. I have thoroughly learned why most crazy quilt jackets are boxy. I did lose some curviness on the bust but not all of it, and I think the jacket may still fit.
The construction of the front sides took, I think, a day, and the crazy quilting of the front took two days, both sides altogether.
And here I am stuck because now the really hard part begins, putting it all together—back, front, collar, sleeves, facing, and lining. Yep. Facing and lining, too. Wish me luck, because I’m going to need it.
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