Scottish Rite Masonic Museum & Library

Crazy Quilt
1882
Susan McKinsey Folger
USA: Maryland, Baltimore
Silk, velvet, cotton
overall: 76 x 60 in.; 193.04 x 152.4 cm
Gift of Virginia Adam Browning and Majorie Adam Fisher
77.65

Crazy quilt made with silk, velvet, damask, brocade, and ribbon. Motif of star and crescent moon; embroidered with many motifs including interlocking rings, pagoda, Oriental vase, and florals. The quilt is foundation-pieced by machine; appliqued and embroidered by hand. Composed of nine 19 3/4" square blocks arranged in three rows of three. Sawtooth edging along the bottom. Straight-applied binding. There is no batting and no backing (just the foundation).

In the mid-1870s a new quilt style burst onto the American scene. In it quiltmakers arranged a variety of irregularly shaped pieces of fabric in seemingly random groupings. They then decorated blank spaces and seams with embroidery, painting, printed ribbons, or anything surprising or colorful that came to mind. These so-called crazy quilts did not require the maker to be highly skilled in piecing, appliqué, or quilting. This style did, however, provide a wonderful forum for talented embroiderers, such as the maker of this quilt, Susan McKinsey Folger. Although little is known about her today, those viewing this impressive work in the 1880s would have recognized her knowledge of the day's culture and fashion. Among the flowers, vases, and fans, Susan inserted a satin ribbon bearing the image of a woman. This ribbon, possibly a depiction of an actress of the day, was likely a giveaway from a cigarette package.