Review: Crazy Shortcut Quilts: Quilt as You Go and Finish in Half the Time

Do you love an embroidered crazy quilt? Crazy Shortcut Quilts: Quilt as You Go and Finish in Half the Time by Marguerita McManus and Sarah Raffuse combines quick to piece blocks with quilt as you go to create a modern version of the crazy quilt.

The block patterns use the Stack ‘n Slash technique with slightly different cutting instructions. Four block designs plus instructions for creating your own designs are included. The instructions are clear, detailed and illustrated with lots of photographs.

The pieced blocks are layered with batting and backing material and quilted before the quilt top is assembled. The quilting is done with machine embroidery stitches, combining the embellishment and the quilting of the block. The quilted blocks are joined in rows using sashing strips and more machine embroidery. Then the rows are joined using more sashing strips. With this method you never have more than the width of one quilt block under the arm of your sewing machine.

The authors are a mother / daughter team that live in Alaska. They have created CrazyShortCuts.com, a website with photos of quilts from the book, teaching tips and the authors' blogs.