Crazy Quilt Song

sung acapella by Patricia Cummings

Close-up of a Crazy Quilt by Patricia Cummings; mixed fibers. Little "animal" was a gift from a student who says it may be from Peru (?) photo by James Cummings.

According to Redwork teacher, Louise Tiemann, the anonymous poem about the perils of Crazy Quilting was written by an unidentified source and published in Good Housekeeping magazine on October 25, 1890. This was intended to be sung to the tune of "The Star Spangled Banner."

CRAZY QUILT POEM/ SONG

Oh, say, can you see by the dawn's early light,
What you failed to perceive at the twilight's last gleaming.
A crazy concern that through the long night
O'er the bed where you slept was so saucily streaming;
The silk patches so fair,
Round, three-cornered and square
Gives proof that the lunatic bed-quilt is there.
Oh, the crazy quilt mania triumphantly raves,
And maid, wife, and widow are bound as its slaves

The second stanza is more difficult to understand the sung words because of its 19th century references to Kensington stitch (outline stitch); arrasene thread; a special type of thread that is similar to pipe cleaners, and point russe (a collection of five straight stitches, radiating from a center point, outward).

On that quilt dimly seen as you rouse from your sleep
Your long-missing necktie in silence reposes,
And the filoselle insects that over it creep,
A piece of your vest half conceals, half discloses;
There is Kensington-stitch
In designs that are rich,
Snow-flake, arrasene, point russe and all sich (sic)
Oh, the crazy-quilt mania, how long will it rave?
And how long will fair woman be held as its slave?

And where is the wife who so vauntingly swore
That nothing on earth her affections could smother?
She crept from your side at the chiming of four
And is down in the parlor at work on another.
Your breakfasts are spoiled,
And your dinners half-boiled,
And your efforts to get a square supper are foiled
By the crazy-quilt mania that fiendishly raves,
And to which all the women are absolute slaves.

And thus it has been since the panic began,
In many loved homes it has wrought desolation,
And cursed is the power by many a man,
That has brought him so close to the verge of starvation,
But make it she must,
She will do it or bust,
Beg, swap, and buy pieces or get them on trust,
Oh, the crazy-quilt mania, may it soon cease to rave
In the land of the free and the home of the brave.

Crazy Quilt Mania

I have made many Crazy Quilt items and I do understand how addicting this technique can be! The freedom to add whatever one wants to the carefully-laid, asymmetrical pieces of the design is really fun: beads, stitches, appliqués, old buttons, lace, pieces of old, silk neckties, as the poem says, writing, point russe stitches, "arrasene" thread (a thread of the nineteenth century often used to depict Goldenrod), and found items.

We still have major enthusiasts for Crazy Quilting, and those who have written books - inspiring ones at that! Judith Montano is at the top of that list, and so many other talented women who have followed in her footsteps. Nancy Kirk has been instrumental in teaching others how to stabilize and "save" old Crazy Quilt beauties. She established the Crazy Quilt Society, and holds a conference each year in Omaha, Nebraska. Nancy Eha continues to inspire us with her beading techniques. Please take a look at the photo above and you will see traces of a class I took with Nancy.

Are we who love Crazy Quilts, all crazy? Could be. One does not have to be "crazy" to make "Crazy Quilts," but it sure helps.

Note: Temporarily, I have removed my rendition of this song, but I will try to record this again, when I am in better voice!

For more information on quilt ephemera, please see: Louise Tiemann Blog